Bai tiow means ‘to travel’ in Thai. Like many Thai words, it does not translate directly into English. If i wanted to ride my bike around town for the afternoon, I could use bai tiow. If I go to Chiang Rai for the day, with no particular plans, I could use the term. If I am gone 3 weeks out of 4, exploring various parts of Northern Thailand and visiting some islands in the South, I would certainly use the term bai tiow, and that’s exactly what I did last month and part of the previous. So in case you’ve been wondering where I’ve been, now you know–I’ve been on tiow.
The past two months have mostly been filled with travelling, though it hasn’t entirely been vacation time. I spent the first two weeks in July at a Peace Corps training in Ayuttaya. Ayuttaya is one of Thailand’s ancient capitals and is a beautiful city. It is unfortunate that we were barely afforded any free time to explore the ancient ruins and absorb the history of the place. Peace Corps kept us pretty busy during the training, but it was enjoyable to see everyone again. We were able to squeeze in enough fun between the cracks. The highlights included the following:
-More language training. For one reason or another, Ryan, Derek, Jack, and I all ended up in the same language group, and had a great time with our ajaan, Uxica (which means laser-eyes in Thai).
-German microbrewery. They had giant glasses of dark beer for 100 baht. That’s a good deal. They also had guys who gave you a backrub while you pissed at the urinal.
-Bowling. One of the local hotels had a nice little bowling alley in it, and we rolled one night with the ajaans.
-Visiting my host family. On our one day off, I travelled to Kamapangsaen to visit my host family for the first time since training ended. It was great to see them, even though I spent half of my time there taking a nap. As always, I was treated to a superbly yummy Thai meal.
-Tweezer practice. We only practiced a couple times, but things came together well. We also enlisted two guest singers: Derek and Lando. Derek is a real person. Lando is a fictionalized character played by Wesley.
-Visiting an HIV/AIDS patient community. In the early nineties, a wat in central Thailand started caring for HIV/AIDS patients who had been abandoned by their families. Things snowballed, and the wat is now a large community for people living with the disease. Visiting the wat was an experience beyond words. There were moments of discomfort due to the voyeuristic aspect of our visit (over 50 of us milled through the care facilities), but the discomfort quickly disappeared once given the chance to talk to patients and see their pleasure in having a visitor. Many of the patients have been exiled by their families and communities and are very lonely, so just having someone to talk to can brighten their day.
There were some disturbing aspects of the visit–one of which being the ‘Life Museum’, a hall filled with the preserved naked corpses of AIDS victims, displayed in plexiglass coffins. Some of the people on display were only four or five years old when they died. When people finally succumb to the disease, they are often no longer able to eat, so the bodies were emaciated and frail. Understandably, many people in our group chose not to go into the Life Museum, and among those who did enter, there were many who disagreed with the display of human bodies in such a way. As much as it was shocking to see, I do understand the point of showing the effects of HIV/AIDS to reinforce the gravity of the disease, and it is also important to remember that Thailand’s culture views death in a different light than our own.
The other image that struck me during the visit was of bags and bags of cremated remains piled up surrounding an image of the Buddha. The white canvas sacks had been sent to the families of the dead, then returned to the wat when the families refused to accept the ashes. There were hundreds of bags.
The most important part of the visit was to see the faces of the disease. Being educated in the United States, we are fortunate to understand the details of HIV/AIDS better than most, therefore the disease does not carry the same stigma which it does in other parts of the world. However, no amount of education and open-mindedness can take the place of seeing the effects of the disease firsthand, talking to the patients, sharing food with them, and seeing their love for life and love for each other. The experience demonstrated the importance of community and finding one’s place therein. When the patients are healthy, they help the bedridden. The patients care for the facility and have social events within the community. The wat was far more a place that shared life than it was a hospice.
On the last night of training, Jess arrived in Bangkok. Her arrival marked the beginning of the real bai tiowing. We spent the weekend in Bangkok, visiting some museums and going to see City of God. As much as some people like visiting Bangkok, I’m not a huge fan. I feel like I spend the entire day trying to get somewhere or trying to avoid the heat. We headed home to Thoeng on Sunday, and I spent Monday and Tuesday teaching while Jess adjusted from her jetlag.
