Caves, Temples, and Gardens... Oh My!

Well I just spent another fabulous weekend in Chiang Mai, and have much to tell!

Instead of class on Friday, we spent the day caving and rock climbing. Yes, I am recieving college credit for this. Much of Thailand's natural landscape is characterized by limestone, which results in elaborate caves and stunning towers. Some of the caves that we saw had wide open entryways, others required a bit of crouching and crawling to enter. Some were only a single room, others were connected to a much larger system. After entering into one cave, we climbed up a small ledge to reveal an enormous additional room. The best way I can think to describe it is like a giant well. Where we were, there was about 35 meters to the bottom and another 35 meters to the top, plus it was about 20 meters across to the other side. They had set up a rope system, similar to a zipline, across those 20 meters. So, one by one, they hooked up our harnesses to this line. It was level, so you had to pull yourself across, but that meant you could stop in the middle and simply float while admiring the beauty of the cave. It was littered with stalactites, stalagmites, and flowstone. Once you reached the other side, someone was there to switch your harness onto the rappel system and, down you go! After a lunch of fried rice with vegetables and chicken, we then headed out to some rock faces to do some climbing. As the first wave of people were ascending the routes, it began to rain. And by rain, I mean RAIN. So we grabbed our stuff and headed back up the trail to the cave we had rappeled in earlier, getting incredibly wet and muddy in the process. So we spent the rest of the afternoon climbing the routes inside the cave. It felt great to be outside all day. But I think my family thought I was crazy when they saw my scraped up legs, dirty clothes, and mud-caked shoes (which my Grandma later showed me how to clean with a toothbrush--they look like new!).

On Saturday, I spent the day relaxing, reading, and sleeping. But then in the evening I went with my Meh (mom) and sister to one of Chiang Mai's Walking Street Markets. Every Saturday, they close this particular street to cars and then fill it with vendors selling everything from food to clothes, woodworkings to tapestries, jewelry to music. There is just a ton of local crafts, handmade goods, and some touristy souvenirs as well. It's so beautiful! I'm definitely going to need all of that extra room that I left in my suitcases...

Then on Sunday, we had quite the day! My family took me, as well as a fellow ISDSI student and her host sister (who is best friends with my host sister) to Doi Suthep. Doi, in Thai, means mountain-- although they really are hills compared to the Rockies. This particular mountain just outside of Chiang Mai houses an incredible temple. Once you drive up the switchbacked road, you must climb some 150 steps up to the Wat (temple). Once there, you are embraced in a sea of Gold. Once again, only pictures can do it justice. We walked around the whole area-- ringing every bell in the long rows for good luck, waiing to the monk monuments, admiring the flowers, recieving a blessing from a Monk, and for me at least, learning about the different Buddhist traditions. I have always been really intrigued by Buddhism and so to be so immersed in Buddhist culture is something that I am particularly enjoying and grateful for.

Eventually we left to continue further up on the road we had come to a small village. It was a bit weird because this was an obviously poor village but had adapted to rely on the tourists that come through this area. The narrow road that winds up through the village was lined with shops selling local handicrafts. Again, their stuff was very beautiful, although I feel like it is too early for me think about souvenir shopping. We also paid a small fee to see their beautiful gardens. Apparently, the area used to grow opium exclusively. Now, however, there is only a little left and the rest was transformed into a flower garden.

After waiting out an intense rain storm, we left the village and headed back down the road to Phuping Palace, the five of us girls bouncing along in the bed of my Paw's (dad's) pickup. This is one of 3 or 4 royal palaces in Thailand, which the King and Queen stay in when they are in Chiang Mai. Otherwise, the grounds are open to the public. We got there with only a half hour till it closed so we just made a quick lap around. If I thought the village's garden was beautiful, it had nothing on the Palace grounds. There were roses of every color the size of a cantaloup, leaves the size of a pillow case, countless varities of tropical flowers, slithering vines, and trickling streams. And supposedly the garden isn't even in full bloom until December.

So that basically sums up my weekend. Back to the grind of outdoor classes, hammocks, home cooked food, and exploring an exciting city...