Wat Don Jan - feeding 750 kids

A group of us get together regularly to buy, prepare , cook and serve food to 750 children
who live in a Wat (temple) either because they are orphans or their family do not have enough money to feed and keep them. Usually they depend on donated food which is normally rice or noodles so we just try to give them some protein and treats. The amount required is amazing. 60m kg Pork, enormous pots of rice, basil, beans, chilis ect so it took 3 people to stir the pots. It was much easier using the pork instead of the 96 chickens last time that had to be skinned and chopped - slippery things not to mention the time there was fried eggs and they had to cook 650 and keep them hot. There were less children then. I was not here to participate in that effort.
Have a look at my albums on Picasa to see more pictures of the lovely kids. Here are just a few of them showing them waiting through the necessary prayers and song before they can eat. They had just hung out their washing, the picture shows just one section hanging to dry.

Happy Christmas

Merry Christmas. Peace and Love

Sunday Market Images.

Girls dressed in Lanna style and made up. Do they dance for hours because they enjoy it or only to provide more money for the family??? The middle one is enjoying a break.

One of the most elegant ladies in Chiang Mai who serenely plays her drum each Sunday during the market dressed in her best with pearls and turban.









Blind people in Thailand earn their money by giving massage or by playing music. Here this group of young men play and sing to a lot of applause at each Sunday market and probably in other markets too. Their basket usually has quite a lot of money in it.

Jottings

Like - the lovely smells of flowers and trees when cycling around the lanes.



Buying fresh ginger and lady smiles and adds a few red juicy tomatoes





BOY - a great Jazz guitarist, here playing with harmonica Dave Toussaint in Boy's new little bar at the Night Market.







The beautiful textiles like these worn by Patricia Cheesman, the master weaver, at the exhibition of her collection last week in her lovely studio and gardens. Her book on textiles is a must read for those interested in ancient treasures.

DOI INTHANON

Last week a friend here, David, got a taxi to go up Thailand's highest mountain (2,565 metres high) which is in a national park extending over 482 sq. Kms. This is the eastern end of the Himalayan Massif. It is amazing to be able to go up above the clouds in a car, a normal one, not a 4 wheel drive. I was invited to go along and didn't hesitate.
I'm putting in a few views to share. It was lovely to be nice and cool with a little breeze. Of course the Thais were very cool and wearing furry hats etc but the temperature was close to 20 degrees.

A few images of this city, Chiang Mai during preparations for the Loy Krathong festival and some taken from a condo on the 17th floor of a building overlooking the Mae Ping river that runs through town.

AND THE PARTY GOES ON

20 Nov. '10

So sorry that the last post became fragmented although it was alright in the preview. Now I don't know how to correct it but it doesn't really matter as this is mostly for my family and they understand.

Life goes on it's merry way here in Chiang Mai where it is the big Loy Krathong festival this weekend. For weeks the Thais have been setting off fireworks, crackers and sending the lovely Hot Air Balloons soaring in to the air. It will all reach a climax today and tomorrow with highly decorated floats passing all around the moat. It must take weeks to prepare them and many hours for them to pass. The Krathongs are home made little wreaths made of leaves and flowers with candles and incense inserted - they will be set off on a journey down the Mae Ping River and the moat so everywhere is alight. If it stays afloat ones sins and misdemeanors sail away with it:)

The doorways of temples, hotels and entries to villages are all decorated with palm fronds, lanterns, flowers, branches etc and all are interwoven with lights. Hard to know where to look with so many temptations. Even the monks are climbing up pillars and trees to decorate their wats (temples)

Tonight we'll stroll around admiring all the results. Traffic will be at a standstill with all of it heading towards the river and moat, walking will be the only way and if possible, it will be a good idea to head up to a high roof top to view it all from on high with the spectacular fireworks lighting up the sky.

Winter Travels 2010

November and back again in Thailand. Flew from Dublin to Amsterdam and from there on to Bangkok. The plane was so full. Last time I flew with China Air I was lucky enough to be bumped up in to Business Class but no luck this time.

I had hours to spend in the Airport

at Bangkok and found a Thai restaurant while wandering around. What a difference to the western chain places out in the main areas. There are stalls all around the restaurant with pictures of whatever food they are offering and the prices. Most dishes are about 1 Euro, less than a coffee at the western places You buy coupons as you walk in and can get a refund if your eyes were bigger than your tummy. Even at 7 am there were all the Thais tucking in to their soup or rice dishes with gusto.

