Chiang Mai, meaning “new city,” is the largest city in Northern Thailand. It has over 300 Buddhist temples. One of the first things I did after sleeping off my jet-lag was find that special temple, that was calling me. I kneeled down and prayed Thai-style, I learned this from my relatives. I donated some baht to go towards monks’ education. This is considered part of the Thai practice of “making merit.” I figured it was a good way to start this journey.
I roamed the old city for hours, got lost, found my bearings, ate all sorts of street food, haggled in thai at the crowded Sunday Market, felt completely blissful, and at times, well, sweaty. Even at night the temps are pushing 90 degrees F and it is rainy season, so the humidity is killer. This morning some streets were flooded. I waded through water above my ankles to get to school. Yes, it was kinda gross, yet I was absurdly excited about it. This is Chiang Mai for real, not the usual tourist visiting experience. I took some video of the flooded areas, but have had some issues with wifi here and will try posting it later. On top of that, my adaptor/converter died ;( Luckily, I found a small shop that had what I needed to charge my devices, and I made friends with the two gals working there. I was happy to practice my Thai with them and they were happy to practice their English! I plan to visit them again, and chat more as I improve.
