Train..er, Temple Spotting!

I'm broke like a joke.  That's what happens when you live in Thailand, run out of your USD savings (months ago) and have to live on your Thai baht.  Making beans and teaching monsters is fine when you only have to pay for your life in Thailand.  Me?  I have American bills to pay - on Thai baht.  Which means 1/4th of my paycheck is sent home and by the end of every month, I'm struggling.  I've been so bored lately, mainly because I've been unwell so haven't had the energy to do nowt.  Now that I'm feeling much better (thanks to my Thai BFF - the pharmacist), it's nearing the end of February and I'm down to my last pennies.  Wanting to get out of my apartment and get some "fresh" air (it's pollution season), I remembered the fun and free, biggest tourist opportunity in Chiang Mai: Temple Spotting.

Chiang Mai has over 300 temples (or "Wats") alone.  There are more temples in Chiang Mai than there are Starbucks in Seattle.  Many people say that after a while, one temple just looks like the last.  I can see where people are coming from when they say that, however, if you take the time to really explore them, you will find they each have their own personalities, beauty and history. 

I went hunting for the "silver" temple today.  Most temples are gold, but this one, literally about a 2 minute motorbike ride from my apartment, is made entirely of silver!  It's really spectacular!  This area is famous for its silver, so it's only appropriate that this temple - the only silver temple in Thailand (and perhaps the world) - is here.  It's HANDMADE and unfinished, set to be complete in 2015.  This temple is a bit out of the way of the main tourist track, so there are rarely people wondering around...always a bonus!!  So without further adieu, I give you Wat Srisuphan.



Wat Srisuphan - the silver temple of Chiang Mai

Mad detail...Wat Srisuphan

Part of the back - all done by hand!!

This next temple is my favourite in Chiang Mai.  It's one of the last remaining teak wood temples in Thailand.  Wat Pan Tao, located near the center of the Old City.



Wat Pan Tao - one of the last remaining teak wood temples, and my favourite in the city



Moonrise over Wat Pan Tao



My first visit to Wat Pan Tao, I found this beautiful Buddha in a field
of tulips.
This image is for sale at www.artforconservation.org/artists/racephotography

Next door to Wat Pan Tao is Wat Chedi Luang.  It couldn't be more different from Pan Tao.  Behind the main building of the temple is the chedi ruins, destroyed by an earthquake.

Prayers at Wat Chedi Luang

Down the street is one of the big tourist temples: Wat Phra Singh.  Personally, I don't understand why this temple is so popular, with Pan Tao and Chedi Luang about 3 minutes away.  But hey, if it diverts the tourists, I won't complain!

Wat Phra Singh

Sunset at Wat Phra Singh

Take a drive or grab a songtaew taxi up the Doi Suthep mountain and you will find Wat Phra Doi Suthep - the most important and highly regarded temple of Chiang Mai.  The chedi is bright gold and almost blinding in the day's sunlight, but it's really beautiful.  White people, make sure you've got some baht on you, as you will be charged an entrance fee.  It's called "Skin Tax".  (However, if you've got a Thai work permit, flash that little sucker and you can get in at the "Thai price" - free)

Merit makers and prayers, circling the chedi of
Wat Phra Doi Suthep thrice

This is at the bottom of the giant staircase (not pictured),
a crazy dragon vomiting dragons
Wat Phra Doi Suthep

This temple is in the middle of the Royal Flora - a botanical garden in Chiang Mai with an entrance fee.  I'm not sure how much as I was there on a school trip.  Cool temple though.



A temple at the Royal Flora botanical gardens

 
There are so many more temples to be explored (and I've left a lot of them out that I've visited).  You can read about the White Temple of Chiang Rai here, it looks similar to Wat Srisuphan, but I was way more impressed by Srisuphan...the silver carvings are handmade, it's really unbelievable!

If you, like me, ever find yourself broke in Chiang Mai, go for a walk and check out some temples...with over 300, they're not hard to find :)

Happy Temple Spotting Trails!

The end is near and other random blabs

I haven't been blogging much these past two weeks.  Mainly because I feel like shit.  I've had some kind of sickness since December 22nd.  Nearly two months now.  I've been to the pharmacy about 6 or 7 times and still can't shake this.  I'm not a hypocondriac by any means, but I'm pretty much convinced I've got walking pneumonia.  I'm finally on antibiotics and I'm feeling the best I've felt in the last few months.  Certainly not 100%, but hopefully this shit is finally making an exit.  (Imagine trying to teach and yell over a classroom of screaming 9 year olds while hacking, coughing up shit, with a stuffed nose and head for the last 2 months...not to mention the end of the school year is soon upon us, therefore the kids are even more rowdy than usual...It's been extremely frustrating and exhausting).

