coming home

Its my last day in Chiang Mai, tomorrow I fly to Bangkok for a day before bunny hopping home via Singapore, Kuala Lumpur and Brisbane and Coffs, catching up with friends along the way. I'm not excited about leaving, I've really enjoyed living here the last 6 weeks and hope I could come back for another short term trip sometime. The relationships I've made here are what have kept me in Chiang Mai all this time, rather than travelling around Thailand. I've found less motivation to go travelling by myself, which I think shows me that I need a travelling partner for future trips to see the world.

I've mostly packed my bag already, early (which never happens, ever) so I know how much room and weight I have left for buying more things! Frustrating, to have more money than luggage space.

So today I'm doing some last shopping, photo swapping, and experimenting with cafe drink recipes. I'm coming home with hundreds of photos and hopefully lots of stories of cultural differences, I hope I remember them all. Thailand and Australia have a bit in common, we both have the "she'll be right" attitude, and easy going-ness. As I leave, this country is not quite as foreign as when I came.

Looking forward to sharing with you all when I get home>>>>>>>

enterprise on a spreadsheet

So I'm back in my favourite cafe. They have a water system making a wall of flowing water covering the front windows like a see through waterfall, a nice touch. At first glance asias cafes and restaurants are pretty basic and cheap with no real design or flair. But when you spend a little more time and know where to go, there are some amazing places, with so much flair its stimulating while enjoying a delicious coffee.

I'm here to do up some figures on a spreadsheet after spending a couple of days researching products and getting prices for the cafe Emmi wants to start. Will probably experiment with drink recipes next week. Emmi is keen to get me back to help start the cafe around August, train staff and get it running. I'm not sure if I want all that responsibility, but its possible, as I don't have my year planned out, so I'll think and pray about.

I've been thinking about what parts of asia to bring back to australia. Thinking about importing some simple clothing pieces that I can get for a good price here. Wondering about starting a mobile street diner ideal for outdoor summertime dining. Trying to convince my thai friend Bui that she could come to Australia and be the chef!

I've been doing a bit of shopping this week, all things that I need of course! Its been harder to buy clothes than I had expected, all these thai girls are so much smaller than me. Its not rude here in thailand for people to point and say "you're fat" or "large size". You can buy clothing pretty cheap, as long as you're not bigger than an australian medium. And I'm not totally into the asian styles, so it limits me a bit.

Well, better get back to that exciting spreadsheet....

the day I had a good coffee

I'm sitting in Cafe Mong Pearl, after having one of the only two good coffees I've had since I've been in Chiang Mai. I'm slowly getting around some different cafes, but quality coffee here is few and far between it seems. While I wait for 1000 photos to "batch" (a new time saving photo desizing trick a fellow farang just showed me), I thought I'd blog.

Its starting to rain more, the beginning of the rainy season now. Its a cooler change to the hot season which is nice, but limits plans somewhat. Twice yesterday my housemates and I tried to emerge to go out on the scooter (our main transport) which isn't as inviting when its raining. But I have had some days of tourism this week. I've been touring temples, silk making and various handicraft factories and showrooms in a tuk tuk, patting tigers, watching crazy monkeys do tricks, riding an elephant and jumping off a bamboo raft. The night life has been good, from themed kareoke rooms and more fantastic live music, to last nights dancing the night away.

Chiang Mai has a laid back feel that I like, but sometimes clashes with my western culture. I think I waited almost half an hour for a cocktail at Sudsanan, my now local live music bar/restaurant. They weren't busy, and I thought they must have forgotten my order, but they hadn't and its like time matters less here. I've been hanging out a bit with some aussies that live next door, enjoying a bottle of cab sav (made in australia, purchased in burma)together one night for 200 baht (very cheap). Wine is so expensive in Thailand with import tax! I'm craving it.

Thailands catch phrase is the "land of smiles". Chiang Mai has so many tourists here and the town relies heavily on the industry, but I wonder if it makes for many happy people. I think the communication barrier makes life somewhat stressful, for both parties. Haggling over prices, trying to get directions. I've had some fun experiences sitting in the front seat of a songthaow with the driver, practising counting to ten in thai and exchanging words from each language with many gestures. And I've had some hard times, finding it easier to walk a few km's rather than haggle with every driver who comes by. Good experiences though, realising just how easy life can be when you can communicate properly. I have a great friend, Bui, who I'm living with, and she speaks both thai and english fluently, and she has made my life possible over here!

As for plans for travel, I expect to head back to Australia end of June. I'll stay almost another 2 weeks in Chiang Mai, and do some preparation and research work for the cafe Emmi wants to open. I'll take some more photos of Baan handicrafts and hopefully turn out with a few good ones they can use. Then probably head to Krabbi beach for about 5 days of climbing, sunbaking, diving etc before flying to Singapore for a few days, possibly Malaysia for a few days and then home.

scootering around

I hired a scooter today with a scottish backpacker I've met, and we rode up Doi Suthep mountain to see a buddhist temple there. Doi Suthep mountain rises up at the edge of Chiang Mai, about 16km ride to the top, it has a great view of the city if the cloud isn't too low. The road was great, perfect road for motorbikes, winding up and down. Once at Doi Suthep, we climbed a billion stairs to get to the temple. I haven't been to a buddhist temple before, so I didn't have much clue about the significance of certain things. For starters, they wouldn't let me in until I covered my knees, so I had to wear a thai wraparound skirt-thing over my shorts. Then we spent almost an hour wandering around hundreds of golden statues, people holding incense and orchids and praying, wreaths of flowers and money boxes. It would have been better if I had someone thai and buddhist with me to explain the significance of it all, because it meant very little to me. Back in town in the afternoon, and there were a few short but heavy showers. I'm enjoying new independance with this scooter, I won't want to return it tomorrow!

