Land of the Free (and Easy)…
Welcome to this, my 20th post. I thought after the Burma pieces that this one would be relatively short – but again there’s much to share, experiences creep up on you and they’re worth sharing. I’ll probably avoid posting any photos this time…while I’ll be writing about the wonderful Kingdom of Thailand, quite a photogenic place, it’s hard to top the sights I saw in Burma.
A few quick things before getting into it:
-Please, please go out and pick up a copy of Emma Larkin’s superb book entitled Secret Histories: Finding George Orwell in a Burmese Teashop. I read this a couple years ago, and am re-reading it again now. Should have done so just before visiting Burma…probably wouldn’t have brought it into the country as it slams the military regime and would be viewed as dangerous by them. Larkin visits the spots where Orwell was posted as a British military policeman in Burma – and highlights the ironies inherent in his writing 50-60 years ago. As she says, “The Burmese joke that Burmese Days, Animal Farm and Nineteen Eighty-Four are a trilogy about their country. But modern Burma is a dark and dangerous place, ruled by one of the oldest and most brutal dictatorships in the world.” ‘Nuff said.
-The fellow Chris whom I met in Chiang Mai posted a comment on my Burma posts – thank you, Chris, I wish there were more comments. I mentioned Chris in my second Burma post, he works for Mizzima.com (Burma news site). Chris’s comment was intriguing and somewhat disturbing – he said that there have been rumors that Mr. Charles, who runs the eponymous and hugely popular guesthouse in Hsipaw, Burma, is a government informer. Uh-oh…he’s certainly in a good position to keep an eye on every foreigner coming into that town…and when I trekked with his son I certainly had a ton to say about the government. I’ll leave it at that…but as Chris said in his comment, one can’t and shouldn’t quickly dismiss rumors like these in Burma, almost anything dark can be possible in that place.
-The post following really covers two stints in Thailand – a few days before I went on to Burma, then a couple weeks post-Burma where I mostly roamed around the northern regions.
-This little stool I’m sitting on right now in my Chiang Rai guesthouse seems to lack an interior – feels like I’m constantly getting sucked into the seat. Must be like that old chestnut about the morbidly obese man/woman who takes a dump in an airplane toilet, presses the flush button, and gets hermetically sealed onto the seat…
First, a few bits on the pre-Burma days in Bangkok. On the cab en route to town, noticed the ‘Eastin Hotel’ which was a blatant yet impressive rip-off of the Westin Hotel. You wonder if Starwood/Westin bothered to prosecute that one…
I checked into the Plaza Athenee, a five-star job right near Sukhumvit Road, where random mayhem often prevails. The Plaza is a very nice place where I spent a week some years ago on a project. I wouldn’t have splurged this time, but got an email a couple months ago warning me that I’d lose all my Starwood points if I didn’t use some soon – checked around and found that the Plaza is a Starwood member, and that one night would only set be back 3,000 points – not that bad. So that’s where I stayed my first night in Bangkok – for free – and made the most of it by scoring some nice toiletry supplies and having an excellent shower. Also used the gym and pool, and invited an old friend to visit and hang out in my spacious room. I said that I stayed for free – but of course, after a beer from the mini-bar and a couple local phone calls, the bill still came to US$15. Gotta really be careful about those extras…
Next day moved over to the far less primo area of Khao San Road, the backpacker haven in Bangkok. Much has been written of this area, so won’t belabor it – simply found a reasonable spot called Siam Guest House and stayed there for the next couple nights. Took care of laundry, got a haircut, and chilled out. Read in the newspaper that the police had picked up a suspect in the JonBenet Ramsey case – yet another instance of weird news/murders stalking my trail. That was all over the papers for the next few days and weeks – but it seems that trail went cold as the fellow was lying. Pretty random stuff…
Gave the aforementioned (in the Burma posts) Bob a call – he’s the brother-in-law of my old and dear friend Charles from Boston. Bob and I had met just once at Charles and Jodi’s (his sister) place in Boston, and we had made very tentative plans to meet in Bangkok, where he’s spent the past year. Bob and I talked about Burma plans, made plans to hang out in Bangkok, etc. I then went out to lunch in ‘Little Arabia’ section of Bangkok – a side street where there are a few Middle East restaurants and where you’re as likely to see a tall Nubian guy in a white djellabah as a Thai or a Westerner. Went to Al-Hussain, one of my faves in Bangers. Ordered the mixed shish kebab plate, while waiting observed some real Arabians eating w/their hands. Not just picking up a piece of pita, like most of us do – these guys use their hands to mix their rice with curries and mixings, into a great heap of slop, and then eat the gooey stuff with their hands. Not too sure I’d enjoy eating that way…
