TERRA FIRMA

The owners of our sublet in the sky are back in Chiang Mai for a few months, so before we head to BKK in December, we are staying at our friend Marisa's house. Marisa and Fee got their masters in public health together at UNC, and now Marisa is working for Johns Hopkins on several research studies here.

Marisa's house is terrific, its vaulted ceiling and plaster arches give it a Mediterranean feel, while Frida Kahlo would approve of the vibrant blue throughout - and the yard (pictured above) is beautiful. Our return to terra firma has also reawakened us (sometimes literally) to the sounds of city life, especially during these firecracker-happy days surrounding the Loy Gratong festival.

So, from the shade of the tamarind tree, three cheers to Marisa!

MO' CORN, MO' PROBLEMS

A week or so ago we hopped aboard a bus, and headed 5 hours northeast to Nan, a mountainous province bordering Laos. We were visiting our friend Amalia, an Italian anthropologist who is researching the forest conservation/slash-and-burn cashcrop agriculture conflict.

We arrived for the weekend of the final dragonboat races along the Nan river, and the typically sleepy town of 25,000 was abuzz with a big festival market along the river.

Though the highlight of our weekend visit was a motorbike ride up into the mountains. Amalia was interested in checking out the scene in some areas she hadn’t visited – we had heard there were some isolated villages, so we decided (laughingly) to invoke our inner-old-school anthropologist, and go in search of the ‘true natives’.

We climbed the main road for 30km out of Nan town, then turned onto a stunning sideroad the ran along the spine of the mountain ridge. It is amazing to think this is corn country in Thailand - the landscape is a far cry from the Cartesian flatscape of Iowa. Too steep for any machines, the corn - all large-kerneled feed corn for the cattle industry - is hand-picked.

We parked at the end of the paved road, then walked a couple km to a village for noodles and shelter from a passing rain cloud. The cook there told us we had overshot the Mabri village.

Perhaps I'll let Fee tell the rest, including listening to an older gentleman, dressed only in dustly loin cloth, vent about his role as spokesman for a 'model village'. Stay tuned for more...

LET GO LIGHTLY

Wow. Last night Fee and I headed north to Mae Jo, acting on a recommendation to check out the annual lantern ceremony there. We had heard rumor of the launching of upwards of 3,000 paper lanterns. So we followed our intrigue.

Passing stand after stand of folks selling hand-made paper lanterns – complete with fuel-soaked slice of bamboo shoot – our drums of anticipation began to beat. We parked the bike and joined the throng, grabbing some food (including a delicious spicy noodle salad) as we walked alongside a canal, accompanied by the ‘pop-pop-POP’ of firework-happy kids.

The main event took place on the temple grounds, a massive circular field the seemed to be made for this event. The monks were leading meditation over the PA system, but most folks, distracted by the prospects of the great launch, chatted in small groups of family and friends. Finally, the moment arrived. A vast grid of tiki torches was lit across the field, some final call-and-response chants were offered, and away we went.


With two or three people spreading the lantern lengthwise, the bamboo ‘engine’ was held over the torches until the flame took. Then the lantern begins to fill with hot air, fully inflating and becoming ever more buoyant until – LIFTOFF! – and it joined the ranks of our swirling, man-made constellations of wishes, floating up into the night sky.

DELICIOUS

Sweetened soy milk with tapioca balls - oh, doctor!
One of the many pleasures to be found right around the corner.

karmaNet 2.0

Today we visited the second ceremony in as many days in which string connected every person in the main temple building (and even some under tents outside) to one another and to the monks officiating. Quite an extraordinary Northern Thai tradition, especially given that on Friday there were thousands at the event! Mainly old people, receiving blessings for a long life – though today was also a happy birthday to the abbot of Wat Buak Krok Luang.



The ladies pictured here helped us make some merit by contributing to a new renovation project. Yup – we forked over a few baht and signed our names on a brick just as these ladies are doing. When they found out we were from America they couldn’t help but mention the upcoming presidential election – and the entire crowd was in support of our Obama pick! Thais for Obama! ใช่ได้! (Yes we Can!)