Arriving in Chiang Mai always feels great, like coming home if home has blue skies, flowers, clear air and mountains fresh from the rainy season that just ended in Oct. Now it is hot and sunny every day but not too hot. I can use a stole early morning or at night. A taxi in to town has a set charge of 120 baht which is about 3 euros but I hopped on a little red Song Thow for 40 baht and off we went to my usual room that they keep for me every year and soon my boxes were brough

t down from the attic and I was all set. Lots of smiles wai's, hugs and greetings from other residents who were already back. I couldn't wait to stroll down the lane to my favourite tiny Thai lady who cooks the best Khow Soi (a north Thai curried noodle soup) in the city and it costs all of 25 baht - there's 40 in a euro.

The EU Film Festival started here the next day. Each EU country submits their best film and they are shown here for free with 3 different films each night for 2 weeks. Wonder why we don't get those films in Ireland. Great acting and directing. It is lovely to sit out under the new moon and stars beside the Ping river and watch good films. I went to the opening and there was lots of vino and canapes. Met so many friends there and was delighted to be back.

I had a birthday this week so my friend Pauline offered to take me off to anywhere I wanted to go. The very good massage woman in Chiang Mai had told me to go to Hot Springs, one can stroll through lovely grounds there and reach a swimming pool full of warm water from the sulphur springs that are gushing up nearby. Thais are cooking eggs in them, a nearby sign tells the time for soft, medium and well done. Most relaxing and it probably did a lot of good too.

That night was invited to a great Tapas place called Su Casa. They also have really good Margaritas and Martinis. The owner is from Spain and his wife from Hong Kong. Had a great time and an unusual dessert of ice cream with a hot espresso (affogatto) and then a black sambuca over that which was of course alight. An easy one to make at home. Pauline had, of course, told the owner so cake and candle appeared as well. All the fussing really makes me wish that those customs were around and affordable in my youth. I don't believe in birthdays being any different than any other day but have to say it was great fun. I think I love being spoiled:)

That's all the catching up 'til now. Off to the Sunday "walking market" where there will be great decorations so may add a few pics to the new album.

Trip to Germany and Italy Sept '10

It has been a long time since I posted a blog. It was a lovely summer spent here at home in Kenmare, Ireland with side trips mostly to traditional music festivals in Milltown Malbay and Feakle in Co.Clare. In between I sell at the local outdoor markets, mainly scarves and jewellery I buy in Thailand. Now it is almost time to start planning to return to Asia.

In September I went to Germany on a guiding job with nice people from Charleston, Sth Carolina. I was mainly back in Augsburg and Munich in Bavaria, an area I love and where I have many very good friends so it was great to see them again.

A hike through the woods to Oberschonenfeld Monastery took place on a lovely sunny day with my old friend s and hiking companions. They have been hiking weekly for some 30 years in the great woods around Augsburg. We stopped around 11 am to enjoy our customary Sekt with huge fresh Prezels before

continuing our hike to an excellent Gasthaus for lunch. My clients enjoyed all of it even though they would not usually have a drink so early in the States.

Another lovely day was spent at Andechs Brewery on the Ammer Lake. We left the

car at Herrshing and walked over. Such fun to raise a large Stein of the excellent beer brewed by the monks, hear the music, enjoy the great food outdoors and the company of

friends.

Of course in Bavaria we raised steins more than once including at the Plarrer in Augsburg - a smaller beer fest than in Munich but all the nicer and the band was great.

We moved on to Munich

and had an excellent visit. The weather was still warm, the flowers still in bloom, enjoyed walks in the Englisher Gardens, visits to the wonderful museums and meals outdoors. The transportation in Germany is just so easy and reasonable. Up to 5 people can go anywhere in Bavaria on a train for just 28 euros so we hopped on and off trains, U Bahns, buses and trams and visited lakes and cities. We also went to the concentration camp at Dachau and afterwards went to the nearby city of Dachau and found it to be a really quaint very nice place.

Munich is a really lovely city with the wonderful Rathaus and Victuallian Market, the many museums including the 3 Pinakoteks, the Lenbach House and the Deutches Museum not to mention the BMW museum for all those who love cars.

Later, after my work was finished, I took a train from Munich down to Vicenza, Italy. a really nice ride past the beautiful scenery of the Alto Adige or South Tirol. Vicenza is between Verona and Venice and very close to Bassano the home of Grappa. I feel so at home in that region and am lucky enough to have many good friends there so it was a wonderful 10 days of fun, renewing old acquaintances, e

ating the excellent Italian food, going to markets, Venice, walking and of course drinking a lot of the local beverages. How lucky I am.