As much as I've enjoyed Thailand, it's definitely given me my fair share of an ass whooping.  Counting this current crud in addition to the many other colds/flus I've had, along with your typical stomach bugs and runs you get when travelling, and lets not forget the incident with the motorbike (for which I'm still having problems with my ankle...I can't tell you how much I miss running), I've about had it with Thailand.

Yesterday, I taught my 1st graders and 3rd graders for the last time.  Those are my favourite classes at school.  Although my 3rd graders behaviour is questionable more times than not, I must say they have the best personalities at the school.  I'm really going to miss those little monsters!! 

My favourite student is in 1st grade.  His name is New Friend and this little guy facinates the hell out of me.  He's one of the "special" cases at school...I think he's autistic, and if he's not on his meds, he's all over the place.  But when he's focused on something, I swear this kid is a genius.  Give him a ruler, pencil and piece of paper and he will draw you the most amazing and intricate picture of railway system.  Last week in class, I just sat with New Friend and watched him draw his train.  I was completely transfixed by his use and accuracy of his ruler.  He moved with speed and precision, not one line was out of place.  I was basically ignoring the rest of the class, focused on New Friend (I was pissed at his Thai teacher, she's constantly yelling at New Friend and harping on him, so I left her to deal with the rest of the class).  It really saddens me to know that I will probably never see this little guy again after I leave.

We have only 4 more days left of teaching.  Then the students have their exams and we submit the grades by February 28th.  That's it.  I know it's a cliche thing to say, but this year has flown by!  It's now on to the next.  I've landed some summer work at a university language program in Chiang Mai for a few weeks and I'm currently in the process of getting my paperwork ready to make the move to South Korea.  I'm ready to move on, and although I've had many downs here, I'm going to miss it.  I'm going to miss the heat for sure.  I fucking love this tropical living.  (I do miss 4 seasons, but I know when it snows for the first time in Korea, I will be sick of it!).  About 2 weeks ago, we had a few monsoon-type storms.  After those hit, summer was upon us.  There was no gradual rise in temperature.  It was just BAM, summer is here!  95 degrees F here and I love it!

Anyways, this is turning into one of those rambling, going in many different directions blog, so without a proper conclusion, I'll leave it at that.  I've started Instagramming, so follow me if you like klrace87!  Until the next time...

Happy Trails! (Hopefully I'll be feeling better and be more focused!)

Do you want to take my picture?

What is it with the narcissistic tendencies of today's youth?  Why are teenagers and young adults completely obsessed with taking hundreds of pictures of themselves - and then posting them all over facebook and Instagram?  Am I just getting old, or is this the new norm?

I was walking around the annual Chiang Mai Flower Festival yesterday and was flabbergasted at the sight of so many people taking countless pictures of themselves.  I sat and watched one couple go from one spot to another where the guy kept taking pictures of his lady friend who would make only the slightest variation of poses - cocking of the head and flashing a cheeky smile, holding up her drink, putting her drink down - between each picture.  In each spot they visited (probably only 10 feet from the last), he took about 10 pictures of her.  Whhhhyyyyyyyy?!  Seriously?  Your girlfriend is going to look the same in each picture!  She's not a model by any means, so what's the point?!



With as many pics as they were taking, I didn't think it would bother them if I took one.
Notice they're also wearing matching orange shirts.

Later, I went to the Airport Plaza shopping mall to go to the cinema.  I was sitting outside of Starbucks as I had an hour before the movie started, when three people - in their 40's I would assume - sat down at the table next to me.  They kept switching seats, one would get up and take a picture of the other two sitting.  Then another one would get up while the first sat down, and take picture after picture.  This went on for a good 15 minutes. 

THEN...before my show started, I headed to the ladies room before sitting in the cinema for a good 2 1/2 hour movie.  As I was washing my hands, I noticed a Thai girl in her school uniform taking pictures of herself in the full-length mirror in the public restroom.  Seriously?  Do you really think it's cool to take pictures of yourself - in a mirror - in a public restroom?!  What is wrong with people?