When I got up an hour later, my back was so sore I could hardly stand. Had no idea what I did to aggravate it, but the pain was severe and it took me a couple minutes before I could straighten up and walk away. I tend to get this about once a year, and here it was…bad timing as I was fairly busy getting ready for the trip to Burma. Tried to do a bit of yoga to stretch it out, but was unable to do much besides try to rest it (and drink some alcohol to loosen my muscles – yeah, right). Went out with Bob that night and he seemed concerned about my obvious discomfort. Managed to have a good time anyway, but felt like an old geezer. Next day, looked up a chiropractor on the web and went to see him. He’s an Aussie who’s half-Thai, and had a very nice little practice near Sukhumvit. I’m generally a big fan of chiros, my sister Bonnie is one herself and they’ve helped me over the years. I’ve had great luck with Aussie chiros – Oz is a chiro and alternative medicine-friendly nation. But this fellow had a tough time with me – my back was so stiff he needed to try several different ways to crack the old back. Got something done, but in coming days I was still half-incapacitated and it took the passage of a week or so, plus some gradually increasing yoga stretches, before I felt any better. Still, it didn’t really detract from my trip – I just gritted my teeth and bore the pain. Made a follow-up appointment after my return to Bangkok.
Bangkok is a random place – whatever you’re looking for, you can find it here. Loads of expats and tourists everywhere, it seems – mostly Brits and Germans, but all other sorts too. Sometimes gets to be a bit much…I don’t think I’d love living in Bangkok for a long time, sensory overload would be a real issue. But it’s a fantastic place to spend a few days, and many people swear by it as a place to hang your hat. I think that doing business here would get annoying – few things are truly straightforward. Dr. Clark the aforementioned chiropractor in Bangkok was in fact planning to move back to Oz…he had become tired of the business environment in Thailand and really missed the Aussie lifestyle as well. And he’s half-Thai, with language, family, etc. on his side.
After three days in Bangers, went on to Burma, which you’ve already read about in my prior two postings. Imagine if you will, then, a two-week break in this post, picked up again upon my return to Bangkok…
On the cab ride back into Bangkok, read the Bangkok Post and noticed that the US football season was nigh. Snuck right up on me…my sense of seasons and timing is already way off. Should be a moment of truth for the Patriots, what with their having lost some real talent to free agency in the off-season. But I still believe! And anyway, the Red Sox have had a hellish stretch and we Bostonians need a fresh spark for the coming months – and won’t get it from the Celtics or Bruins.
Had dinner that night with Bob, his German buddy Jan, and Jan’s girlfriend Sue. Went for a hearty (is there any other type?) German meal. Could barely walk afterward, but we did stop in the infamous Soi Cowboy area for one more beer. German food is probably the opposite of Asian cuisine – it’s so heavy than all you want to do afterward is sit or sleep. American food is similar, but really the German stuff is ponderous – couldn’t take that more than once in a blue moon.
Next day, after seeing Dr. Clark and having him successfully adjust my back, which had really loosened up, flew up to Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second city. This was my second visit there – went last Xmas season with my step-sister Amanda, who was teaching English near Bangkok. Really enjoyed CM last time – much smaller than Bangkok, but with plenty of sights (as many wats/temples as BGK), huge variety of foods, and endless possibilities for motorbike touring around the city. Stayed at the Smile Guesthouse, which once housed the famed Khun Sa, warlord of the opium trade in the Golden Triangle, when he came through CM. Wasn’t thrilled with Smile…a bit costly and very noisy. Checked out nearby options and found one called Safe House – decided to stay there after making a tour of other northern towns. Safe House sounded like a place that Khun Sa would really have enjoyed…
Got frequently lost walking around – the old city is a rectangle surrounded on all four sides by a moat and roadways, and it’s hard to know which side you’re on. But the central area has very cool little soi’s (alleys) and there are fine little guesthouses and eating spots therein – found a Tibetan joint and had some delicious momo’s (dumplings). Hit a few of the bars and then hit the sack.
