David's World

July 12, 2006

More Wats in Chiang Mai and a night train home

I spent the last day in Chiang Mai looking for my lost cell phone - with the help of a taxi driver (the taxis here are more like pickup-truck style bus-taxis, taking up to 20 people in one direction). The guy spoke about as little English as I speak Thai, but he managed to negotiate with bus staff for me and drove me out to the bus depot, where I happened to find "my" bus driver (from Bangkok) and "my" bus - two days later! But no cell phone :-(

Visited ruins of temple buildings (including pagodas) at Wiang Kum kam, where, in 1984, villagers discovered dozens of votive tablets in the dirt right in front of their local school. Archeologists got insterested and dug up a number of ruins, relics from temples including a few nice Buddha statues that are still there today.

Night train back to Bangkok - first class (we're Royals, aren't we...). Again - a run-down train, but friendly, dedicated attendants who served us plenty of food (I learned to say "yummy, but very hot!" (something like ayola, te pad maak!). My "train car-mate" Masaki, who has been sent to Thailand by his company to study Thai for a year before building up their Thai branch, kindly invited me over to his apartment for a shower, e-mail checking and a sofa nap on 22nd floor of a residential high-riser. That's life!

That's what taxis look like in Chiang Mai (the local taxi mafia seems to prevent real taxis to be established, says the Lonely Planet):

My cabbie stops for a quick prayer at an outdoor Buddha:

Wat Kan Thome Temple:

Masaki, my new friend from Tokyo in his 22nd floor apartment in Bangkok: