Feb 15, 2002: Sigh. Finally bored enough (and probably comfortable enough with my environs) to check out the local night life. Kick back, have a coupla drinks, maybe some music, watch pretty girls (OK who are young enough to be my children) dance, in skimpy outfits, on my table... Then BOOM! Thunderclap. BOOM! Another one. Heavens open. It's pouring. Wailing-pouring. Even a walk to the local supermarket is out, at the moment (fortunately there are two good restaurants and a bar in the building...). Once it lets out maybe I'll go find an umbrella, but I don't think I'll be "hanging out" on the streets until the weather's a bit more predictable.
I can't complain too much, the weather had been flawless since I arrived in Thailand a little over two weeks ago. A bit hot for my taste one or two days, but it beats the hell out of frostbite. [While aside from that rain the daytime weather has been great, there was a lightning/wind storm a few nights ago (2/18) that took down billboards and just destroyed the glass in a local bakery].
Class was good today. In fact, it was 11:15 before my teacher pointed out that in fact our time had finished 15 minutes earlier. She's sweet. I think she's finally convinced that I am not a deranged foreigner, but do have an "interesting" sense of humor.
I've risen to the task of walking all the major streets in Chiang Mai. Fortunately, it's a relatively small town. It'll be more difficult when I return to "work", as I've been walking ~3 hours a day after class instead of going to Heifer. Today was no exception, I headed well north and a little east of the old city (school is in the center of the eastern corner of city. Three o'clock, on a square clock). Got lost a couple of times; it's frustrating when you find a new Soi (side street) and it turns out a dead end. A metaphor for life.
A number of the roads were kind of 3rd-world industrial, other parts 3rd world poverty (rusting tin shack homes waiting to fall into open sewers — no exaggeration) or a combination. Maybe there's a reason I hadn't traveled this particular road set before.
At some point along the trek, I slowed down from my usual manic pace to something more... civilized. I realized "I don't have to be anywhere, and (sunburn notwithstanding) it doesn't matter how long it takes to get there". This felt good, both the fact of the matter and its realization.
On the way back I walked to and through the YMCA, which I'd considered for my stay here. Glad I ended up elsewhere. It's no worse (nor better) than any other typical Y — just a bit too hotel-ish, too western, and a tad sanctimonious to spend six weeks in. And their western breakfast is probably horrible; everybody's western breakfast here is horrible. Thai breakfast of rice soup (your choice of beef/chicken/pork; moderately spicy) for breakfast is growing on me. Actually, I've been to a place called "J.J.'s" quite near my classroom; they have excellent western food, excellent Thai food (albeit expensive) and service seldom seen in the US. Even the coffee's good. [After writing this I notice that our of my tour books says JJ's is "inexpensive". It shows just how relative this is. I've been living here for just two weeks, and a meal that costs $1.05 instead of 75c seems expensive!]
This just in: A Complete Transaction. In Thai! It was a simple transaction: "What's your room number?". "1412". "Tomorrow morning?" "Can you do it [the laundry] today?" "OK. 5PM?" "7pm's alright". "7pm, OK". I swell with pride! My confidence further bolstered with subsequent "Have you got Diet Coke", "nope, how about OJ", "How much is it?", "15 baht", "OK". "You only gave me 10 baht (the bills look similar — the B10 bill is being supplanted by the coin). "Sorry". "No problem". Alright it's not Shakespeare (ok you try it!) — but this sort of thing scores big points with my teacher (and my self-confidence meter). She doesn't even discount these experiences, for the short conversations I report to her I keep having in Japanese — like the one in the elevator today. A story for another day?