Next day, was reading in the Post about a demonstration that PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) held in front of a KFC outlet in Bangkok. PETA was protesting the brutal treatment of chickens before/during their slaughter – sounded like a reasonable protest to me. But it was something to read about the response of average Bangkok folks walking by – really said something about ‘the Asian mentality,’ although I hesitate to generalize thus. One woman said something along the lines of ‘Well, chickens are bred for human food, so it doesn’t matter how they’re treated.’ Nice, lady – can I come work for you as a servant? And there were a few other comments which I found less than sensitive – seemed like they were missing the point of the protest. After all, it’s probably quite possible to improve the lot of these chickens, admittedly with some cost implications. It’s not a binary situation. Anyway, I really wonder what would happen in the absence of foreign groups like PETA – would local versions ever emerge?
That night, I went to a yoga class near my guesthouse. I went to this studio back in December, when previously in CM, and enjoyed the class immensely. It’s held at 5 p.m., and concludes as the sun sets. The place is a bit humid and I sweat like a donkey, but it was a ‘controlled sweat’ and it was actually a good feeling when paired with some eastern music and the various asanas (poses) we practiced. Had a magical memory of that class and wanted to revisit it. Had also made friends with a Japanese fellow nicknamed Hira, and we had stayed in touch over email. We met during the class in December, when we did some partner poses and he and I worked together. I wasn’t sure he was Japanese, but when I was bending him in a potentially painful manner, I asked ‘daijobu’ (‘no problem?’) in Japanese and he just laughed. That broke the ice and kicked off our friendship. This time, we met again at the studio, endured a challenging practice with many near-impossible asanas, and went out for dinner at a great little inexpensive Thai place down the street. Turns out that Hira is a script-writer who just sold a script to a Hong Kong studio – a love story, he told me. He also teaches violin class in CM on Sunday nights. Very talented and unassuming fellow – really enjoy his company.
Noticed that evening that the same dispenser of dental floss had lasted for weeks, despite nightly use. I think it has 50 meters of floss – half a football field’s worth. Still, it felt like I had gone through much more than that – and even today I’m still on that same dispenser. We may be experiencing a miracle much like that of Hanukkah here – in that case, one night’s lamp oil lasted for eight – in my situation, one floss dispenser is lasting for weeks and weeks.
Had several other random ruminations that night. One was that my frequent moving around, while huge fun, had presented conflicts with some aspects of ‘normal living.’ It has been challenging to maintain regular routines for eating, exercise, writing, and studying languages, all of which are priorities for me (esp. eating). I’m not disturbed about the challenges here, but at some point will want to travel more slowly in order to get in all of the things important to me. The other observation is around plastic bag etymology. I’m a real plastic bag rat – use ‘em for laundry, for carrying shoes, for protecting mobile, etc. against rain, and so on. I’ve even barfed (successfully, to great acclaim and humor) into a handy plastic bag on a bus in the Philippines some years ago. So I never toss out a sturdy-looking bag. The ones I’ve now got with me run the gamut of sources: Logan Airport in Boston, Robinson’s Supermarket in Cebu, Yamaya wineshop in Tokyo, etc. There’s probably a book out there around plastic bag etymology – although it probably wouldn’t sell many copies.
