Chiang Mai - Elephants, Sticky Falls, Wats, Star Wars, and more

Our time here in Chiang Mai is decidedly slower paced than the past couple months, so we've had a couple of  "fast forward" days - days with effectively nothing to report but more studying and planning. These days typically have some shopping, laundry, and other boring activities not worth discussing.

However, I did manage to peel away one day for a solo trip to see Star Wars, The Last Jedi. I won't say much about the movie, other than, it was worth the effort, and I'm looking forward to how the trilogy of trilogies will conclude. Going to a movie in Thailand was more or less the same as in the states with 30 minutes of endless previews, nice cushy chairs, and oversized beverages mostly full of ice. However, there was one notable difference... Somewhere between the request to silence my phone, and to go fetch another giant mug of Coke, the screen requested the audience to rise and salute the King of Thailand fully adorned in his royal garb with his subjects in various poses of gratitude. This went on for a good three minutes to, what I must assume, was the national anthem. (Warning! Warning! Going to get slightly political here...). Say what you will about our current president, I remain forever grateful that we live in a country that endures based upon values, and we're protected by magnificent documents that prevents a dictatorship. To this day, I still get emotional when we stand as an undivided nation to salute our flag, not an individual.

I got back to my car to find it pinned in by another. Uh Oh. Turns out all you have to do is push the car away. Check out the movie ticket counter. Felt like I was checking in to a Vegas hotel. 

Jan 15: Wats and more Wats
Today was a day to head up the hill overlooking old Chiang Mai to visit a handful of notable Wats.

Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep
This is THE wat to visit when in Chiang Mai, or so the brochures say. It is perched on the hill above Chiang Mai with panoramic views over the valley below. But here's the thing...The opulence is a bit off putting. This wat appears to be there to collect money and, despite the statues and temples, lacks a sense of spirituality (at least that's what it felt like to us - we're not buddhist, so we certainly don't want to judge). It was very crowded and had to steal fleeting moments for the perfect pictures.

Long stair lined with dragons to reach the Wats. 

Apparently the views from this Wat are amazing. Again, we were stumped by weather. Check out old Chiang Mai.

Typical interior of a Wat temple. Notice the money trees.

Zane left our mark on this scroll that will be wrapped around the center Stupa.

Crowds, crowds, and more people. Tough to get a clear shot. But then again, photography is about capturing the full moment... So here it is. 

Nice one Autumn

Amongst the chaos, the devote find moments to pray.

Red trucks and scooters lining the street.

Wat Phalad
Halfway back down the hill from Wat Phrathat is a "hidden" area called Wat Phalad. It was everything that Wat Phra was not, and it was perfect. While we were sort of looking for reasons to leave Wat Phra, we could have chilled at Wat Phalad all day (or at least Nicole and I... the kids are habitually looking towards the next thing). There were no crowds, no money trees, no gold leafing. The temples were made of wood and scattered about a forest and hugging a central stream. The place invited you to just sit there and feel the serenity.

Wat Phalad was definitely a place where we could chill and find some peaceful moments.

Wat Umong
At the base of the hill is another unique wat complex with some underground tunnels that housed places of worship. We had a wander about the area and spent some time feeding the fish in the pond and sprinting through massive flocks of pigeons.

Some general thoughts on Buddhism
Our time in Southeast Asia has largely been surrounded by Buddhism, and we have been trying to figure it out. We spent one evening watching youtube videos to try and better educate us on the origins and current state of the religion. Of particular note, Buddhism appears to not be a religion at all, strictly speaking. There is no deity or other higher being(s) to worship, but rather a set of rules  to be followed by individuals to obtain enlightenment. This lack of a formal deity is at odds with what we see, which are people praying to various statues. We'll need to learn more.