DARJEELING

DARJEELING
I left the region the next morning for Darjeeling again by shared jeep changing once. The famous hill station is situated on a ridge and again the arrival is full of blaring horns, jeeps and traffic. There is, however, no room for traffic on the narrow streets climbing ever upwards and they are given over to Bazaars. There are stalls and shops all along every street selling everything imaginable. It is nice that the people here don’t beg you to buy so it is possible to have a look at the merchandise in peace. I arrived on a hot day and it was not much fun climbing with luggage on the cobblestones but I found an inexpensive hotel with a very kind owner. I had heard about him along my way. Rooms are a bit dingy as is usual with budget places but it does have hot water and electricity sometimes. It goes out about 4 times a day at least for around 2 hours each time although yesterday it was out for the whole evening. I am getting used to trying to read by candlelight, makes one realize how it used to be in our grandmothers time. I think that the power goes mostly when I go in to an internet place. Even when there is power it is not enough to upload pictures.
One is reminded at every corner that this is Gurkha land. They are the main political force here and they are insisting on a separate state. The compromise that was decided upon in 1988 granted them a large amount of autonomy from the state government but they want full secession. There are slogans and their green, white and yellow colours on every wall. There was a huge peaceful march here yesterday.
The city is very vibrant, there are squares, little horses carry children around for a ride, there are a few cafes (western style) and every kind of person and shop like Tibetan, Nepali, Indians from Kashmir flogging Pashminas and all the myriad Indian castes. There are even a few little pubs. Tried one of them and met quite a few other travelers including 3 from Ireland. It seems odd to be in a place where most people are smoking as it has been stopped for quite a while in Ireland and Sikkim does not allow smoking even out on the streets. The Indian beer has a lot of preservatives in it because of the heat in the Summer and it gives quite a headache. We experimented by turning the bottle upside down in a glass of water and it all drained out while none of the beer spilled.
It is now my 3rd day here and unfortunately yesterday I skidded on the tiled, wet floor of the bathroom and had a very HARD fall on my back. It totally squeezed the breath out of me and took me ages to be able to get up. I was afraid that I had really done some damage, it is very painful but did get an x ray at the hospital here and there does not seem to be anything broken. I’m lucky that it was not my headJ It is still hard to get a deep breath and the back is not good but it will probably improve and I am lying a bit low. I did take a trip on the famous Darjeeling Himalayan Railway’s Toy Train, a two hour jaunt up to a high point but it was again misty so no views. It is listed as a World Heritage site It is a steam train and has been running since 1881, the tracks are only 2 ft wide and they run right through the streets and the traffic. See photo.
The mist continued for the whole week unfortunately as the views here are said to be just splendid. I took nice walks up to the Japanese peace Pagoda, they have erected them in many cities, always on a height like the one I walked to in Pokkara.
Again met many interesting people. There was Anna, a twenty year old German girl who is studying Tibetan here as she is a Tibetan Buddhist and her course for that will take eight years. Really enjoyed our chats. Anna is trying to decide if she will become a Buddhist nun or not and she smokes and drinks to check if she is ready to give them up or not. Like most Buddhists she is cheerful, peaceful and kind. There was also an American Buddhist monk staying at the hotel for 6 months and he is also studying Tibetan, he joined in many of our discussions over coffee. Many of the people that I have met up in Sikkim arrived after a great trek up there. The views they had were amazing. It would be great to be younger and go off trekking in these high mountains. A young NZ girl I met realized that there were no places that baked good cakes here so she saw an opening and had become “the cake lady” after renting an apartment and buying an oven. She supplies her cakes in a Hot Pizza place that is owned by two French men and she takes order for cakes for many different occasions. I also met a nice Irish woman, Tina, who does lighting for stage productions. She is based in London and travels for about 6 months a year mainly in India. That’s the nice thing about travelling, all the different people one meets along the way.
Turquoise seems to be one of the most popular colours here for houses followed by terracotta with dark green trim. There are lovely homes but even very tiny ones have many planks of flowers around the front. There are blossoms everywhere especially Rhodos, Azaleas and all the spring flowers. Again it is most unlike the rest of India. Something that is not different is the awful, heavy, back breaking loads that people carry on their backs assisted by a band around their heads so that they trudge along these steep winding streets and many steps upwards while bent over with eyes on the ground as they cannot look up. What a destiny to have that as a job. Many of these people are elderly. How they can shoulder those loads of cement, gas bottles, bricks etc I just don’t know. Of course there are many huge tea plantations around Darjeeling and the workers there are mainly women looking so pretty in their saris with their heads bobbing up between the green bushes of tea. It is very not work and it is not yet the heat of Summer, yet they are often singing as are many of the people here as they go about their work.
Tomorrow I am off for the border to cross in to Nepal again and start the long journey home on the 30th so I’ll take an early shared jeep from Darjeeling to Siliguri and from there on to the border town of Kakarbhitta which is close to the small airport of Bhadrapur. I hope to fly from there to Kathmandu on Sunday.