Was planning to tour several nearby towns on a motorbike – but was told that the roads were hellish and that I might get killed. So decided to take buses, and that worked fine. Toured the towns a bit faster than my ideal, but had limited time, so made the whistlestop tour. First went to Mae Sariang, a riverside town a few hours from Chiang Mai. Stayed at Riverside 1988, a cute little place perched above the river, next to a groovy little food place with pillows called Goodview. Practiced yoga on the patio at sunset – as I lay on my back I watched scores of geckos run around the ceiling upside down. Wished I could join them as I lay earthbound. Went to Goodview (not many other options in this town!) for dinner/drinks. Sat next to a Japanese guy who was heavily bandaged and had obviously had a motorbike/pushbike mishap – quite common in Thailand, and the reason I had gone the bus route. We talked for a while – he’s a university student in Kyoto, a city I know pretty well. He’s in Thailand for 3 months, and the previous day he had gotten into a motorbike accident and had been treated (reasonably well, he said) in the local hospital. Still, he looked fried…and when a lovely English woman named Sarah came over to ask me about Dharamsala, India (which I had mentioned to the Japanese guy), he fell right asleep on a pile of pillows. He didn’t seem to have heard of the Dalai Lama, about whom Sarah and I were chatting – not sure if he really was clueless, or whether the medication was kicking in by then…
Ended up hanging out and talking with Sarah for a couple hours. Had a few bottles of Chang beer and a few of her cigarettes…chatted about good places to visit, and our respective life plans. She just finished up a year of university down in Melbourne, and is heading back to the UK soon to finish up there. She’s interested in working with the Tibetan people in Dharamsala, a place where I’m heading quite soon. In fact, I had just written a letter to the Dalai Lama’s office there – requesting an informal audience in a few weeks’ time. I had done the same thing in 1992 when I worked in Bombay, then traveled up north to Himachal Pradesh state – and had gotten a reply stating that His Holiness would be traveling during my stay in Dharamsala. While disappointed, I kept the letter and had it framed – it’s one of my favorite possessions. I don’t know if the Dalai Lama still sees foreign visitors, as he did years ago – but I wrote another letter and posted it from CM (only 19 baht to send a letter air mail to India – incredible). Let’s see what comes next.
Around midnight or so the restaurant started closing and a few people went down to the river to watch the full moon. While I kind of wanted to go – and was enjoying hanging around with Sarah – I was beat from a busy few days in CM and decided to call it quits. I had ‘budgeted’ for a few mellow nights and already had a good buzz going…and have come to realize you can’t go hard every night. I hate to accept that fact, but have grudgingly given in over time.
Really enjoyed my day/night in Mae Sariang – and will certainly spend more time there in the future, when I get my act more together on writing, exercise, etc. But had to move on again, to Mae Hong Son, the provincial capital. My ex-colleague from Monitor Group, John Wagner, had told me to MHS is one of the prettiest little cities he’s seen, and I agreed after a few minutes there. It’s a small place – less than 10K inhabitants, probably – but has a nice little manmade lake in the center, and some nice roads and buildings too. Stayed in the Friend House, which was fine – mattress on the floor and a solid fan to keep me cool (enough). Rented a motorbike the next day, rode all the way up to the Burmese border. Visited two villages – first was a Chinese KMT village formerly known as Mae Aw, renamed Bam Rak Thai (‘Thai-Loving Village’). The former KMT soldiers are very old now, and some of them were fighting back in the ‘80’s for the Thai government against communist rebels up there. These border areas are weird and unstable – huge drug trade, random factions duking it out, etc. Then rode on to Ban Ruam Thai, a Shan village. Started to pour – so rode home in the rain, got soaked but enjoyed the changing weather. Sun soon came out again and by the time I got back to Mae Hong Son, I was mostly dry. Had lunch – a great Shan-style chicken casserole – at Salween River Restaurant, part-owned by a Brit named Alan who was a good discussion partner as I wolfed down my food, then headed back to the guesthouse to collect my backpack and head to the bus station for my next leg.
Went on to the tiny town of Soppong for a night. John Wagner, my superb Thai info source, had recommended the Soppong River Inn, another place right on the local river. This guesthouse was perfect in every way – great patio and chairs overlooking the rushing river, which provided a nice sound backdrop to everything – well-appointed rooms with nothing missing, comfortable bed, etc. Got a nice room for only 500 baht a night – there are other, better rooms going for more, but my room was probably the best value I’ve had in years. I was the only guest that night, so it was nice and quiet, and I finished reading Fahrenheit 451, which Bob had lent me in Bangkok. Have always enjoyed Ray Bradbury’s works – he has a child-like enthusiasm and sense of wonder which is almost never found in adults. Gotta pick up some other Bradbury books in second-hand bookshops around here.