The first two, I see more often than not around Southeast Asia.  Maybe it's an Asian thing.  The last one, though, the one about taking pictures of yourself in the bathroom, has pretty much extended globally with young people.   My mom's neighbour is now 15 years old.  He has spent probably half of his life locking himself in his mom's bathroom taking pictures of himself in the mirror.  He will sit on the sink to take pictures, he will stand on the counter to take pictures, he will make silly faces, serious faces, douche-bag faces, turn his hat backwards, frontwards, sideways, change clothes...etc, etc.  Then he puts all of them on facebook.  As do his other friends. 

Maybe is narcissism.  Maybe it's a need for their friends to make comments on how hot or cute they are to boost their self esteem.  Whatever it is, it's ridiculous.

Again, maybe I'm just getting old (but c'mon, I'm not that old), or the world is developing far more quickly than it did 20 years ago.  Wouldn't you agree that life was much more simple before the digital age of cameras and technology?  I genuinely miss those days. 

Anyways, here's a few photos from the Flower Festival!

A color of orchid I've never seen before.  Beautiful!

One of the many photo opps in the Flower Festival - merely encouraging young folk
to participate in their favorite narcissistic activity :-)

White Temple of Chiang Rai - Photo of the Week

I haven't done a Photo of the Week in about a month or so.  My apologies if you're one who enjoys those blogs!  As my blog has now surpassed the 1,000 view mark, I thought I would celebrate by getting back on the Photo of the Week bandwagon.

This week's photo is of the white temple in Chiang Rai.  Chiang Rai is about 3 hours north of Chiang Mai on the way to the Myanmar border town of Mae Sai.  I've heard CR is like a smaller version of CM, but I haven't spent any time there other than the half hour we spent to see this white temple on our visa run to Mae Sai.



Photo of the Week - the White Temple of Chiang Rai

The white temple is a popular tourist stop when "bordering-it" to Mae Sai.  The temple is fairly new, built by a Christian (I think) and is full of both Christian and Buddhist influences.  From a distance, it reminds me of a winter wonderland in the middle of the tropics!  Up close, however, you can definitely see the Christian influence with weird zombie-type heads and a pit of hands reaching out of the ground from hell.  Very strange.



This tree is full of these zombie head things.  Not really sure why!

Christian influence - hands reaching up from hell.
Apparently at night there is a red light that glows from below.

The temple itself is really beautiful and quite peaceful with a pond full of fish swimming in the crystal clear moat.  There is a sign posting that says no foreigners are aloud in without a Thai tour guide as there have been many disrespectful visitors to the temple.  They also *kindly* (insert sarcasm here) remind you that foot traffic through the temple is ONE way - no turning back - and not to touch anything ("Lady in the red shirt - DON'T TOUCH!!")



Beautiful!  See the fish?

Buddhist influence

All in all, the temple is beautiful and worth a look-see if you're in Chiang Rai or passing through, but not really worth the trip on its own.

Thanks for reading and Happy Trails!

Things my students say...

One of my favourite parts about being a teacher is hearing and seeing the crazy things these kids do!  They can certainly bring a smile to your lips and laugh in your belly (or terror, shock, and fear).  Here are a few of those moments I'm sure I will never forget....I hope they make you chuckle!

My 3rd Grade hams! From the left is Film, Focus, Keam-ii and Siri

I've mentioned before that Thai people say my name like "Crazy", because generally when they try to say "crazy" in English, they don't pronounce the /r/, so it comes out like "Casey" - Hence, my name being Kaycee, they call me Teacher Crazy (miraculously, when they call me Teacher Crazy, they can pronounce the /r/...).  One of the Thai teachers actually has my name spelled like C-R-E-Z-Y on the class schedule.  **Sigh**  It never ends.  Even to the point where one of my students asked me why my parents named me Crazy.  "What?!", I said, "My parents didn't name me Crazy!  You call me Crazy because you can't say my name."  She didn't believe me - she genuinely thought my name was Crazy.  I had to spell out my name on the board and spell out c-r-a-z-y so she would see the difference.  Even after that, I'm still Teacher Crazy.