We did find the following Buddhist sentiment about being mindful (living in the present) to be thought provoking:

“If you are depressed you are living in the past.
If you are anxious you are living in the future.
If you are at peace you are living in the present.”
― Lao Tzu

Frankly, I'm finding the requests for donations right next to the idols to be very off-putting. Certainly, religions exist on the generous offerings of its patrons, but it seems to me it would be just as effective to put these massive safes just the temple.

Jan 17: Sticky Falls and Poo Poo
What a wonderful day. We jumped in our car and motored North about one hour to the Bua Thong Waterfall - the "sticky" waterfall. Through some "Miracle of Nature" (no seriously, this is actually a miracle), the water cascading down a forested hill is full of lime, slowly depositing a fine layer of grit on the underlying rocks. This grit makes the waterfall super grippy, allowing us to walk up impossibly steep angles with water gushing over our feet. What a strange feeling too disregard normal safety instincts and casually stroll up a stream you would normally attack using an army crawl. Adding to the incredibleness of this waterfall is how it forks off in to side streams to wind around flowering bushes, only to coalesce again around a tree, before cascading off a cliff down to a pond below. Just when we thought we'd had enough of waterfalls, the Earth gives us one more reason to keep them on our radar.

At the base of the cascade is a tidy little pool with a natural vine swing. 

Absolutely my favorite bathroom sign so far on this trip

After a quick stop at another roadside food market for lunch, we took a detour to the Elephant Poo Poo Paper park to learn how to convert pachoderm waste in to paper. The process is laughably simple - just rinse it, boil it, blend it, add food coloring, spread it out on a screen, and let it dry in the sun. The kids enjoyed hand crafting some souvenirs so they would always remember their afternoon playing with poo.

Jan 18: Elephants
Today was another wonderful day. We spent the morning at the Mae Rim Elephant Sanctuary playing with actual Elephants, not just their excrement.  The national symbol of Thailand is the elephant, and there are plenty of parks in the Chiang Mai area to get your fix. We chose one that has shunned the practice of riding elephants, which is a wonderful growing trend. Their docile nature has regrettably led them in to human servitude, and the cruelty is really heartbreaking. It was so wonderful to spend time with elephants that have been given a second chance at living a peaceful existence. Each of the five elephants had a clear personality and it was interesting how connected we got to these gentle giants in just two short hours. Nicole was particularly taken by Heidi, a reclusive elephant that spent her entire life logging trees through the forest and growing increasingly emaciated over time. You could actually see the grief (and salvation) in their eyes.

Our Thai names tattoo'd on our arms. Well, all except Adam. Apparently the guide couldn't distinguish Adam from Autumn.

Each of the five elephants has their own handler.

We were supposed to be smearing mud on the elephants...

Trunk bump from momma elephant.

This is Heidi. She's had a hard life (notice the sunken in head), and is now on the road to recovery. Such wonderful animals.

There was a Thai monkey there too.

Bath time after the mud bath. 

Random Thoughts
- Thailand generally smells of smoke. Not the pleasant nostalgic scent from fires of convenience (campfires and mountain stoves), but rather from working fires. Fires for making waste disappear in to the atmosphere. It's not terribly aromatic.

- ‎I can't speak for the other 50 weeks in the year, but the climate for these two weeks in Chiang Mai has been notably comfortable - Cool nights, warm and dry days. A bit like May in the Bay Area.

- ‎Driving along the rural highway reminded Zane of a Tanzania, but 20yrs in to the future.

- Driving has been both liberating and quite easy here in Thailand. I was a bit tentative about taking on this responsibility, but like most things, once you overcome the fear, it's really not all that bad. Just take it slow and don't make any sudden moves.

Should we feel bad about buying these super cheap DVDs from a local stand for $1 each? Considering we subscribe to both Netflix and Hulu, I'm not feeling too bad about it

Found the equivalent of the Lafayette Reservoir here in Chiang Mai. Except that this reservoir is surrounded by jungle, ringed with quaint bamboo picnic platforms, and attached to a rice paddy. This was an "early" morning run.