When a person has too much time to think...

For the sake of writing about something other than Asia, Thailand or Chiang Mai... maybe this is something just about everyone can relate to. Do you ever think about the story your hands could tell? Some of us use our hands to flap around all over the place to tell a story, sure, but I mean the life your hands have lived. They're pretty amazing little things. Think about all the places they've been. From spending most of their time in your infant gummy mouth to all the squishy and plastic toys they've grabbed at. All the different floors they've crawled on, all the dirt they've dug pudgy dirty fingers in. All the words they've written, pages they've turned, high fives they've given, monkey bars they've grabbed and clung onto. All the doors they've opened, buttons they've pushed, hands they've shook. Think of all the information your hands have gathered, the fact that you can look at just about anything and know what it will feel like before your hands get to it. Your hands will know what food will feel like before you know what it tastes like. All chores they've done, the music they've made, or balls, bats, clubs and rackets they've played with. All the trees and rocks and handrails they've climbed. All the emails they've written and keys they've typed! All the 'hello' and 'goodbye' waves from afar, all the flirty little gestures, the hugs they've made a little tighter. Think of all the places your hands will go; how much you will count on them. How little credit you give them. You know what they look like, front and back, left and right - you see them everyday, but maybe you haven't been grateful enough to say, "Thanks, you two." Look at those handsome little things and be amazed at the story they could tell.

Sushi and a Fortune Teller

First of all, I would like to confidently say that I've just had the best sushi of my life. Holy wow. Maybe it was the fact that it was unlimited, as in all-you-can-eat. Yes, all you can eat sushi, made to order. Not just sushi, but high quality sashimi, tempura, and endless other Japanese dishes. I can't stop thinking about it. It's borderline love affair. For under $10 we kept plates coming faster than we could eat them, and probably consumed hundreds of dollars worth of food. Maybe it's not healthy to eat a few kilos of raw fish. I don't care because it tastes better when you know you can get another plate of these delicacies at the nod and a signal to the waitress, who by the way was staring at us the whole time. She was probably in awe at our superb garbage-disposal-like wolfing abilities. This kind of meal is sort of a splurge on the Thai wallet, but I am willing to get a second job to keep eating here (and probably an extension on my gym membership will be in order as well).

After dinner we went to the 39 baht fortune teller lady in the middle of the market. I don't know if I've ever been to a fortune teller before, but I thought I'd give it a go. The woman is Thai so I had two of my Thai friends taking notes and translating for me. It was Tarot card style and I had to choose 10 cards with my left hand and then she flipped them over one by one and told me about, well, me. Here's what I gathered from the translation: I am easy going, sociable, and charming. I like to talk to people and make new friends easily. I will see my family soon. However, I am lonely at times because a "soul mate" is very far away. So, that's that.

Then I get to ask 5 questions. After each question I choose three cards with my left hand. My first question was, "What will I be doing for work over the next year?" She said my work may include some travel and it will be very hard and tiring. Second question was if I will ever have children (which is oddly the answer I was most afraid of hearing), and she said very clearly, "Of course." The cards I picked showed a happy couple on one and a happy family on the other, and the last card signified 2. Two kids. I also asked if my family will have good fortune over the next year. She said everything with my family will continue as normal, that they are very loving and are good at helping people. The last two questions I asked were followed by answers that freaked me out a little too much to share here. For something like that, translated into another language, mind you, to hit so close to home made my jaw drop a little. It's all in the cards, I guess.

Monday Thoughts

Not much to report about, and not much to complain about either. I realized that it's a weekday but I don't work this week. These week long vacations kind of sneak up on me. In any other situation I'd probably be anxious for a week-long vacation, but the truth is, I don't think very far in advance anymore. The last few days have been the same for the most part and it's been a nice routine. Although I feel like I'm retired, it's nice to slow down and take time to think about what you enjoy doing when you don't have to do anything.

I eat long breakfasts, read books, work out, sit in the sun by the pool (and getting a little too tan for my liking), eat picnic lunches and go out with friends at night. Tough life. I've also been enjoying all the goodies in the package from home (thank you!).