A couple of my 1st Grade trouble makers! Big Big and Satang

This one is something I would like to forget, but I'm sure I never will...
A few months ago, I was standing outside my 3rd grade classroom waiting for the Thai teacher to finish her lesson.  The students in this class are around 8 or 9 years old.  One of the students, a vivacious little firecracker full of energy runs out of the classroom, proclaims that it's time to drink milk, then proceeds to try and suck on my boob!!!!  I was HORRIFIED!!  This girl has pretty good English compared with her classmates, so I pushed her off me and said absolutely you cannot do that...girl came at me again!!  I pushed her away again and said in my stern voice that is inappropriate behaviour and to not ever do that again.  She thought it was funny as hell (and I'm sure she didn't comprehend how wrong this was), I was completely embarrassed and really hoping no one around saw this spectacle.  I've always thought this girl had some serious issues, but if she's still being breast-fed at the age of 9, we've got a whole new can of worms in the mix :-/

This guy is one of my absolute favorites
Justin in 1st Grade - insanely intelligent!

This incident happened a few weeks ago when the students were holding their student council elections.  Again with the pronounciation of the /r/ - in Thai language, /R/ makes an /L/ sound and vice versa.  You can imagine the shock when a student - 12 year old girl - opens our office door and proclaims that we "must come for the erection!!"  WHAT?!  You want us to come for an ERECTION?!  "Yes, teachers!  Come for the erection!"  I work in an office full of typical, of-a-certain-minded men.  Girl meant ELECTION.  Come participate in the eLECtion... 

My other favorite - New Friend
He's completely off his rocker, but I'm so fascinated by this little guy,
he never fails to make me smile :)

And the last one for today...
I just left the class which is the worst behaved group of hooligans EVER.  This class consists of only boys and 95% of the time, I spend yelling at them - I'm usually FUMING by the end of the lesson and they're probably cussing me out in Thai.  When I walked into the class today, I asked them if they were going to be well behaved.  They said "No."  I laughed and praised them for being honest.  (Incidently, with the worst student in that class being absent today, they were astoundingly well behaved.  I was surprisingly shocked :)

If anything, you get some damn good stories being a teacher!  Hope this makes you chuckle!

P.S. None of the little cherubs in these pictures are any of the ones in the story (although Keam-ii in the first photo is a bit of a heartbreaker - she had a boy wailing because she didn't love him, poor lad)

"The world has changed me"

One year ago today, I embarked on this adventure that will last a lifetime.  I'm not going to recount what I have accomplished this year as I have already done that in my 2012: A year in Review blog.  What I am going to talk about though is the strength it takes to decide and follow through with such an experience.

Earlier this morning, I updated my facebook status with exactly this topic.  A friend responded I am brave for embarking on such a journey.  I've heard this many times from many people since my initial move abroad to Scotland in 2004.  I truly appreciate the sentiments, but I also feel it's not quite bravery, but decisiveness and desire and ability to put everything behind you and just go.  Saying that, even having the ability to put everything behind you isn't exactly true.  With the way our world operates now, the speed and access of global communication, social media, and the ever-growing presence of Western civilization in Third World countries, I personally don't feel like everything is behind me, it's actually in front of me - staring me in the face on my computer.

Partaking in this adventure, is more like following through with a dream.  Travelling changes a person.  You no longer view the world through one-dimension.  Rather, it propels you into this need to see and experience everything.  The cost doesn't matter, because the end result is priceless.  Experiencing that glorious, soul-lifting feeling of participating in such an event like Loi Krathong, or having your eyes well up with tears the first moment you glimpse the majestical structure that is Angkor Wat - no person can ever take that away.  Moments like those are completely unforgettable.  Five, ten, 15 years down the road (heck, even a month later) you don't remember how much you spent on that airplane ticket to get there, you don't remember your favourite restaurants that you miss, or TV programmes, or material possessions you left behind.  They don't matter.  What does matter is that you will never forget the smell of the air, the sounds, the friends you made - even if they're just those momentary friends - and how your soul was uplifted to a heightened level that only travel and culture can bring. 

A year ago, I decided those feelings and moments were more important to me than anything else.  All it takes to set out on a journey is the desire to feel these moments and the decision to let everything else go - if only for a short term.  Me?  I'm in it for the long haul.  That's what travelling has done (I have a tendency to associate my addiction with travel as an addiciton to a drug, unstoppable and - sometimes - expensive, without the damaging physical effects.  Once hooked, you will find any means to keep going).  I have since learned - twice - that going home after living abroad, I become bored.  Within minutes.  So utterly bored, that I idly pass the time by planning my next escape.  Yes, I use the term 'escape' as I have found my "home" feels more like a prison term on the best of days. 

