An Almost-Perfect Day in Chiang Mai

Let me to take you back to one almost-perfect day in Chiang Mai. 

Actually, let me take you back to a day before the almost-perfect day. 

The day that I found myself in tears because it was hard to think about going back to cold, smoggy Taiyuan (the "Dirty T") instead of the clear skies and rolling hills of Tennessee.

The day when I realized that one of my problems last semester--one of the reasons that I didn't feel quite "ME"--was that I need nature in the way I didn't understand before. 

In response, the Father gave me a special day in the green warmth of Thailand to treasure as I spend another semester in Taiyuan. 

This day began with a ride in the back of a covered pick-up truck with two Swedes, two Germans, two Australians, one Israeli, Natalie, and Yours Truly.

Our first stop was at the orchid farm, where I learned that orchids come in pretty much every color but green. 

 Our guide instructed us to "STOP TWENTA MINUTES. TAKE A PICTCHAS."

Then it was time to do what all people are supposed to do when they visit Thailand. 

That's right. 

I rode a freaking elephant. 

Natalie and I rode on the back while our Israeli friend "guided" the elephant (which means he fed it bananas while yelling, "AY, Bobo! Go left! GOOO LEEEFFFTTT!!"). 

Somehow we ended up the elephant that was blind in one eye and couldn't follow the rest of the elephants to save his life. 

And seatbelts, of course, were not a necessity because that would take away from the adventure of almost falling out the entire time. 

Near the end of the ride, the elephant trainer thought it would be a great idea to kick around a water bottle so that our elephant would get spooked, run, and make me yell like a banshee. 

Our next stop was lunch (noodles wrapped in banana leaves) and a hike to a waterfall. 

That's right. 

A HIKE. 

IN NATURE.

I walked at the back because I kept accidentally smiling and inadvertently humming to myself out of pure bliss. 

It reminded me of Tennessee...if hiking in Tennessee was like going through an obstacle course with bamboo plants and palm trees everywhere.

After hiking, we went white water and bamboo rafting with a swarthy Thai guide who looked like he could've been a pirate once-upon-a-time.

If anyone remembers my experience rafting the Nile, you know that the way I feel about rafting now is similar to the way a hangman feels about his noose. Fortunately, it was dry season, so the Mae Tang (the river we were on) was really low. It was essentially like riding a merry-go-round instead of going bungee jumping. 

And I was ok with that. 

Since I couldn't take any pictures ON the raft, here are some internet photos of what we did.

The last stop on our tour was to a Karen Long-Neck village, where some of the women still put gold rings on their necks to stretch them out. It was like stepping into Ripley's Believe It or Not--except more sad. 

There was a pervading sense of hopelessness there. 

I'm guessing it had something to do the fact that their lives revolve around being stared at and getting their pictures taken because the rest of the world thinks they look weird. 

Then it was time to go back. 

After settling into a sketchy guest house (because we didn't reserve a room in the nice one with the assumption that they would have a vacancy...), we made our way out the Night Bazaar for a last taste of good Western food and cheap shopping. 

 And that was it. 

My Almost-Perfect Day.

The End.