That being said, I have more time to listen to and observe the people around me. One theme that seems to come up in several places these days is Thai-Western relationships. Or just how Thai people and Westerners view relationship expectations so differently. Now I may touch more on this later when I can organize my thoughts, but I've heard some very interesting stories in the last weeks about how Thais and Westerners react differently to things like flirting, language barriers, expectations in a partner, communication, "duties and roles", money, infidelity, honesty, and regular relationship management techniques. I don't want to go into too much detail, since I don't want to offend anyone at the moment (such a peaceful Monday). However, maybe I need to have collect some first hand data and date a Thai guy as an experiment. Hmmm, probably not the most ethical thing to toy with a young, sensitive Thai heart for the sake of a social experiment on a blog. Ha. Maybe next time.

For Best Result

Read the sign carefully. I don't care who you are. I don't care where you are. Dropping your pants is not always the best result, especially in public. Although, it might be a judgment call. A buddy of mine puts it nicely: whenever he sees something so odd that you can't help but cock your head, scrunch your eyebrows and give one belly grunt of a laugh he says, "Oh but that would make too much sense..." Happens daily.

Mia and Adam Do Chiang Mai (Part 3: The Unexpected Week)

Due to the situation in Bangkok, Adam was unable to leave the country, so a quick bus ride back to Chiang Mai led to another week of hanging out. More highlights:

Thanksgiving. Being in Chiang Mai on Thanksgiving is an odd experience because even when you try to relate to other westerners wishing for mashed potatoes and stuffing, they might not get it. I forget that Thanksgiving is strictly American. My British friends ask me what Thanksgiving is and I was incredibly surprised that it was something foreign to them. Then once I explained the origin of Thanksgiving, it was like well, duh, of course only Americans celebrate. Regardless of the handful of people in this town actually celebrating, we found a nice restaurant that served a real Thanksgiving dinner. It was actually great food. Our group of six (some American, some Thai) enjoyed the meal, each others company, and going around the table saying what we are thankful for. It doesn't quite beat being in chilly Minnesota with the fam, but it was warm in more ways than just the weather. Earlier that day I explained what Thanksgiving was to my students and I asked them to go around the room and say what they are thankful for. Many of them said their family and friends, but the mischievous group of boys in the back were all thankful for their beautiful English teacher who has such a nice smile and makes them so happy to come to class. I said, 'Nice try, A for effort.'

More Climbing. Over the week we took a couple more climbing trips and I actually learned quite a bit in a couple of days. One of the days out at the crag was especially nice because afterwards we had a gorgeous dinner out at a ranch near the mountains overlooking the sunset. There were horses and ponies nearby and the food and company was good as ever. For some reason it felt a little foreign. It was a scenery that belonged in a dream, not actually in real life, Thailand or otherwise. But it was. The ride home into the Asian red sunset was just as dreamlike.

More Motorbiking. Speaking of riding into the sunset, there was a lot of motorbiking happening throughout the week. Adam likes to drive different motorbikes and I'm willing to ride whatever and wherever. Rides out to Mae On, Doi Suthep, and around town are always fun. I even rented my own for a day. Empowering to ride the highways on my own, even more so in the crowded and river-like-flow of the moat traffic. Although there is nothing like speeding through between the mountains with badassness pumping in your blood and the ipod cranked. Especially when you slow down and realize how loud your music actually is and you're probably making yourself deaf. I'm young and invincible though!

Poolside. I'm going to take a moment and turn you as green as curry with envy, especially if you're in Minnesota or any other cold climate. Sorry in advance. I spent several days during the week near the pool. Either at the outdoor pool at my fitness center or at the lovely garden pool at the fancy hotel that Adam got for free, thanks to the Tourism Authority of Thailand compensating him for his stranded days in Thailand. I am getting into the habit of laying poolside before, between and after classes. Nothing like feeling July in December. My climate clock is out of whack in the very best way. I tell myself with each dip in the pool to cool off...this is what December should be like. No matter what. I am so lucky. I see more of my mom in me every day, because she would be doing and thinking the same thing. Don't you worry, I will not take the sun and the warmth for granted. Not a chance. Each day of sun is worth its weight in gold to this Minnesota girl.

Take Your Friend to Work Day. Adam was not going to get away with spending weeks with me in Thailand and not seeing what I actually "do" here. He needed an English lesson anyway. (Kidding.) He came to my class as a special native speaker guest. After taking care of the normal housekeeping issues at the beginning of class, I introduced our special guest and explained that we were to practice "Q&A." Each student wrote some questions for this new American face and I collected them and had an interview-style session with Adam. Almost like I was James Lipton on Inside the Actors Studio, only less awesome. The students seemed really attentive and I think it was great for them to hear a different style of speaking and they practiced listening about topics they might not be familiar with. They asked both appropriate and personal questions, which didn't surprise me, but Adam answered them well. Then I had the students give mini presentations about Thai holidays for Adam and they did really well with that also. It was fun to have Adam come and see what a dream job I have.