Wandered into town for dinner – had a nice dish of moo arawy (‘delicious pork’) at another hotel. Then strolled back to my place in a light rain, to read beside the river with candlelight. The frogs and cicadas were loud, but comforting – and the river was just great – it was the most relaxing night I’d had on my trip and I wanted more of these. Of course, the primary obstacle was plain and simply me – I have trouble sitting at home and reading when there are adventures to be had just around the corner…
During dinner that night the hostess/proprietess of the other hotel guessed correctly that I was staying at the Soppong River Inn. Apparently many Americans stay there – the owner is an American woman married to a Thai fellow. And I had noticed all along my trip that certain places shade towards certain nationalities – a few travel agents and guidebooks can make all the difference. Germans might stick together and frequent one hotel, while Brits prefer another, and so forth.
This was a Saturday night – obviously not much going on during any night in Soppong, although this was low season. It made me think about my ongoing deliberations about Saturday night, and other nights of the week. I’ve often said that I want to spend time in a place where every night is like a Saturday night…or at least where other nights (particularly Sunday) lack that melancholy ‘school night’ feeling that I and many others get. But I’ve come to realize a couple of things, as follows:
-While there are probably places where every night is crazy – Rio, Madrid, etc. – there will always be Saturday night followed by Sunday night. That’s immutable – but OK, if you can replace the melancholy feeling with one of calmness and reflection – admittedly, against our human nature and not simple to do.
-If you can get into a lifestyle or groove where Monday morning doesn’t suck – all the better. After a while on this trip, and certainly by the time I reached Soppong, it didn’t really matter to me what night it was. I could have a raging time on a Tuesday, and kick back and read a book on Saturday. It seemed to take about three months for me to settle into this mindset, and I found it eminently relaxing.
Next day, took a bus to Pai, a small town inundated by Westerners year-round. Stayed in Charlie’s Guesthouse – a la Mr. Charley’s in Hsipaw, Burma. Couldn’t stop humming the Grateful Dead tune ‘Mr. Charley,’ i.e. ‘Mr. Charley told me so.’ I know that my buddy Charles in Boston loves that one…and I do too. Went motorbiking in the beautiful valley surrounding Pai. Got lost, but just for a while and eventually found my way back. Spied a bit on the new airport – that will bring in even more Westernerns and Pai will become a foreign enclave for sure. Tried to go rafting the next day, but the tour shop didn’t have sufficient numbers so that didn’t come off. Befriended a French guy who worked there – went out for drinks that night. He told me that the tour shop opposite his, which is run by a Thai guy – a real jerk – had a tourist die on a rafting trip two weeks before. Sombering news – apparently 9 tourists have perished in 2006 on rafting trips in Thailand. Get yourself a good operator (and check the web news) before going on one of these. Probably just bad luck, not incompetence – but be careful anyway.
Pai was so full of foreigners – I wondered what the next place is. Perhaps the northeast of Thailand, known as Isan. Probably not full of white people, at least not yet. But we Westerners really seem to love Thailand, so the spread may continue. The government here is thinking about changing the visa situation so that you can’t just duck over the border and come back every month – new laws would have a max 90 days in country, followed by 90 days where you can’t come back. There are significant numbers of Westerners (and Japanese) with businesses in Thailand, and who are for all intents and purposes permanent residents. Those over 55 can get retirement visas – but for the others, the new law, if passed, would completely screw up their lives. Hopefully it won’t pass. I think the government wants to root out illegal immigrants from various nations – prominently, Burma – but perhaps also wants to get rid of the many alcoholic weirdos who you see all over Thailand. Stay tuned…
Returned the next evening to Chiang Mai. Took it easy that night. Had lunch the next day at Sizzler – one of my guilty pleasures in Asia. It’s often hard to find a good salad, even in Thailand. And I do love to walk up to the salad buffet and load up. Sometimes I have a huge craving for a salad pita sandwich – my friend Dri from Tufts got me hooked on those, we used to eat together at MacPhie (or was it Dewick) Hall and she made these amazing pita pockets. Once when I was sick she brought a couple back to our dorm and that made a convert out of me. So I killed a few plates at Sizzler, and walked out of there with my quota of veggies for a few days…
Rented another motorbike and drove up to the temple of Doi Suthep. Quite nice – but after the awesome sights of Burma, it was hard to get excited. Rode back into town behind a pickup truck full of cuties…declined to pass them when I had an opening, it was fun to just glide behind them and trade smiles every now and then. The feeling of speeding along and total freedom was so incredible that I’d burst out laughing now and then – certainly a nice way to spend a Tuesday afternoon. Once back in town got a nice massage and then went to a karaoke place, where I sang Carpenters and Beatles songs with a Thai girl there for a couple hours.
