I'm in Chiang Mai!

i can see the moon so strongly, it makes me think of my moon sisters. some thai man told me if i pray to the moon my wishes will be granted, i smiled and said, "yeah...i know." i love you and wish you the best! i am off to bikeride around chiang mai tomorrow and go on a four day trek the following day through the north of thailand, complete with 6-7 hour hikes, 6 hour rafting (bamboo and rubber rafts), waterfalls, staying with a hilltribe, checking out some caves, and having a blast. this is off the books, no other tourists around, we talked to the trek leader, he's been doing it for 20 years and knows the area like the back of his hand, it's his people that we will be seeing. we talked to him and basically put our trip together and need to find a few other people, 8 total. it's going to be great. and super cheap. my exact budget for the four days, with food and everything provided. great way to keep a budget!

the previous days were spent in sukhothai, visiting some ruins, and making friends :) i have been traveling with the same crew for a bit, super nice people. a brit girl, a german boy, and of course a reggae lovin american that just lived in cali and is heading to seattle next year. leave it to me... last night and the night before we went to some reggae bars and heard live thai reggae, a lot of bob covers. some good some better. there is a reggae festival in Pai on nov 10 that i'm trying to make it to.

sukhothai was cool, we biked around the ruins and saw some cows super close. the next day we took an 18km (i'm learning the metric system!) bike ride to see this cool buddhist sculpture park/temple that was only in the rough guide thailand book, which is better than lonely planet for actual information about the sights of a city. L.P. is better for time tables and maps. best to find travelers with each so we can combine forces. the ride was brilliant (can you tell i've been hanging around a brit?), it was along the river, across a few drawbridges where my sunglasses were swept from my hand into the river, and every kid we rode by yelled out "hello hello!" they are so cute.

then we made it back just in time for a quick rinse off, then hopped on a bus to chiang mai. our driver went pretty quick and we made it just under five hours, normally takes five and a half. then we found an awesome guesthouse, with a private room, bathroom, and hot shower. all for just under $5 a night. and quiet. the next day we biked around the center of chiang mai, saw a bunch of temples and took a lot of pics of buddhas. then we went outside the walls and tried to get to the mountains, ended up at this gorgeous temple where nobody was and ended up having an amazing discussion on buddhism with a monk from cambodia, whose father managed to escape the wrath of the khmer regime. amazing. the lighting was perfect for the golden stupa which apparently houses a small piece of bone from the buddha. so f'n amazing. i was blown away. my new american travel buddy has a knack for finding all this cool stuff, he has amazing travel karma. probably racked up from his many years of traveling around the world. good person to know. not to mention he plays his guitar and loves bob marley!

yesterday i took it easy and walked around the city, checked out the night market which was super touristy, and got a drink with my friends, then saw the reggae band. we have been hitting up this bar around the corner from our guesthouse, run by a thai that lived in french switzerland for 10 years, so all the french people hang out there and he has a special going for 50 Baht mojitos, which is about $1.50 USD. and they are good.

today i took a thai cooking class and learned to make 8 dishes and their associate sauces, so when i come back i can make a proper thai meal! i'm properly fed and have some food back in my room. then went out for a beer and then hit up the trekking place and set up the sweetest trek ever. it's really just b/c the guide loves to trek and wants to do something different, to get away from the typical tourist b.s. we are all super excited about it. i can't believe our luck.

i've barely used my guide book and have managed to have a great trip. fantastic, even. i mean i have gotten lonely at times and hearing about the fires in san diego nearly had me in tears a few times yesterday (especially when telling people about it and they look at you with the obvious thought "i hope everything is okay but i'm glad it's not my family"). but i'm better today and can't wait for the days to come! but i am definitely living in the moment and learning to not fret about every little thing. chill out and life works the way it is supposed to. be a good person and good things will happen for you.

i haven't had a chance to shop, i'll do that tomorrow or when i come back from the trek. i need to get some skirts and tops that are long but thin cotton. perfect for this weather and keeping the mossies at bay. it's funny though, it is soon going to be the "cold season" but for us "farangs" (it is the thai term for white foreigners) it is perfect. i can't imagine what it is like here when it's the summer time. 45 deg C! wow. i would melt. it's really the perfect time to be here. the rainy season just ended so the river is super high and strong, great for rafting. there aren't many farangs about (well there are but to imagine it in a month or so is scary), and it's not too hot!

i'm learning thai phrases rather quickly, and i'm glad that they will work in laos, as well. i can say hello, thank you, how much, can i have the bill, where is (blank)?, is it far?....

i'm thinking of extending my trip into china, which is supposed to be awesome. and then i'm planning on going through laos, cambodia, viet nam, the phillipines, and end up in bali for my birthday and the yoga retreat with chris. although i might not be able to afford it by then...maybe they will give me a discount! hint hint.

i'm definitely going to head into india at some point, just not sure when. when the time is right i will know. more than that, the opportunity will present itself.

backpacking is so awesome. i could do this forever. i could see needing to just get away to a beach somewhere and chill for a few days or a week. i've only been here for a week and it feels like a lot longer, but i need to realize that i still have a lot of adjusting to do. first time backpacking, first time alone for so long, first time in asia....the list goes on. but i'm doing so well :) having the most amazing and beautiful time.

i'm getting good at washing clothes in the sink, showering five times a day, keeping my valuables safe (the travel safe is a godsend, it really is), and finding my way around places where i have no idea where anything is. i'm much more street-smart than i realized. and my smile helps! we are slowly figuring out the cheap (but good) way to do everything, where the cheap water is, the cheap but fast internet, the cheap but good thai massage, the cheap but nice rooms, etc... we could write out own lonely planet. that way not everyone would follow each other around as we are doing now. it's a great way to meet people b/c everyone does what l.p. tells you, but they are wrong in many of their opinions of towns and suggestions for hostels. new sukhothai was way better to stay in if you are going to the old city. great little market nearby and the sculpture park was so awesome and nobody was there. it's not even in l.p.

i keep hearing about places to travel to from fellow backpackers. my list goes on and on. i'm really going to travel for the rest of my life. and according to that sikh fortune teller i will live until i'm 87.

so i'm getting a thai massage tomorrow, i can't wait. my bed isn't the softest thing in the world, but i wouldn't trade it for my bed back home if i had the choice. not at all. so far this trip rocks. so much to see, so many people to meet, so many people to visit in the future! wow.

so tonight i might just go back to my room, read a bit, and go to bed early. the last few nights were late night reggae nights. my buddy is going to jam with the band we saw last night, but i'm pretty beat and dont' want to spend money on more drinks. only drink to kill the bugs in the stomach! chilis are great for that too. good thing i like spicy food. i've already surprised thais with my spice tolerance. thanks for the help in building that tolerance, vicki!