Jess managed to time her visit perfectly. She made her travel arrangements before I knew the exact dates of my training in Ayuttaya, and her arrival date just happened to fall on the last day. On top of that, the following weekend turned out to be a Thai holiday that I wasn’t aware of, so after a quick two days in Thoeng, we spent a five-day weekend exploring Chiang Rai.
Our first stop was in Mae Sai, Thailand’s northernmost town which borders Burma and is the closest point to China as well. Mae Sai is a bit of a trading post, specializing in gems, preserved fruits, and cheap plastic toys. It is also home to the Mae Sai Customs House, which had been holding a package of mine for the previous three weeks. Jess and I entered the building and weren’t quite sure that we were in the right place. There was no service counter, just a disorganized mess of office desks and a few clerks milling about. I handed one of them my claim paper, and he looked absolutely baffled. He read over it and then started looking around behind the desks. They searched around the entire office for two or three minutes before the clerk found my box, behind his own desk. He placed the box on the desk, asked me what was inside, then handed me a blade to open. Once he saw that it was filled with mac & cheese, he sent me on my way.
Ryan and Jordan were due to arrive later that evening but were held up by slow buses, so Jess and I took it easy until they arrived early on Thursday. When Ryan and Jordan showed up, the four of us headed south to a big cave located just outside of Mae Sai. After a songthaew ride and a bit of walking, we showed up at the big cave only to learn that the big cave floods during raining season and was closed. Disappointed at first, we were quickly pointed in the direction of two smaller caves. We made our way up a hill and visited the first cave, which was nothing too spectacular. Then the park worker who had given us directions showed up and took us to the second cave. The second cave was big and very wide. I don’t know what else to tell you about the caves. There’s a picture in the photo section. We made our way back to Mae Sai where we had dinner, played cribbage and Uno, and enjoyed some wine that Jess had brought from the States. Late in the evening, Rachel arrived, completing our group, so it was off to the Golden Triangle in the morning.
The Golden Triangle is where Laos, Burma, and Thailand meet. The Golden Triangle is famous for once having been the center of the opium trade, though opium production still takes place in the area, the Thai government has done a pretty good job of pushing most of it out of Thailand. Nonetheless, during the weekend trip, I did witness people smoking opium publicly on two occasions, so the government must not be cracking down too hard. I believe that there is some sort of policy that gives people of Chinese heritage more legal leeway in regards to smoking opium. So anyways, The Golden Triangle. We went to the Golden Triangle so we could visit The Hall of Opium, a well-regarded museum that documents the history of the opium trade. After arriving in town and having lunch, we headed to the museum. We were shocked to learn that the price of admission was 300 baht ($7.50), which was outside of our museum-going budget. A little disappointed, we headed back to town and found the House of Opium. At 30 baht each, the House of Opium suited our financial constraints, but the museum offered almost no information of any substance. Next time we should skip museums and buy beer.
We left the Golden Triangle in the afternoon and made our way to Mae Salong. Mae Salong is a small village tucked way up in the mountains, so it took some time to get there. The ride was beautiful. We arrived around sunset. The town is populated primarily by Chinese immigrants and is known for growing tea. Mae Salong is the first substantial mountain town that I’ve been to in Thailand–people historically settled in the valleys for agricultural purposes–and is set near a mountain top, surrounded by spectacular green valleys.
We started wandering through up the only street in town and quickly made our way into a tea shop for a tasting. The tea was excellent, and Ryan removed the free tasting guilt by buying a bottle of fruit wine from the shop. Sometimes when with other Peace Corps volunteers, I find myself having conversations in English under the assumption that people surround me cannot understand what I’m saying. This practice can be a dangerous one, especially in Bangkok, where it seems that everyone can speak English. It also proved to be less than prudent in Mae Salong. As we were finishing up our tea, two cars full of Asian tourists entered the shop. Taking in the scene, I remarked to my friends, "I think they’re Japanese." One of the tourists was quick to correct me, "No, we are not Japanese…. we are Chinese." So concludes another lesson in the Jamie Litten Manual of Cultural Sensitivity.