King's Birthday. December 5th, His Majesty the King turned 81 years old. There were banners and posters and large billboards of the King going up all around town. It just so happened that Chiang Mai's celebration of the King was right outside Adam's hotel room. We listened to the masses singing anthems from his balcony at 7:09pm (9 is a lucky number...it's the 9th dynasty) and fireworks followed. The fireworks were so incredibly loud that I jumped backward into the room and we ran to the fire escape to get to the roof of the hotel for a better view. The fireworks were going off right across the street so the explosions were directly overhead and were so close that I could feel the wind from the blasts push against my body. The ashes were falling like rain and I'm pretty sure we had the best best view of the fireworks in the whole city. We walked around the bustling streets that night and scoped out the art fair and the fashion shows going on in the trendy part of town. Early early the following morning went outside to see the biggest offering to the monks all year. They closed off Nimmanhaemin Road and Thai people dressed in white lined the streets with big bags of offerings for the monks. They lined up in rows on the street and the monks walk through and collect their offerings of food, drinks, and other little necessities. 11,250 monks total. That is three times the size of my college's entire population. More than half the population of my hometown. A lot of orange, and even more white. A very neat sight. Too bad we got too cold and hungry to stick around so we watched everyone else in Thailand build merit from the windows of the hotel while we drank coffee and ate breakfast in warmth. True Americans, ha. We didn't have anything to offer besides an opened bottle of whiskey anyway, so it was maybe better off. Still an unforgettable sight to see.

The Last Supper. Finally made it to the waterfall restaurant that we talked about going to over and over, so why not wait until the last possible meal? It was a nice dinner with friends - a lot of laughing and eating. Story of my life and I like that. Thailand is truly a culture of food and most of my memories are in relation to meals...I track time not by a watch, but by when some sort of eating will occur next...I remember evenings with friends based on what dishes we tried; how delicious, sweet, spicy, filling they were. Some people are surprised at the idea of eating every meal out, and never cooking at home. I prefer it and Thailand is one of the few places where it's just as economical as it is delicious and socially rewarding. We gave Adam a proper send-off and I'm really thankful that he got to experience so much of my new home. Chiang Mai has a special way of getting under your skin and feeling like home faster and more comfortably than most people expect. I'm sure Adam would concur. Ah, I'm so lucky to be here.

What's Going On Here?

If you're following the Thai or international news, you probably know there is some drama going on in Bangkok. Here's the story from my perspective. On Tuesday night last week I said goodbye to Robin and Adam as I put them in a cab on their way to the Chiang Mai airport. They had a short flight to Bangkok and then Robin's flight to the US was scheduled for 1am and Adam's for 6am. Adam got his mom on the plane and called me in the middle of the night saying she's on her way and jokingly saying he was going to head to the beaches instead. I told him to have a good flight home and call me when he's back. The next morning I had a strange feeling and called his cell phone, knowing that if the phone was off he was on his way, but he answered. "My flight is delayed until 7pm tonight," he said. I sympathized with him because I had been stuck in the Bangkok airport for 12 hours before. He explained what was going on in the airport and nothing really sunk in until I started reading the news. The People's Alliance for Democracy (PAD) had taken over the airport. The PAD people are protesting the Prime Minister (this is different from the beloved King, mind you). There was no resistance and the airport was literally shut down. Robin's flight was the last one out, and technically took off when the airport was closed. So Adam spent the day in Bangkok and took a bus back to Chiang Mai that night. Although the news states that four bombs went off in the airport, Adam didn't hear a thing. He said the PAD people were actually quite helpful in guiding the tourists to better waiting areas in the airport, bringing them water and sandwiches. The airport is still closed now (almost a week later) and there is no foreseeing when it will be open again. There is more than enough information out there in news articles, etc. But if it weren't for Adam's story and the media, there would be absolutely no way to tell what is going on. It's very peaceful in the north and the biggest concern for people in Chiang Mai is the hit the tourist industry will take. We'll see what happens over the next week. There were fighter jets flying over Chiang Mai... there was a coup a couple years ago... definitely an interesting time to be in Thailand.