The following night I went back to the yoga studio again. Class was a bit more manageable this time, and afterward Hira and I again went out for dinner. We got more into each other’s lives and careers this time…and made tentative plans to look over each other’s writings. He’s already checked out my blog – and told me he thought there might be a book somewhere in there. I’d thought about that, but the issue is that there’s really no central theme and no point of differentiation. Many travelers have written blog-like books and the world doesn’t need another. But he does have a point – there are a few possible themes I can mine within (and adjacent to) the blog, including the ‘early retirement’ angle – which also isn’t that novel, but I bet I can put a good spin on it. Anyway, Hira may send me his scripts, and I asked him to continue reading and thinking about my blog – and I may share some of my other outputs with him at some point. It’s good to have some sounding boards for your work.
Our dinner also made me think about the nature of building friendships. There’s not much to it, in my opinion – just a mutual desire to get to know another person, and a bit of effort to make it work. Friends can really be made anywhere, anytime…and in my experience, often out of the blue and unexpectedly. Bob and I met Marta and Enrique in Heho Airport, Burma, and I think we’ll see each other in Madrid when I’m there in December. You can sort of sense when you’ll wind up liking someone and wanting to be friends, although sometimes you guess wrong and then it’s usually not hard to abort. I feel like I already have many friends and family, so am generally not pushing hard to make new friends – but at the same time I find certain people quite intriguing and want to keep my horizons fresh, which can require meeting new people.
I’ll miss northwest Thailand. I loved cruising around the area on a motorbike, and I think next time I’ll do more touring that way. The road between Pai and CM is rough – was built during WW2 by Japanese troops, and is super-windy and at some points precarious. But other stretches aren’t bad, and might be fun on motorbike.
From CM, went on to Chiang Rai, a small city to the northeast. On the bus into CR I listened to my iPod…randomly chose some Rush songs, and listened to the back half of Moving Pictures, particulary ‘The Camera Eye’ and ‘Witch Hunt.’ The theme of this album is the fragile nature of freedom and individualism within the greater context of society – reminded me of the Orwellian backdrop to Burma. Thankfully Thailand is a free place and while the government is often shaky, you don’t need to be on your toes every minute here.
CR is a compact place. Read the local English language monthly magazine, which featured a very cute woman on the cover – then ran into her tending bar at a new restaurant in town. Played pool with a ladyboy (‘katoey’ in Thai) and got spanked badly. Limped off to a nearby bar, which (surprise, surprise) had on-stage go-go dancers and overpriced (for Thailand) drinks. Watched an old man (probably 65-70 years old) try to grab the ass of every bar-girl who walked by. He was obviously in heat…and hammered…he kept getting up from his chair and wandering up to the stage girl and reaching out to her. It was a very funny sight – and at the same time I respected the guy’s libido, I don’t know what it’s like to be his age, but he obviously hadn’t slowed down much over the years!
Am heading to Bangkok again tomorrow. Will be there for the weekend, then will fly to Mumbai on Sunday, to spend almost 3 months in India. I’ll miss Thailand, but should return in the near future…and anyway, it’s probably good to leave for a while, it’s a bit too easy to get a drink, get yourself in a bit of trouble, and go native here. Thailand is a hedonistic place, which I like – but which does demand a bit more self-control than I usually can muster. And I won’t say any more than that!
In Bangkok I’ll hang out with Bob, with my ex-colleague John Wagner, and also with my ex-colleague/current money manager Yuhin. Should be a fun weekend. Expect to get on my Mumbai flight in depleted shape. Anyway, India is a bit less lively in terms of nightlife, so I’ll get a chance to recover – I think.
Yeesh – another endless post. How do you, my dear readers, put up with this shit??
I’ll leave you with a couple photos which may shed some light on the coup. The first is from a major Bangkok mall, the second is from Doi Suthep Pagoda outside Chiang Mai. See you next week, globalists…
Tags: Travel
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