Sawadee Kup!

Eating buffalo skin. Being splashed with holy water. Riding elephants. Trekking in the jungle.

Thailand never ceases to amaze me. Each time I come, I fall deeper in love, and become more mystified, with the people and the culture. And having a local friend to take you around makes the experience so much richer.

After leaving Chiang Mai, we hopped in the Mighty Max truck (3 on a bench seat) for the ride to Mae Sariang. On the way, we stopped in his brother's village. Remote. On top of a mountain. The village is far from water, so a daily chore in trekking down the hill to fetch water. We saw the temple where I worked with the Sonoma Academy kids to build an outhouse. It still works. Ask Kelsey. Next, we went to Anon's sister's house where we sampled some of their homemade rice whiskey. They have a whole moonshining gig which is totally wild. When we finally got to our destination, Anon's other sister's house, we were welcomed to an amazing feast, including an omelet with ant eggs. It was surprisingly good (though Kels has a different opinion.) Later that night, while playing cards, we tried some of the grilled buffalo skin. It took all my effort not to throw up.

The next day, we left for Mae Hong Son. On the way, we went to a gorgeous mountain temple. Peaceful. Calm. Spiritually inviting. This was hilariously juxtaposed against our next stop: the moon shining hut in action. When we arrived at Anon's actual house, after unpacking, he took us to where he works. We walked from his house and immediately entered the jungle. For about an hour we followed a meandering stream. Then we scrambled up a steep hill with loose rocks and dirt. There, in the middle of the jungle, nestled into a steep ravine, were about ten others. Playing cards. Sleeping. It was break time. Shortly after, they got going sawing away, turning felled teak trees into 2x4's. This is illegal work. The punishment: 10-20 years in jail. The pay: about $100/month. The joy: hanging with your buddies in the woods, putting in a hard day of work. I tried sawing. Failed. And was laughed at. Returning to his house, we needed some firewood. So we cut down a tree. I did it. Rad.

The next day we hiked a gorgeous mountain. We took a guide. Was wearing flip flops. And had a cigarette in his hand the entire walk. We followed the hike up later that night with a soak at a local hot spring. Tons of people. You sit by the edge of the water. BUcketing yourself with almost scalding water. Soap. Shampoo. Splash. Splash. I then realized that most of the people there do not have hot water showers. This was there hot shower. Pretty cool. We went back there this morning at 5:30 for a good bye cleanse.

Let me just add something about Anon's wife's family, with whom we spent a lot of time. Her parents are Kareni refugees from Burma. Her dad was fought with the Chan against the Burmese army from when he was 13 to 26. Wow. (Made me think a lot of the great book: The Land of the Green Ghosts.)

Well. In Chiang Mai now. Head to Nepal tomorrow. In an hour, Kels and I will be taking cooking lessons. Excited.