Our plans for Mae Salong largely revolved around a four hour horse trek through the mountains, set for Saturday. Always wary of the Thai system of reservations, I called in advance twice to confirm our party of 5. When we arrived, we paid our deposit to the young man who was seemingly in charge and under the influence of drugs. For the most part, people in Mae Salong don’t speak Thai, and this guy was no exception. He was able to give a memorized description of the trip in Thai, but could not answer any of our questions. Each time we asked a question, he would repeat his pitch. Although our point man was of little help, we figured everything was all set for our trip the following morning. Of course, late on the eve of our ride, it begins raining.
Saturday morning comes, and the rain has not let up. Given the weather, I’m fairly indifferent to the prospect of spending four hours on a horse, riding through the hills, but if the rest of the group is game, I’m right there with them. So we wake up, eat our breakfast, and see the guides getting the horses ready near our guesthouse. Looks like we’re good to go. We’re not. Our trusty leader informs us, using broken Thai and sign language, that we will not be going for a horseback ride. At first, I am led to believe that the weather is the cause–fair enough. However, through Rachel’s prodding, we learn that the trip is over-booked. I’m willing to let it slide and find something else to do in this sleepy, Chinese-settled, mountain town that is home to peculiarly large Christian and Muslim populations. Rachel, on the other hand, is not so willing to let things go, and through Rachel’s New England-bred negotiating skills, we secure our spots on the trip.
Stop for a second–I want everyone to flush any romantic visions of beautiful horses galloping through pristine green mountains out of their heads. Our horses were pack horses, although I think mine might have been a donkey. I would have bet even odds between myself and my horse in a footrace. For where they lacked in physique and grace, our horses did not make up ground in personality. To my perpetual annoyance, my horse, Pudding, insisted on riding right up against Jordan’s horse, who was old and grumpy and did not appreciate the crowding. Jordan’s horse would constantly try to bite Pudding, and in recoil, we nearly ran into a ditch on multiple occasions. Ryan had it worse. His horse had to be isolated from the group because he (the horse, not Ryan) tried to mount one of the females before the ride started and in the aftermath was feeling a bit ornery. Riding thirty yards ahead of the group, Ryan spent four hours trying to spark conversation with his guide, who either didn’t speak Thai or didn’t feel like talking to Ryan.
So leave the idyllic images behind, and replace them with a great morning of riding through downpours as villagers laughed at the idiot white people. At times, the fog and clouds broke up enough to reveal the beauty of the surrounding valleys. Through rain and mud, we slowly made our way to visit an Akha village (one of the hilltribes). An older Akha couple were our hosts and were quite friendly when we arrived. We were treated to tea served in dirty glasses and bananas. The man was all toothless smiles, and the woman was a character. After the hot beverage welcoming, it was time to get down to business. The older woman brought out bracelets and hand-sewn bags for sale, and was not too happy when we bought only one bracelet between us. I can understand her disappointment, given the limited economic opportunity available to her and many others like her, but things were a bit uncomfortable when she was angrily begging for us to buy her wares. We brushed it off and got back on the trail.
The denouement of our ride would be better described as a delugement. The final hour of trip was marked by a total downpour as we plodded along a paved road back to town. It was the perfect conclusion to the perfect ride, and I write that in all sincerity. I wouldn’t have changed a thing.
With sore crotches, we showered, packed up our things, ate some noodles, and headed to Chiang Rai. The rain persisted, and when we arrived in Chiang Rai, we were surprised to see some minor flooding in the streets as we walked to the guesthouse. We waded through, and when we arrived in our rooms, we were all feeling pretty drained from the travelling and horseback riding. We made it to the Night Bazaar for dinner, but most things were closed due to the weather. We made it to bed pretty early, and in the morning, we parted ways.
On Monday, it was back to work. Jess joined me at school and confirmed that Dr. Suchet is indeed a wacko. The week passed without too much to report. On Wednesday evening, Jess headed down to Bangkok to spend a couple days with her friend Yui, and I took the overnight bus and joined her in Bangkok on Saturday morning. In the evening, we boarded yet another overnight bus, heading to Ko Tao, an island in the South, to do some scuba diving.