NAMCHI

NAMCHI
Arrived here around noon in a bus, the first time I have seen one on these narrow roads. It was a lovely drive with the range of snow capped mountains visible most of the time. This is a lovely little place, it has two main squares, fountains and lots of spring flowers. It is mainly known for having two vast statues facing each other from opposite hillsides. One is a Buddhist Guru Rimpoche standing 45M high in shimmering copper and bronze. It is visible for miles around. The other statue is 33m high and is of Shiva. I walked up there this afternoon and the site is enormous with workers toiling away like ants at a surrounding complex of temples and pavilions. The site is expected to become a major pilgrimage site. The statue and surrounding area are in various stages of completion. Gardens are being planted, statues and images are being sculpted and painted, pathways and drains are being laid, a large guest house or hotel is under construction
While wandering around the hotels upon arrival, a very nice man spoke to me and offered his help. He recommended a lovely guest house named Dungmali up on the hillside under the Shiva statue. It is about 4 kms out of town but I had a look around before I left. I have a really lovely room here and managed to get a good price as the place is empty. The meals are cooked by the family and there are nice balconies with the rooms.

RAVANGLA

RAVANGLA
My next short stop is a larger village with several streets. I booked in to a Tibetan place where again no one spoke English but they all smiled and were very nice. The photo is of the nice owner.

Guessing what an item on the menu might be results in unusual combinations of food. Many things on the menu are not available at all and other meals are not listed. Again no light. Even big hotels did not have generators. It gets spooky wandering around in the dark. At night I ordered in a restaurant and after waiting two hours inquired about the dinner but the order had never gone to the kitchen. Another told me that they were full even though there was not one single person there. It’s my problem not having the language at all. There were few strangers around. Only met two English women who have been walking around these villages, they are not trekking as they are about my age. The picture is a poor attempt to show the winding roads around here.
While I was out trying to get dinner I realized that I had left my bag in the restaurant of my hotel on the chair. When I didn’t get served I left for somewhere else and didn’t notice that I did not have my handbag which contained money, my camera, glasses etc. I didn’t know if it had vanished in the new place or if I had left it in the first restaurant, went back immediately but it was closed already at 8.30 pm. I had to spend an anxious night getting up at 6 am and going in to the dining room as soon as it opened and there was the bag still on the same chair. No one had even noticed it probably as it was all intact. People here are most honest but anyone could have gone in for breakfast and walked out with it. Lucky again and very relieved.
I stayed in Hotel 10- Zing which is rather eccentric. I liked the Hotel Melody better and the owner speaks English but I sure needed a shower and he had only a bucket one. It has great views and cozier rooms than any of the others I checked. (hotel_melody@yahoo.co.in)

