Jon the Traveller

I said previously that I would probably visit Night Bazaar, and since this place is so walk-able and very easy to get there I did so while fitting in a few drinks along the way. The bazaar itself – and I am pretty loathe to say this – is very unremarkable, it is very much the country cousin to Suan Lum in Bangkok, despite its long history suggesting otherwise, hundreds of years of being at the crossroads of trade and politics between huge regional powers, and the bazaar is reduced to selling the ubiquitous “ethnic” handicrafts, label knock-offs and usual tourist market pap. Even for people watching it falls down for me – the generic tourist really gets pulled in, and watching old western couples have fits while bargaining over a £2 object isn’t as fun as it once was.

Hopefully the “Sunday Walking Street” market on Th Ratchadamnoen will be better. This is, as I understand it, primarily an arts and crafts market, but includes more local colour I hope so, otherwise my new found enjoyment of market shopping will soon vanish, and I’ll be jaded about yet another aspect of everyday life which just isn’t what this trip is about for me at all.

This morning after a great breakfast at my guest-house, CM Blue House, I set out to visit the Chiang Mai Arts & Cultural Centre, which is housed is a wonderful example of colonial architecture, what I think was basically once the seat of the provincial governor. The building is full of shaded courtyards along the style found throughout Asia, anywhere a westerner was the architect. I saw similar examples throughout Bangkok, however they were very rarely in such good condition as this building.

The museum inside has a small number of displays, but the information presented in them is very comprehensive, and covers the history of the region – both political and cultural; goes into some depth about the local minorities; and even explains the devotional architecture of the area. Very much worth the small 90bht cover.

Last-night – as my Facebook status suggested – I decided to brave the KSR and see exactly how my night would end up. It was rather messy, thanks to towers of beer and numerous shots of Sambuca, although I wasn’t alone in this endeavour, I had earlier met a couple of Canadian guys: Adam & Jay, who are in Thailand for 5 weeks or so, seeing all the major sites and generally after having a good time. Really sound guys, although Adam cannot handle his Sambuca! I’m positive they were trolling me with all the “Ey”, but I can’t really say anything, when every other word I speak is either a swear word or some form of colloquialism.

Best thing about the night was NOT ending up looking like a clown pants wearing freak at one with myself and some faux dreadlocks as I had suspected it could! There is something about the KSR that brings that out in people, and despite numerous visits, I am yet to understand what it is or why it has the effect it does. People who would otherwise be normal folks back home, suddenly think clown pants makes them more of a “genuine traveller”, dreadlocks confirm their status as a die-hard stoner and of course staying somewhere with others of this ilk makes them all part of the same community of non-conformist free spirits.  In reality they are just repeating what so many others have done before them in a spiral of self perpetuating cliché’s; However at least the rest of us know where our towel is!