After a broken night of sleep on the bus and a long ferry ride, we arrived on Ko Tao. We were able to squeeze a quick nap in before we started our certification class that afternoon. Having spent the previous two nights on buses, I was a less than attentive student, but I don’t think I missed too much. I anticipated my PADI class being fairly technical with some life or death things to remember, but in fact, getting PADI certified is more or less brainless. If any of you ever take the class and fail, you will no longer allowed to be my friends.
Our instructor, Janis, was French and a bit smug (not that the two are necessarily related, but smugness is only amplified when delivered in a French accent). For the most part, he was just playing around and keeping things as interesting as possible. After a day and a half in the classroom, we hit the water. Scuba diving is an amazing feeling, but the expected sensation of weightlessness and freedom was largely hindered by the fifty pounds of equipment I had strapped to my body. As the class progressed, I became more accustomed to the equipment, and was able to focus more on the being underwater with the fishies part. On our final day, we had our deepest dive, to 18 meters, and it was great.
Well, almost great. The night before the dive, I awoke with a familiar pressure in my abdomen. I had to take a crap. I made my way to the toilet, and needless to say, the diarrhea fairy had struck again. I tried to tell myself that it would be okay, I’d be fine in the morning.
Morning rolls around, and it’s not fine. I luckily have some Imodium with me, so I take the pill and sip on some water for breakfast, hoping that everything will be stopped up by the time I hit the water three hours later. A visit to the bathroom before I get on the boat, another visit on the boat–things aren’t looking good, and I feel terrible. I’m dehydrated, sweating, and nauseous. I’m not sure that I can make the dive, and I’m terrified of the idea of being down there and all of sudden having to take a crap. Diving at 18 meters means that the amount of pressure on my body will be almost three times as much as normal. Is that enough pressure to squeeze the rhea out of me? I don’t know.
I turn the options over in my head as I pull on my wetsuit. Do I bail and tell everyone that I’m too sick to dive? Or do I go diving with the possibility of having my ass explode underwater? If I go down and I have to take a crap, do I tell Janis that I need to go up, ruining the dive for everyone else? Or do I bear down and swim around with a suit full of sewage for a half an hour? Should I choose to go with the crapping in my suit option, will everyone else in the group know? Will I be leaving a trail of brown water behind me? Will the fish be attracted to it and start nibbling at my ass?
It’s impossible to tell, but I suck it up and take my chances. Donning the gear, we head under, and miraculously I feel great. No bowel problems, no headache, no diarrhea-related paranoia. We dive down to two coral pinnacles, and the entire experience is spectacular: beautiful coral formations, huge beds of anemones, bat fish swimming in fluid formation, and no poop falling out of me.
The day concluded with an unplanned second dive at the same site, due to a stubborn boat engine that left us stranded. Jess managed to swim into the reef for the third time in two days and was also kicked in the head by Colin, our entertainingly socially inept classmate. Aside from the scraped knee and bump on the head, our second dive was just as great as the first, and when it was finished, we were PADI Certified Open Water Divers. I’ve already started making plans for a trip to get my advanced certification.
With most of our time on Ko Tao spent in class or out diving, we saw little of the island, but with a fairly tight schedule, we had no time to waste before heading to our next destination, Ko Phangnan. Ko Phangnan is known in Thailand and throughout the world for its Full Moon Party every month. I’ve never been to one, but the party is supposed to be a huge sea of people covering the beach, with plenty of fun to keep everyone busy. Ko Phangnan is also known as a backpacker’s island due to its relatively cheap prices and abundance of accommodations. We had three nights on the island, and our first stop was at a secluded bay called Bottle Beach.
Bottle Beach was pleasant, although secluded might not be totally accurate. We did have to take a boat to get there, but once there, we were far from alone. There were plenty of foreigners on the beach, and there were four or five guesthouses along the tiny stretch of sand. We got in some good cribbage games and spent the better part of a day hiking to a nearby waterfall. Unfortunately, the waterfall was flowing at a volume equivalent to a bathtub spigot, but the trip there and back was a mini-adventure in and of itself. After Bottle Beach we headed to a semi-crunchy, semi-new-age resort and spa called The Sanctuary, located on the southeastern part of the island.