TASHIDING

TASHIDING
A different St Patrick’s Day. This village is a really small one on a ridge and is visited mostly only for a beautiful monastery filled with mantras carved by the best craftsmen, five monastic buildings as well as rooms for monks, novices and students of Bhuddism. It is also a starting point for trekking but there is a real dearth of restaurants, cafes and hotels. The only two I saw were so very dingy as Indian hotels can be. Linen is often not changed between guests and water is poured from a bucket instead of a tap. I don’t mind if it is a bit clean but here that didn’t seem to exist.
I heard that there is a guest house up in the monastery and a kind teacher agreed to drive me to the bottom of the steps there. Climbing all those steps is hard enough at the best of times but climbing it with the luggage of 5 months of travel clothes was really hard especially as the rain started with lightening, thunder etc I reached the top to find a very simple guest house with outside squat toilet and an outside bucket for washing. It was dark and the electricity was gone yet again As there is no restaurant up there I ate in the kitchen with the family and shared their meal. They cooked by candlelight. The meal was simple and good and I was delighted to be in out of the storm with a clean bed waiting. The man of the house made me a Thomba which is the millet beer served in a bamboo tall container to which is added boiling water at regular intervals. One is enough to last the night and it is quite potent so it is enough in every sense of the word. This one was especially good as it was homemade. Many other people came in and out of the kitchen they were all called cousin or sister and most seemed to spend the night. None of the others took a drink at all which seems usual here. In Nepal they mainly drink hot water. Everyone goes to bed around 8 pm. No chance of reading having no light.
The next morning the mountains were glorious after the storm with all the highest peaks visible. I had a serene walk around the monastery compound passing all of the monks at their various busy tasks - carving in stone, cleaning the butter lamps, praying, turning prayer wheels and teaching.
I was served a breakfast of a cup of masala tea and champa. I asked the woman of the house what it was and she said rice and “cow’s water”. It was almost solid, pale yellow in colour and they eat it by rolling it in to a ball and eating it with their hands. I love trying things but I don’t mind if I don’t have it too often.
Off I started again towards Darjeeling. Travel in these mountains is easy. One just has to be down at a point in every village around 6.30 a.m. and jeeps go in all directions. This time I was a bit late as the steps were not easy going down either. I took a taxi to the village and was told that there would be no further transportation going in the direction I wanted until the next morning so I waited a while and then thumbed down a car going in the right direction. I was lucky and he was a very nice person who worked for the government. It is not often that anyone speaks English in these villages except the government employees and teachers. The lack of understanding results in hilarious meals and bills for them. It is no use getting impatient or angry when food does not arrive. If they don’t understand they just forget about it.

YUKSOM, SIKKIM

YUKSOM

The mists did not clear and I did not ever manage to see those splendid views although I hear that they were visible the very next morningL C’est la vie.
Off we went in the hired jeep merrily and the family in the hotel draped the white silk scarf, the Khada, around my neck in friendship before leaving. We did not get very far before the jeep broke down so we sat by the road for an hour or two before deciding we would not have time for the sight seeing so two of our group walked back to Pelling and three of us continued straight to Yuksom in another jeep as the mechanic tried to work on the first one.
The picture is of a guru I met both in Pelling and Yuksom.
This is a really quiet small village, most of the trekking starts from here so the streets are full of small mules and yaks all loaded up with every imaginable object that one needs to go to these high altitudes. There are also many porters, cooks and guides and they have to bring every possible necessity. Most of the restaurants are tiny and one eats outdoors under straw covered roofs. The sun comes out every morning but by afternoon, this week, everything clouds over and strong wind and rain sets in. The storms have been bad and the electricity has gone out frequently so we are being romantic eating in the candlelight. Showers and hot water are scarce. Picture is of my little guesthouse where I was very happy.
Because there is not much to do here for the inhabitants they seem to laugh and play games a lot. Children and adults laughter is frequent. There are games of cricket, football, children chasing each other and general merriment . There is no bus service but jeeps run between the important points. Everything closes at 8 pm by law so it is very quiet. People get up very early as the jeeps leave at 6.30 and treks start out as early as 4 a.m.
The picture is of the girls from the guest house washing the clothes and scrubbing them on the stone. They are always singing as they work. The girl on the right was adopted by the family when she was young and her mother died.
I’ve been going on nice walks around and just enjoying the bloom of spring. Here among these mountains one meets the same people again and again as travelers wander between villages so sitting in the middle of the village until the jeeps arrive is a favourite past time as acquaintances from the last hotels pour out.
I left Yuksom on St Patrick’s Day feeling sorry to leave my tiny cozy room. I got up early and took a hike up a mountain to the top where there is a monastery – they are always at the top and have great views. It was a bit of a sweaty job as the mornings have turned warm with spring like weather. In the afternoons it often rains with very loud thunder in these mountains. It was beautiful and quiet up there and the walk down was great. I enjoyed breakfast in the sun before catching a jeep to go on to the next place. It seems that the leaving time has little to do with reality. I arrived on time and my luggage was piled on top and off we went but in the wrong direction. I don’t know why but after a while we returned to the original place where more people boarded. Then we waited for about an hour after which we started again but stopped literally every few minutes either for the driver to chat with someone, to shake hands, to hop off and buy something, to allow a passenger to hop off for some message etc., but finally we were off.
I stayed in Hotel Yangrigang, email yan@yahoo.com Cost around 300 to 400 Rs a room.
With the $ about 45 Rs and the Euro at 62.