On other news, I'm helping a thai woman get some specifics organised to start a cafe opposite the Chiang Mai Uni, and I'm learning how to use my camera properly by taking some photos of handicrafts made by thai women with HIV, that they might be able to use for promotional material. I feel pretty blessed to have connected with quite a few good people to show me around, take me around, let me stay, have a coffee, see live music, or chat! Gods looking out for me once again.

uploading

due to my natural patience with technology and overwhelming skill with programs and applications and what-not, I've decided to upload picys to facebook (its easier me thinks), had hoped to blog 'em but I think its all too hard. Besides, I've just spent a good few hours just to pick them, desize them and upload them....a selection that gives you a bit of an idea of Chiang Mai thus far.

I've moved out of Lighthouse guesthouse after 10 days there. Staying with my new friend Bui, who is a thai girl with a major aussie accent, guess you get that when you learn english from aussies! The americans I meet keep asking me if I'm a kiwi (sigh). Went to the Sunday night walking street markets yesterday. They are so huge! I spent a good amount of baht there, which felt so good, its been the first non grocery shop for me :P The thai seem to know how to do markets, its how they shop.

Chiang Mai is alive with colour at night. So many venues to hang out at, groovy bars, fantastic music, bustling with people. I'm so glad to have my new toy (sony a200) to try and capture it all. Haven't done too much of the touristy things yet, so will try and do that this week.

business4transformation

So I'm at the "business as mission" conference this week. There's about 80 people there, from various countries with all sorts of stories and experiences to share. I've chatted with a guy teaching business in Bosnia, a couple from the sunshine coast franchising TESOL, heard about people starting cafes and handicrafts businesses, running factories and doing community development. I feel somewhat out of my depth, like a newbie with not much to offer, but I'm pretty much there to learn and network. Hearing about how business is as much a calling as any other resonates with me. I'd love to see the church recognise and bless people in their vocations, rather than having people drawn to work in churches.

If I felt like there was not much business/community development opportunity to be found in Australia, it feels like the direct opposite here. I've spoken to a lady who wants to set up a cafe near Chiang Mai uni, particularly to create a safe place to relate with homosexuals and prostitutes. I spoke to a guy who's about to open a cafe in a village in China, and one of the speakers at the conference said I could visit his cafe in Peru and see what they do. Now, its like I've dipped my toe into a huge pool, where to go, what to do? I wish I had a business & community development plan of my own, that I could show all the experts at the conference, refine it and get it going, but I'm just not there yet.

I've also been reading some of Hebrews, which has overlapped with other things I've read and heard just in the last few days, funny how God does that. About how to walk in faith, like the ancients did, letting go of the weights that hold you back for journeying with God. Speaking of journey with God, I was encouraged today to do the things that I love and I'm wired for, and not get uptight about "is this Gods will or not?????", but to seek him first and trust him for everything and step out in faith doing whats in my heart.

24 hrs in Chiang Mai

So I've had a day in Chiang Mai! I woke up this morning thinking "What the hell am I doing here?" but as the day wore on I felt more relaxed about it. I think it was that I'm here on my own, away from the familiar. Its funny, I haven't been overseas since Chile 2.5 years ago, and now that I'm in another foreign country, the spanish phrases I knew are coming right back to me. I think "Gracias" rather than "Khorp kun kar", or "Hola" instead of "So wa ti kar". I really need to pick up some Thai! Its been great so far, riding around in Tuk tuks (built in bikes) and Sawngthaew (sitting in the back of utes with a canopy), pushbikes and on the back of a motorbike. We pay about 25 Baht per trip from one side of the city to another which is A$1. We usually eat a meal for about 30 Baht if its thai (western meals cost more, but who wants to eat western when you're in Thailand?). The guesthouse is basic but comfortable, and I'm staying here with a few Christians from other parts of the world (the UK, America, Nicaragua & Thailand). Its used mostly to accomodate people who are visiting Thailand or staying longer term to do mission work, like working with youth, sharing Jesus with the "lady-boys" or helping in an orphanage.

Today I dropped into the office of Create International (who make movies about Gods story for unreached people groups), my friend Jaz works there. And this evening we spent some time at "Won Generation" a youth hang out place near the uni (where they hope to start up the cafe). After that, we saw the movie "Angels and Demons", which was alright (I haven't actually seen Da Vinci code yet though) The thai are apparently pretty proud of their royal family, and at the movies we all had to stand while they played the Kings song, which was like a little mini slideshow tribute to the King! Pretty funny, but I best not say derogatory things about royalty if I value my life!

It's the start of the wet season, so its interesting to be in singlet and shorts in the rain, I'm not sad about this at all! I'm hoping for some sunshine over the weekend to allow for some rock climbing and hoping to do some shopping at the Sunday markets and meet up to chat with some people in business and community development. Looking forward to getting hold of a motorbike to get around. While I haven't been in peak hour traffic yet, the way the thais do it cracks me up. I think I could fit in alright over here. They just push their way through. Apparently, if you don't make any sudden movements, just go with the flow, people just drive along anticipating each other! Mo-peds and motorbikes are everywhere, without helmets (don't worry Dad, I was wearing one!) and often 2 or more people on each.

While at Create International, we watched a couple of dvds they'd made, to make people aware of social justice issues and what people are doing in unreached countries in the world. I was inspired by a canadian girl my age who is a midwife in the middle east, and a Perth boy whos been to Thailand and is part of a team trying to raise money and awareness to save children from being sold into sex slavery. The thing that both of them echoed was that "to live is Christ and to die is gain", which is out of chapter 1 of Philippians. Not meaning that we're better to be dead, but to allow God to have his way in our lives, instead of us concentrating on building our own personal success. Figuring out the things that matter most, that really matter most, the things that are close to Gods heart.