Oh my, I’m getting this blog post written on the same day that everything occurred!  It’s not due to major efficiency, rather, it is because tomorrow morning at 6.30 am we will be heading up to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep.  So if I don’t get this done now, who knows when I will have the opportunity!

We had a very leisurely breakfast at our guesthouse this morning.  It is going to be difficult to adapt back to the time zone at home when we return – but hey, that is still two weeks away!  We decided to spend the day in the Old City of Chiang Mai, starting with a visit to the most visited temple, Wat Phra Singh.

There are many parts to each temple here in Thailand.  They really are a large complex of buildings with different purposes, although much of the time one building can serve a number of purposes too.  Paraphrasing my Lonely Planet guidebook, the formal aspects of Thai Buddhism such as funeral rites, meditation courses, merit-making and dharma talks are carried out at the temples.  But in addition, temples often mix religious guidance with luck-enhancing rituals.  People go to the temple in times of need to ask for assistance from the Buddha image or guidance from the monks.  The temple also serves a social function and often an educational one.

We happened to arrive at Wat Phra Singh just before the monks were sitting down to a meal inside the temple.  The meal was cooked on the temple verandah, and brought in for the monks who were studying at the adjoining school.  According to Lonely Planet once again, men are all expected to become monks for at least a short period in their lives, usually between finishing school and starting work.  They usually stay for three months, and this earns a great deal of merit for their families.

It was very strange to me to be watching others eat: taking photos felt very intrusive.  However, I was told by a temple staffer who noticed that I wasn’t taking any photos that I was very welcome to.  They must be used to it and the monks certainly didn’t seem perturbed.  Other older monks were sitting on chairs around the edges of the temple and appeared to be giving advice or in deep discussion with temple goers.  These people often had offerings of food, flowers, incense and gold leaf.  The gold leaf was applied to images around the temple.

I just love that some of  monk statues are wearing glasses!  There were a number of smaller buildings within the complex that held their own Buddha images.  These varied considerably in size and style.  The walls in one of the smaller buildings were covered in paintings.  The elaborateness (is that a word?) of the architecture gets a little overwhelming at times.  There is just so much detail.  It’s hard to take it all in.

The gardens around the temple have signs on each of the trees.  This was one of my favourites.  There are all sorts of inspirational slogans.

After all our wanderings at the temple we needed food and drink.  We got chatting to a family who were sitting next to us at a cafe, discussing our holiday plans.  They mentioned that they had an ex-pat friend who lived near by who they were looking forward to catching up with.  We mentioned that we were going to meet with an ex-pat friend who was going to take us to the markets.  And the light dawned – yes, Gaye, of all the tourists in all the cafes in Chiang Mai, the two families that you know met one another!  After conversation and enjoying the air-con we were back out in the heat on the streets.

And yes, then we headed back to the Lila Massage Centre for foot massages for the whole family.  Part of me thinks that my children are getting far too accustomed to such a decadent lifestyle! They certainly seem to have adapted to it very quickly.  Stella fell asleep a second time.

And that was pretty much it for the day!  We walked slowly back to the guesthouse, buying snacks from street vendors along the way.  More watermelon juice, chrysanthemum juice for Dan, fried chicken, mystery pastries, dried banana, fresh coconut icecream, and another Chang beer.

But check out the Singer sewing machine shop!  The sewists among you may have realised that I ended my last blog post with a photo of the Singer sign – I was sure that it looked like the familiar sewing machine branding, but the shop was closed at that time.  Today it was open, selling all these modern machines powered by treadles.  And can someone enlighten me about these Singer things that look like petrol bowsers?  What ARE they?

EDITED THANKS TO VIREYA:

They are vending machine petrol bowsers, or minipumps. There’s a forum post which mentions them here:
http://forum.openstreetmap.org/viewtopic.php?id=23640
Looks like people buy the bowser, and attach a drum of fuel to it, as a small business.

According to this item, at some of them you can also top up your pre-pay phone:
http://www.nationmultimedia.com/2007/08/21/technology/technology_30045829.php

Amazing!