HA HA HA

Yesterday, I declared phone independence from Fee, buying a sleek little Nokia cell phone. As a fun little bonus, each phone merchant has an array of telephone numbers, so you can choose the path of your new telephonic life.

I knew the stars must have been aligned when I spotted a series of 555-XXXX numbers and couldn’t resist my chance to grab a piece of Hollywood.

In addition to being the designated prefix of the Silver Screen, 555 happens brings a smile to Thais. The number ‘five’ in Thai is ‘haa’ (with a falling tone, but that’s beside the point); therefore, ‘555’ is a nice little chuckle. Seems that ‘555’ is the ‘LOL’ of Thailand.

So, now the open question – what phone numbers do they call in Thai movies?

FAR FROM THE MADDING CROWD (or) THE REAL REASON WE'RE HERE

Fee ducked down to Bangkok at the beginning of this past week, managing to steer clear of the protests and bus/train slowdowns, for a 2-day Palliative Care conference at Chulalongkorn Hospital. A good kick-off to her research year, and a chance to reintroduce herself to a few of the organizers. She even made new friends at the lunch counter. (Thais are good at cutting the 'cafeteria dining = middle school insecurity' connection.)

On the ongoing events in Bangkok, we’ll sidestep direct political talk on this blog, but for those interested in the fascinating world of Thai politics – a world in which the PAD ( People’s Alliance for Democracy) is calling for appointed rather than elected seats of parliament) – we suggest a look at the Sovereign Myth and New Mandala Blogs.

While we’re on the links, here is a terrific food blog – mostly about Bangkok street food, but posts from the rest of Thailand as well.

THE COLOR OF PALO ALTO

Last Thursday we went to hear a talk by the American artist Samuel Yates. The event was put on by the land foundation, the group that I’ll be working with this year, and took place at the artist Kamin’s studio. Ajarn Kamin (or ‘Teacher Kamin’, he sometimes teaches at CMU), along with Rirkrit Tiravanija, started the foundation. Kamin’s studio is a nice big barn space, strewn with small sculptures and large paintings and other works-in-progress (he is quite prolific).

Samuel Yates most recently finished the ‘Color of Palo Alto’, which comes at the end of line of work dealing with beauracracy. Whether dismantling an MG and filing the car parts in a tower of file cabinets, painting with human remains, or transplanting the soil from a purchased cemetery plot, often his artwork is accompanied by a hefty amount of legal documents.

At one point, it began to rain quite heavily outside, and Kamin placed a few buckets under some leaky spots in the roof, high above. As a precautionary measure, an umbrella was opened, then placed above Mr. Yates laptop, and the presentation continued with the absurd casualness that made me think of Jacques Tati.

AT LAST

Fee and I celebrated two years of wedded bliss yesterday, dancing to Etta James before heading out to a fish restaurant that we remembered fondly from an outing last summer.

I’m happy to say we’re still very much in love… though we may just skip the baked Tubtim fish next time – even knowing that it is intriguingly served inside of a fresh coconut.

FUNEREAL HOW-TO's FROM 7-ELEVEN

Fee spotted this book on the rack in our neighborhood convenience store, and couldn’t resist spending the 50 baht (about $1.35) to add it to her library. Subtitled “Everything you don’t want to know, but should know”, it describes the myriad aspects of a Thai funeral.

We have conjectured that perhaps because they perform funerals just a block away (we’ve recently heard the traditional monks’ chant followed by karaoke) the books are a impulse buy item…come in for a Coke, leave a more informed mourner.

In all, further proof of two things: 1) we don’t really understand everything that goes on around us and 2) that, indeed, 7-Eleven has just about everything: total convenience, from Alpha to Omega.

ITALO-THAI

Had a great welcoming visit from our friends Claudio and Futura , who came up this past weekend from Bangkok after spending the summer all over the Malaysian peninsula. As a bonus, we met their friend Amaglia, a new anthropologist friend in town - another Italian, who is preparing to head out to do research in Nan province, close to the Mekong River and Laos.

