Sawadee Khrap

Haven't done much – No photos – just getting ready for New Year.  How about you ?  I’ve been house cleaning – that means looking at all the clippings and articles I saved during the year and seeing which ones need to be kept. – NOT MANY – most can be found on the Internet and I can just put a link to them – so why have a pile of paper here in the apt. 

Here’s one I got when I first came to Thailand and I thought it was great:  I have still not gotten the technique of using the squat toilets here in Thailand – actually I refuse to use them, so I have to plan ahead when going on a trip.  But this notice left in every room of the YMCA Hotel in Chiang Mai  really made me laugh – and I am told that several time many of my friends have see Thai's try to use the throne this way .

 

And Here is a article I just saw in the “Pattaya News”.  I am always amazed to see what others will use to try and get their point across – this one takes the cake – I can’t imagine how someone would relate a blow up doll to talking about KFC chicken and especially taking it on a tour of the red-light district.

Sounds to me that they just

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Sawadee Khrap

It’s been a busy weekend, 22nd to Chom Thong and here on Dec 23rd to Pea’s house in Tha Ku Village, Lamphum Province so he could vote.  We stopped at the “Gassan” , The biggest golf course in Northern Thailand for breakfast on our way to Pea’s house. Just a couple of shots.

 

 

 

 

 

Their web site has some great shots – sorry I don’t like golfing. The side road from the Chiang Mai – Lampang Super Highway to Pea’s village, Tha Ku, is being widened to 4 lanes and will be great when it’s done.

I got to meet Pea’s mother, stepfather, brother and several relatives. 

 

The voting was being held in the local temple, so we went there first.  At Pea’s house I was offered some “tasty” crickets – but passed them by, opting for a ice-cream instead.  Next we went to where his stepfather was working, cutting down branches that had ant nests on them – these ants farm a small insect similar to an aphid that makes clusters on the tree branches.  These are collected (along with the eggs of the ants too – I’m told they are very good) and used to produce a form of lacquer and cement or glue.

Later we drove to Doi Khuntan National Park and the train station & tunnel for the

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Sawadee Khrap

On Saturday, Dec 22, I went to visit a friend of mine, Phum, and his family in Chom Thong.  Chom Thong is southwest of Chiang Mai on the lower road to Mae Hong Song.

Phum has a fish-raising enterprise on the Ping River next to his home.  The production cycle is 3 mo from fingerlings to sale – the fish are fed every hour as they grow – so this is a day and night job.  Very intensive. Two years ago when the Ping River flooded, Phum lost his entire setup, fish, baskets and all – what you see now is only half of what it used to be, it was twice as wide.  Oh ya – it extends the same amount to the left of the picture – but my panographic didn’t work. 

(This is a very large image so be prepared for some time to download)

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here I met his Mother, Father and Nephews.  This SlideShow shows the family, and a side trip we took to Ob Luang National Park and the amazing Ob Luang Canyon. 

 Here’s a great shot of Plum and the canyon. 

 I felt like I was back in California.  Here I am on the other side of the world and I felt like I was back home.  They have a camping area and a trail that we took and crossed the walking bridge over the

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Sawadee Khrap

Celebrate the birth of

  MIRACLES

Sawadee Khrap

Last Sunday  Brian & Pong and I went to see if there would be any good sunset shots from the Royal Flora Ratchaphruek 2006 Expo grounds.  Too hazy and no sunset.

When we first arrived we went up to Wat Phar That Doi Kam and took some shots looking down on the Expo site.  It’s am impressive Buddha statue overlooking the entire site.  If you look closely at the pictures in the SlideShow you can see the Temple area on the top of the hill behind the Expo site.

 

 

This is a shot from within the main are looking back toward the large entrance plaza with the ticketing areas.  Right now admission is free but the Expo is considerably smaller.  They are not keeping open the exhibits from all the participating countries when the actual Expo was officially open.  And only flowers indigenous to Chiang Mai are in bloom now.  Here’s a few to show what I mean – we didn’t have time to go through the orchid display, but I did catch some great shots.

 

 

Please enjoy the SlideShow

 

Ciao

Sawadee Khrap

Dec 3, 07 was Green Day in Chiang Mai and they celebrated with all the Chiang Mai schools sending representatives to a Rally at 3 Kings Monument.  Wat Suan Dok, with teacher Khun Joanne, had a group of monks participate.  That’s Joanne with the green sign on the right.  Among them were some of the monks I am helping learn HTML and web programming. 

 

 

 

 

 

I have created a

SlideShow

of the event.  Bands from each of the school came from all 4 sides of the Old Wall Gates to meet at the 3 Kings Monument. Hope you enjoy the pictures.  I am in the process of getting all the shots from the last 3–4 week ready to put on the Blog – sooooooo there will be more from different venues for posting shortly. 

Ciao

Sawadee Khrap Well, it final. I’m a "Big Brother", not by that name but as they say here, same-same. I am helping a young man here in Chiang Mai to go to school. I won’t mention his name for his privacy, but he and his family are unable to send him to school for the final classes to graduate and I have volunteered to sponsor him. He lives with his Aunt and Uncle and he comes from the Southern part of Thailand. It’s a familiar sad story, he is a young Kathoey and from a poor family where going to work is more important for the family survival than his schooling – so he had to drop out and work at his father’s trade – fishing. But being Kathoey – commonly called a LadyBoy – he is not up to doing that muscular work. So he was sent to live with his Aunt & Uncle. I was introduced to him by a friend of mine and got to listen to his story and dreams. Thailand on the surface is very tolerant toward gays and the LadyBoys but deeper down at the village level there is not that level of acceptance – especially if the boy is the oldest child and expected to help support the family as soon as he is able. In this case being different caused problems. I came to Thailand wanting to help someone have some of the opportunities I had enjoyed. ...

Thanks for all who inquired as to my well being – I have been extremely busy and unable to post anything in the blog lately. 

I have  (I hope) some great news to post soon, I am working on it now – but cannot say anything for at least another week.

I’ll post soon

Thanks again