The Sanctuary was incredibly relaxing, though a bit over-priced. Fortunately for me, Jess was treating me to a massage for my birthday. We spent the afternoons swimming in coves and reading books. It was very sabai (which means chill in Thai).
For as much as I enjoyed my time at The Sanctuary, I was a little irked by the community there. There was a contingent of people staying there who seemed to be pretty well established and probably felt that they had found their own little utopia on this island in Thailand. The thing that bothered me is that this tiny little world they had found had very little to do with Thailand. Thailand has many different places and faces that all fit into the greater definition of Thai, but this place was not among them. It was a world created for foreigners, with enough Thai flavor to make it seem authentic. Obviously there’s not anything inherently wrong with a place like The Sanctuary, but it does bother me to see people who think they are experiencing Thailand when they are missing so much of the picture.
After one night at The Sanctuary, we left Ko Phangnan, heading to the North, to visit a town called Pai in Mae Hongson. We left Ko Phangnan at noon on Sunday, and rode on a boat for 4.5 hours to Surat Thani. From Surat Thani, we took a train to Bangkok, arriving around 6 o’clock on Monday morning. At 8 o’clock, we boarded another train, and arrived in Chiang Mai twelve hours later. We spent the night in Chiang Mai and in the morning took a four hour busride to Pai, arriving in the early afternoon on Tuesday.
Many people had recommended visiting Pai, and their recommendations were justified. Pai is a really cool town. It’s set along a small river, in a mountain valley. The town has its fair share of shacked-up expatriates, but there is a healthy balance between Thai and foreign culture. There’s a nice little art scene and some good music in town as well. All in all, Pai was the perfect place to hang out and relax for the last few days of our trip.
We didn’t do too much in the way of activities, with the exception of one day where we rode elephants and visited some hot springs. The elephant ride was three hours long, half of it through the jungle and half of it in the river. The jungle part was pretty boring. It was hot, and ‘the jungle’ was really just a soy bean field with some trees. The river, on the other hand, was great fun. Jess and I were fortunate enough to be riding an elephant named Ot, that likes to swim. Ot dunked us plenty of times. She would be standing to about mouth level in the river and then would dip her left side down, sending us underwater while Jess held onto her ears and I held onto a rope wrapped around her mid-section. She would hold us down until we were almost out of breath, then right herself. We would hang on and pull ourselves up straight with the help of our good-tempered guide, Mo. One time, Mo was counter-balancing me as Ot righted herself slowly, then she shot up abruptly, not giving Mo enough time to adjust, and he slingshotted into the river. He stayed close and climbed up onto the elephant, all smiles.
So altogether Pai was wonderful: good food, good blues bar, crazy guesthouse owner, elephants, etc. Oh wait….. I almost forgot the best part! On our last day in Pai, Jess and I got massages. Jess opted for the standard Thai massage (boring), and I went for the supposedly rougher Shan massage. The Shan massage was everything I could have hoped for and more. Deep kneading, focused on the back–it was perfect. To top it off, the lady cracked my back six different ways. So, if you’re ever in Pai, be sure to get the Shan massage. Did I mention that it was only $3?
From Pai to Chiang Mai, for a quick weekend before Jess headed home and I had to get back to site. Rain was the theme of the weekend, so we laid low, watching a movie and going out to a nice Italian meal for my birthday on Saturday evening. The meal was pretty good and the service was excellent. Like always, I forced Jess to get dessert, so I could eat hers. I had the creme brulee, which was forgettable, and Jess got the tiramisu, that was delicious but sorely missing the ladyfingers.
The next morning was my birthday. We packed our bags and then headed out to get a nice sushi lunch to celebrate. We walked over to the road where the restaurant is and were surprised to see large amounts of brown water flowing in it. The street was flooded to our knees, but unthinkingly we figured we could walk through the flood to get to the restaurant. The things we do for sushi. Four blocks and a half an hour later, we arrived at the restaurant, which we had already decided wouldn’t be open. And of course it wasn’t.