We stayed at the guesthouse for “dinner” this evening, which consisted of all the treats we’d bought on the way home.  The girls swung on the hammock and checked out the turtles in the pond, when they weren’t niggling one another or whinging. Time for an early night for both of them, I think and I hope!

As you know, we are in Chiang Mai after having arriving in the morning on the overnight train.  Our guesthouse is just lovely.  Built in traditional styling up on high poles to catch the breezes, the bathrooms and living areas are outdoors.  The bedrooms still have air-con though, much to our relief!  Stella has been a little unsure about it, as it’s such a different style of accommodation compared to what she is used to.  I thought she’d love it – you never know what things will appeal to kids or tick too many of the “different” boxes.

After settling in to our room we headed into the central part of Chiang Mai.  We are staying in the old city, so many sights and attractions are within walking distance.  Like in Bangkok, it is HOT here.  I’ve never drunk as much water, or as much watermelon juice.  There are numerous stalls selling tropical juices of many types, where they juice the fruit for you on the spot.  So fresh and so cool!

There are also many roadside food stalls.  The kids were particularly impressed when I bought what turned out to be a huge potato chip on a stick, where a single potato had been cut into a long, long spiral then fried.  We also tried a few different sweet treats.  I really enjoyed the little coconut pancakes.  There are plenty of foods available that are familiar to the kids, such as waffles and ice creams, and fried chicken.  There are plenty of foods available that are not familiar to any of us!

One woman had tiny birds in cages.  I think that the idea was that you paid to have them released and watch them fly away.  We declined, as we assume that if we let them go it just encourages more to be caught to repeat the cycle.

Outside the Lila Thai Massage Centre, we decided that we should sample their massage menu and headed inside. As per the brochure: The Lila Thai Massage was established by the former director of the Chiang Mai Women’s Prison to help support the lives of newly released inmates in society.  Prior to their release, carefully screened inmates go through an extensive massage training program so that they can make a living and contribute to society.  Despite their training, many employers would not employ them and consequently they would often find themselves returning to a life of crime.  Therefore the Lila Massage Centre was set up to provide them with employment.  Back to the brochure: it is our cherished hope that you will see these former inmates in a positive light, and your kind patronage will allow them to proudly start a new life and support themselves and their families.

No matter what their background, these women certainly know how to do a massage.  Both of the girls had a one hour foot massage.  And yes, Stella fell asleep on the massage table before it was over.  Dan and I both had a traditional thai reflexology massage, incorporating feet and legs, shoulders and arms, and heads.  I’ve never had a thai massage before, and never would have believed that my body could be twisted, poked, pushed and bent into so many different positions that seemed way beyond the range of normal.  It actually felt amazing that my muscles could be stretched as much as they were.  Beats the myotherapist any day!  Our massages took an hour and a half, which gave Stella some extra snoozing time.  And all up – the massages for the four of us cost 1000 baht, which is around A$35.  Oh my, we’ll be doing that again.

When we emerged from the massage centre, the streets were being set up for the weekly Sunday Walking Market.  This is a market that is full of scarves, clothing, wood carvings, textiles, leather sandals, original artworks, t-shirts ,jewellery, and other creations from local crafters.  Melbournians, it is similar to the St Kilda Market.  Plenty of tourist offerings, but also plenty of other items that we didn’t see around Bangkok, with a handcraft focus.  And plenty of food stalls.  There were street vendors aplenty, as well as chairs set up for foot or shoulder massages if you got tired while shopping and eating.

The market got incredibly crowded after a couple of hours, and by then we were exhausted and headed back to the guesthouse with our tummies full and some shopping done.  Stella chose a lovely little top and skirt combination that are quite distinctively Thai without looking like a costume.  Poor Clare was desperate to find some clothes but she is right at the size where she is too big for most of the kids clothes that were on offer and too small for the adult offerings.  I have assured her that I will be purchasing some fabric and will make her something to her specifications.

The rain has poured down for half an hour or so this morning, but is clearing up.  I’ve had a cat purring on my lap for a little while, and am enjoying some green tea as I type.  And yes, the rest of the family are still snoozing.  I rather like having the early mornings to myself!  No plans yet for today (Monday).  Back to the guide book I go!