Well elephant riding was a bit disappointing. I went to the elephant conservation center, which is subsidized by the government and they say its one of the places where the elephants are treated kindly. Unfortunately, kindly treated elephants do not make for a good show. The center is out on the way to Lampang, almost an hour outside of Chiang Mai. I got an early start to try to avoid crowds, but it seems that tourist attractions in Thailand don't get pack the way they do in NYC. This is one of the top attractions and it was completely empty! I saw the show, which involves elephants bowing, pushing logs around, painting pictures (with the help of an attendant) and the most impressive thing was they could turn the tap on the water fountain themselves! After the show I went to the elephant nursery and played with a baby elephant and his mother for about an hour, feeding them sugar cane and bananas. I know it's terribly touristy, but when am I going to be able to pet baby exotic creatures in the states?
Next stop was the Sankamphaeng Hot Spring. I do not recommend following suit. I thougt it would be a hot spring spa, I brought a bathing suit in preparation to sit in jacuzzis filled with natural spring water... But it was a far cry from that image. Apparently the thug to do is to boil little speckled eggs in the springs and eat them while sticking your feet in the seriously-close-to-boiling water that flows in a stream from the geyser. There's even a sign that tells you how long to keep your eggs in. Want a soft boiled egg? Only three minutes. Hard boiled? Well that's closer to ten. The smell was a bit overwhelming and the water was too hot, so I had a curry (delicious northern style) and left.
Mr. Nikon dropped me off in downtown Chiang Mai and I strolled throug the night markets, dying many many things, but chickened out of trying the bugs. The best thing here is a cocunut treat where they pour a coconut liquid into circular Madeleine trays and add chives or a bit of egg and fry it up in front of you. Don't know what it's called but it's delicious. After marketing for a while I met up with krit on the eastern side of the river, which is more quiet and filled with cute shops and restaurants. We went to Regina Kitchen, where we must have a resident stay. It's a combination antique shop, coffee shop, restaurant, bar, and guest house. They have a million baby kittens running around and the staff will come and deposit a variety of them in your lap if you show interest. I am seeing a theme in my trip to thailand: baby animals galore. And I'm not complaining. Krit and his friend and I stayed out rather late, testing his friends motorbike, and admiring the view from several of the riverside bars, then called it a nit and hailed a tuk tuk home.
Yesterday I traveled back to Bangkok, but in the morning before I left, krit took me to the private collection of Dr. Disaphol Chansiri which was a mix of Jeff kooks, Cindy Sherman things mixed with modern thai artists. The Thai work is far more interesting, but perhaps that's because ive seen the kooks before. The collection is housed in his complex which includes an old palace once used by the royal family and painteed bright yellow, and a very modern gluckman like gallery space for the art work, and a sculpture garden. Very beautiful.
Then it was off to the airport and back to Bangkok. I had plan need on going to Brian curtin's opening and since logatold me traffic to that part of town would be murder, I walked it. Didn't seem to far. One hour later... Even though it was a long haul, the walk was pretty interesting. I paced the kings house with all the armed guards and crossed over some serious super highways. Nothing like that exists in new york. Did I mention the kings house is pink?
At the opening Brian introduced me to most of the ex pat community here in Bangkok: artists, curators, writers, and permanent travelers. I also got to meet the author of Very Thai, a book about all the quirks and customs here, who is absolutely great to talk to since he knows all the underground happenings in these parts. He told me that there's a really big interest in cults and dark magic here. Who knew!
Later on I went to visit Logan at his dj gig and then met up with sandy at a rooftop bar closse to my apartment.
Today is my last day here and I'm more than a little upset about it. Early this morning I went to the Chatuchak weekend market, which is the biggest market in the world. I spent hours getting lost among the stalls, but what I really lost was all of my money.
I'm now all packed up and sitting in the cafe at the end of my street, trying to get in touch with one more person, a woman who runs an art library here, to finish off my trip. It's been a wonderful adventure and I've met some truly wonderful people. Mt recommendation for a next residency here would be to split the time between Bangkok and chiang Mai. Bangkok is quite interesting but also very much like all big cities whereas Chaing Mai has a very local flavor and is farther from all the hustle and bustle, you can really digest it. Plus krit would make an excellent contact!
Thank you Steven, thank you apex, and see you Tuesday morning!
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