If you have ever thought about seeing someplace new, stop thinking and start going.  Start out short term - 1, 3, 6 months, a year even.  I started out on a 5 month journey in 2004 to Scotland.  That started a 4 year adventure in England from 2006.  Now I'm in Southeast Asia for I-don't-know-how-long.  There are so many places I need to see - I absolutely must go back to Cambodia, Philippines, Indonesia, see more of Myanmar than just the border town of Mae Sai, Malaysia, Vietnam, India...then I need to make my way to Africa to climb Kilimanjaro (an excursion I still hope is possible with my ankle injury), I need to see the whole of South America - especially Chile, Peru, Argentina, Bolivia, and Columbia.  Then there is Costa Rica, Guatemala, Belize....I'm sure you get the picture. 

Again, I can't reiterate how living abroad is not necessarily bravery (I suppose there is an element of bravery in there), but you just need to decide and go.  Everything will be waiting for you when you get back.  None of it will have changed, but I guarantee you will have.

To quote one of my heroes and definite wonder woman, Amelia Earhart, "The world has changed me."  Indeed it has.

Life is delicate.

I had to do my 90 day visa run today to the Myanmar border.  On the way back to Chiang Mai, I realized how delicate and fragile life is.

WARNING - you may find this next paragraph to be graphic

Up ahead on the road, we saw there was an accident.  As we approached, you could see a man lying on the pavement next to his motorbike.  We knew at once he was dead as there was no one near him, no rush of an emergency.  As we drove by, this man - probably in his 30's - was lying in a pool of his own blood, his body was at an awkward angle, his leg was completely torn apart with his broken bones sticking through.  It was a terribly awful sight, but I couldn't tear my eyes away for that second that we passed by.  Like the majority of Thai people, this man wasn't wearing a helmet.  I'm not sure if it would have saved his life in this incident or not.

The rest of our journey back to Chiang Mai, I could do nothing but think of this man.  The accident must not have occurred more than 15 minutes before we drove by.  So many people had gathered around on the side of the road and his family was probably not even aware that anything had happened.  I kept wondering where this guy was headed...maybe his wife had sent him to the market to pick something up for dinner and was waiting and waiting for him to return.  Perhaps he rushed so quickly from his home that he didn't even say "goodbye" to his family.  This man had absolutely NO idea in knowing that this very drive on his motorbike would be his last.  I feel so terribly sorry for his family - his wife or girlfriend, mother, father, brother, sister, children - who were to receive the news this afternoon that someone they loved would not be returning home.

I have seen many dead bodies in my life - I worked at a cemetery during one of my college summers, sometimes helping set up the viewing rooms.  This was nothing like that.  To see someone lying on the pavement whose body was probably still warm, whose body was completely broken, it made me realize what delicate creatures we are.  We can snap like a twig in a fraction of a second.  We're as strong as we are, until we aren't anymore.  Anything can be easy until it isn't.  Passing by a car on a motorbike is easy, until that one terrible moment when something goes wrong.

Like everyone else, I've had my fair share of loved ones passing - they have been the absolute worst moments of my life.  (One actually happened on a motorbike).  However, seeing death face-to-face like this really impacted me.  Every moment we have on earth is a gift to be cherished.  There is danger in everything we do.  From the moment we're born, we're in danger.  Some people let that consume them.  Sometimes, I want to let that consume me.  I've been driving a motorbike around Chiang Mai since October and it scares the shit out me.  I feel like just when I start to get comfortable, I see a motorbike accident and it reminds me I need to continue to focus and pay attention to everything when I'm on that thing.  There have been times as well that I have wanted to ditch my helmet, so I could finally do something nice with my hair.  Fortunately, the helmet has always won, and definitely after what I witnessed today - always will. 

I'm not going to stop doing what I love because I'm scared.  Being aware of that has only increased my vigilance and I take care of my surroundings.  Back home, I used to suffer from road rage.  That's pretty much all but disappeared here.  Thais are crazy fucking drivers, there's no point yelling and stressing about it - I'll just do my best to go with the flow and stay out of their way! 

Life is fragile and delicate.  Cherish each waking moment you have because within a fraction of a second, it could all vanish.  When you walk out the door, at the very least say "goodbye" to whoever you're with - it pains me to think this man didn't.  My thoughts are with his family tonight as I feel terribly sad for them.