A few of the highlights of the visit:

1) EXPLORING DOI SUTHEP BY MOTORBIKE during a (mercifully) rain-free Saturday. A beautiful ride that took us past the temple, up to the Phuphing Palace – the winter retreat for the royal family, whose scatological name brought out our collective inner-12-year-old. After a delicious roadside repaste, we followed a series of single-lane roads down the mountain to a Hmong village, then back up to a lookout point, then down a mossy side-road that led to a remote temple, then a bit too far down an unpaved section of road, before Fee and Claudio (the fearless drivers to whom I and Futura clung, respectively) managed to slog our way out of il fongo with only one muddy sandal and one bruised calf (on Fee’s leg – no cows were harmed). Ultimately, we glided back down the mountain, stopping at a waterfall or two, back into town and a well-earned dinner.

2) COMPARING IMMIGRATION POLICY between the U.S. and the European Union, over beers at a new neighborhood bar. Also discussed the ‘projects’ that are the United States and a United Europe – more on that, I’d highly recommend Henri-Levy’s American Vertigo, where the French author takes a trip around America ala de Touqueville – last thing I read before our trip here.

3) FOOD ! Claudio possesses an extensive Thai food vocabulary, and we marveled at the veritable font of delights that is the nearby food stalls. Certainly more elaboration is due (hopefully with Technicolor photos to whet appetites stateside). The food stalls serve university students almost exclusively, and might therefore qualify as the world’s greatest student cafeteria. Also on the weekend menu was the sushi place next door – Japanese food has recently caught on here in Thailand, and all the better at Thai prices (!)

NAAM DUUM

Sometimes it gets so hot, even our poor glass of drinking water starts sweating. The above is a self-portrait taken though the condensation left by a glass of water on our coffee table. Looks like something by a more free-spirited Chuck Close.

OUR ALARM CLOCK

Most mornings start with the enthusiastic chirping of our friend shown here. He and his winged cousins perch atop our balcony railing at least a dozen times each day – and tend to be keen on conversation. Their eyes betray a sense of ownership as they stare at me, cocking their head slightly as if to say, “And you are…?”

If there are any capable ornithologists out there – we’d love to know our friend’s name.

*update: thanks to Nicky D, who passed along this link:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Common_Myna
looks like the common myna is often considered an invasive species - i realized we're in no position to throw stones on this issue ;) -km

LOOKING WEST

The above is our lovely western view, 14 floors above the city with Chiang Mai university (covered in trees) abutting the foothills of Doi Suthep. Along the mountain ridge, those with keen eyesight may see the outlines of Wat Doi Suthep (just left of center). The temple glows at night and, sitting atop the darkened mountain, seems to float in the night sky.

(Will work on that posting that night photo, though it may be awhile. During the rainy season- right now- the mountain is most often blanketed in fog)

BLUE IS THE NEW SILVER

Without belaboring travel details...

Sat next to a very nice ceramic engineer from upstate New York on the flight from JFK to Taipei. He was en route to Indonesia, where he does interesting work with low-tech, hi-result ceramic water filters.

Strange thing was that, from the first glance, all i could think was 'this guy's face is blue'. After chatting for a while, that initial notion subsided a bit. Subsided until his end-of-flight plug for the wonders of silver solution (AgNO1- silver nitrate?) in fighting bacterial infection. After heaping praise upon silver (shown to cure AIDS, etc), he lamented that the FDA would not approve it due to some outlandish belief that it turned users blue. Thanks in large part to jetlag, Fee and I somehow managed to stifle our laughter (later released in the airport).

I seemed to recall one of Garcia-Marquez' characters in Love in the Time of Cholera taking silver for medicinal purposes and turning a slight shade of blue. Though our seatmate did not get his in some small Colombian port town, the bottles label was in spanish, purchased from a Mexican apothecary.

JFK - *TPE - CNX

*with a much needed stretching session in anchorage, alaska

All's well that ends well. And even better when it begins well.

It's certainly not China Airline's fault that the world is as large as it is. After 24 hours of travel we went from eating tacos in Fort Greene, Brooklyn (thanks Tom & Rachel) to clutching fork in left and spoon in right hand to savor our first fish with garlic and shrimp soup (bplaa gratiam & tom yom gung) with Fee's research sponsor and friend Linchong.

My guess is eating should develop rapidly into a major theme of this humble blog ;)