We headed back towards the guesthouse, taking a dry route this time, and ate at a nice Italian restaurant while the considering the likelihood of being able to leave that day. We had to get across the river to get to the bus station, and the river was flooded. After lunch we found a tuk-tuk (cheap taxi-thing) driver who said he could take us to the bus station, so we grabbed our things and I made it just in time to jump on my 3 o’clock bus. In the days following, we learned that the flood we walked through was the worst that Chiang Mai has seen in 40 years and the same river swell had flooded Pai on Saturday, the day after we left.
So concluded the bai tiow. It was wonderful having Jess come visit and exploring Thailand together. Getting back to site on Sunday evening, I had one night at home before spending three days in Chiang Rai at an English Camp hosted at the Chiang Rai YMCA. English Camps are like summer camp, but designed to learn English. They are far from effective in teaching English or inspiring students to learn, yet they seem to be very popular here in Thailand. What sane kid would find it fun to learn English from 6 a.m. until 9 p.m. for three days straight? The nice part of the English Camp was that we visited the Hall of Opium, and this time, my admission was paid for. The museum was impressive and educational.
On Thursday and Friday, I prepared for a teachers’ training the following week. Jordan, Ryan, and Lindsey would attend, so some planning needed to be done to figure out our roles in the training. Of course, as most planning in Thailand goes, it wasn’t very helpful. No matter.
On Friday, I headed to Chiang Mai to meet up with the aforementioned three amigos. Friday was Ryan’s birthday, so the weekend was set to be our shared birthday bash. I got in late on Friday night, so we kept things pretty tame. On Saturday, Lindsey and I wandered around Chiang Mai and then met up with Merissa. The three of us headed over to the mall to meet up with Jordan and Ryan and see Wedding Crashers. For those of you who haven’t seen it yet, it’s a pretty funny movie. Lindsey didn’t like it and left in the middle, which is understandable because she is from Florida, and like most Floridians, has poor taste. The rest of us enjoyed it.
Saturday night was our big night out. We first headed to the supposedly cool disco called "Bubbles" but were less than impressed. We bailed and headed for what has become our old faithful, the Mandalay. Things were slightly more subdued this time, at least on my end–I only got kicked off of the stage once. This was Lindsey’s first night out in Chiang Mai and her first time at the Mandalay. She broke it in with grand style.
I was dancing onstage, in my own little world, when the crowd erupted in cheers. Confused, I looked up to see Lindsey on the ground, rolling off of the stage. I don’t know exactly how it happened, but she was okay and got right up and kept dancing. The following morning, we fought off our hangovers with some hot dogs and then got on a bus back to my site.
The next five days were a mix of stress and boredom, due both to my lack of planning and foresight and the overall execution of the training by my Thai counterparts. All the same, we had a good time hanging out in Thoeng. Tweezer made its public debut to an eager crowd of 166 Thai teachers. I think they were all rather confused and a bit perturbed that we wasted ten minutes of their lives, but Ryan and I thought that the two song show was a resounding success, a glimpse of future stardom.
The week was capped off with a Friday night in Chiang Rai. I’m starting to realize that Chiang Rai has more to offer than I originally thought, and on Friday, Cat Bar was the new discovery. I know what you’re thinking, but despite the name, Cat Bar is not a hooker hangout; it is a bar with a pool table and instruments setup for anyone to play. When we first showed up, one of the locals was picking up a guitar and another was about to play bass. Seeing my opportunity, I jumped behind the drums. I held my own, thinking that there probably weren’t too many drummers in the house. After I finished playing a few songs, I spent the next three hours watching real drummers play the instrument the way it was meant to be played, but I had fun doing my thing. With buses to catch the next morning, Ryan and Jordan headed to bed early, while Lindsey and I kept it going until closing time, when I sang a painful rendition of "With or Without You" with the band. The next day, Lindsey left in the afternoon, and I headed back to Thoeng.
Time to settle back into the routine.
This past week has been my first time teaching in a while–it’s feels good to be back in the classroom and see the students. I am also reminded of the problems that I let slip from my mind while being away for so long. So in a lot of ways, I feel like I’m starting over again, needing to get my lesson plans together and work out the dynamics between myself and my counterparts. It should be a fun month of things getting back to normal in Thoeng.
One last thing… I learned this week that my co-teacher’s cousin recently gave birth to a baby boy and named him Jamie. I’ve only met her once.
