Well!

This is just going to be a short blurb about my initial impressions of Asia in general and Chiang Mai in particular, because I just got here and I need a nap.

The actual traveling part is always the most stressful, since once you get settled someplace everything else seems to come out alright (if not great!). This trip was no exception. It turns out they really want you to have a return ticket before they'll let you check in for your flight to Thailand. I understand this is because they don't want you staying illegally...but it's a real pain in the behind when you have to deal with it in San Francisco, knowing that it probably won't even be an issue when you get to Thailand itself. However, having heard stories about friends being detained by immigration when they got to asian countries with a one-way ticket, I decided to just suck it up and buy a flexible ticket at the check-in counter. After that, the 14 hour flight was fine. It had the typical movies, the babies were mostly quiet, and they served pretty good food. (on a side note - if you want your meal before everyone else gets theirs, just order a meal with some sort of restriction. I always got my food first, but then felt bad and waited for everyone else to get theirs before I ate the stuff that would smell up the cabin.) I even slept quite a bit on the flight, which was good at putting me onto my new time schedule. Another hiccup came when I got to Taipei and my flight to Chiang Mai was not listed on any of the departure screens. I asked a few people and they seemed confused, which was a little concerning, but finally I found someone who worked for the airline and she frowned at the screen, went to check the computer, and came back with reasonable conviction that my flight would leave from gate A1. Fortunately, she was right.

While I was waiting by the gate, hoping the sign would stop saying "Hanoi" and start saying "Chiang Mai", a guy in front of me turned around and asked if we were at the gate for the flight to Chiang Mai, to which I replied, "I hope so!" We continued talking, and guess what? Not only is he also here to teach English, he also doesn't have a job yet! A competitor! (only slightly kidding; I'd heard this city was popular, but to meet another teacher looking for employment on my flight?! At least I have the female thing going for me) Anyway, we had a nice chat and then boarded our 4 hour flight to Chiang Mai, which I mostly slept through.

That brings us to the airport, meeting Nick, being deposited into a Songthaew, eventually finding our way to my guest house (Seven Suns), showering Nick with a rain of goodies, from pesto to Sierra Nevada beer, and then having him show me around "his" Chiang Mai.

I should probably introduce Nick a little more, for those who don't know who he is or why he is meeting me here. It's actually a nice story. One day at the Saturday Chico Farmer's Market, my mom ran into the parents of a girl I used to be good friends with. In the course of chatting, my trip came up, and the girl's parents exclaimed, "how funny! Our daughter is in Thailand too!" and then, "She knows a guy from Chico who is living in Chiang Mai." That is one of the best examples of everyone knowing everyone in Chico by less than 3 degrees of separation that I could ever give. Went to Costa Rica, saw someone from Chico in the airport, going to Thailand, oh sure, there's someone there your age who's been living there for a year already... we're sure he'd love to help you settle in! Here's his e-mail address...Gotta love Chico. So that's how I met Nick, and not only was he eager to help me settle in, he offered to meet me at the airport! For those of you who have traveled, you know how extremely comforting it is to know someone is waiting for you who can help you in your initial moments at your destination.

Back to the Seven Suns.

This guest house is awesome! All the rooms have a theme (I am in the geometric themed room) and the place just exudes a laid-back quality that I'm sure I will come to appreciate. For today though, I wanted to get out into the city. As Nick and I roamed around, I came to the startling conclusion that Chiang Mai reminded me a lot of Costa Rica! The ramshakle buildings, the fruit juice carts, the open store fronts...none of this was particularly new. Then we came to the first temple. Wow. It was great having Nick along as an informal tour guide because I got a commentary on what not to do (like NEVER touch a monk) and where to go for "Monk Chats" where you can talk to the monks in English and ask them anything your heart desires. How amazing it is to explore a new place with someone who already knows the ropes! After meandering around the old city (within a square of moats) and popping into the 7-11 for necessities, we grabbed another songthaew to Nick's friend's gelato shop outside the moat. Yes, gelato shop. I was surprised too, but it is an awesome little cafe with lots of charm and really decent gelato! Nick's creation (pumpkin chocolate chip) was a little odd since it was yellow and didn't taste a whole lot like pumpkin, but everything was good. I got to meet two of his friends who speak very good English (one with an impeccable British accent) and I also was able to draw the other shop girl out of her shell and got her talking books with me. She wants to be a writer. I'm excited to learn thai so I can have more conversations with people! We hung out there for a bit, and then grabbed a songthaew back to my room so Nick could collect his beers and his motorbike and get to his class on time (he teaches English to Burmese refugees).

That brings us to now, with me lying in my double bed, trying not to get eaten by mosquitos, and getting up periodically to turn on/off the aircon, which is never at a comfortable temperature. I'm loving it! Now it's time for a short nap and shower before hitting the town and seeing how much trouble Nick really does get into on a nightly basis. (He claims a lot...we'll see)

I know, it was supposed to be a short blurb. I'm bad at those...

Stay tuned!