Thailand - My Chiang Mai Life

Here are just a few shots that did not make it into other posts.... The beginning of "Monsoon" season taken from my front porch. Buddhism plays a big part in daily life and everything from buying a house lot, building a house, a new car, etc is "blessed" by a monk from the local Wat. Here are pics of inside my car that were put there by the monks- symbolic marks on headliner and string on the steering column. Aod's temple inside the house with offerings of food, flowers, drink, and even cigarettes! The Art Cafe - the local restaurant for an "American breakfast".... Village road on my bike route to the grocery store.........

Here are some pics that cover a couple of weekend walks in the "Old City"! There are lots of small alley ways to explore, side walk cafes and my "local" English language book stores. Looks like a telephone repairman's nightmare!! Hope he gets "over-time" pay.... Wats are everywhere and all are unique and offer something different. Monks on their way to the wat. Sitting up for the Sunday "Walking Street" night market in the shadow of the old Tha Phae Gate, a local street sign and part of the Old City moat. A double espresso and cherry tart at side walk cafe "La Naga" before I head for home.

The American Consulate held a 4th of July Celebration at one of the big stadiums in the city. What more could you want - hot dogs, cold beer, corn on the cob, a live band plus a "country and western" band and fire works at 8 p.m.! There were around 600 people there. I was hoping for more pictures, but had camera problems..... HAPPY 4TH OF JULY!

I decided to try out my GPS and explore the less visited Wats around Chiang Mai. After a 20 minute drive I arrived at Wat Umong. Located in a grove Wat U-Mong (Tunnel Temple) is a practicing meditation temple. The origins of the temple, which are traced to the 14th century, are obscure. The temple may have been founded by King Mangrai himself to accommodate some forest monks from Sri Lanka. I met a man and his nephew when I entered the Wat and enjoyed talking to him as we walked around the Wat. They were from Ban Luang in the province of Nan about 300 kilometers east of Chiang Mai in the mountains. He was even nice enough to invite me to stay at his home if I should visit Nan. - Wat Umong is unique as it's built in the foothills of Suthep mountain and is still heavily forested. But the most unique feature of the temple are the tunnels which give the wat its name (umong is the Thai word for "tunnel"). The temple and its tunnels were built in the late 14th century. Naga on ...