18 Jan. Chiang Mai
I’ve always enjoyed visiting this historic city of
Thailand’s north, but oddly I hadn’t been here since a bicycle trip in 2006.
This time I’ve come especially for a 10-day meditation retreat led by Steve and
Rosemary Weissman. They taught regular retreats for many years on Koh Phangan in
southern Thailand until their last one in March 2013, after which they retired
to Australia. Now they were back in Thailand once again and would be offering a
retreat at Wat Umong on the west side of Chiang Mai.
After my early
morning arrival at the bus station, I got the local style of taxi called a
‘songtaew’ (pickup truck with bench seats in the back) for an early morning ride
across town to Wat Umong. It’s an old monastery and famed for a brick structure
with interconnecting tunnels built for a clairvoyant monk in 1380 and still used
for meditation. There’s also a lake where carp and pigeons like to be fed. On my
way back to the temple entrance I happened to meet Steve and Rosemary, then had
a chat. Getting a songtaew back to the center turned out to be surprisingly
difficult, and I had to walk a long way with my heavy backpack before getting a
ride. A songtaew took me just north of the walled center to Rinrada Loft
Resident 2, a hotel that I had booked for one night through Airbnb at US $18.10.
Wat Umong takes its name from these tunnels.
Buddha statues
reside at ends of tunnels deep inside.
You can just barely see traces of
painting on the wall to the left.
This recently
pained tunnel shows how the ancient painting may have appeared.
A chedi at Wat
Umong
Replica of an ancient Indian relief
An altar at Wat
Umong
Birds
love this pond at Wat Umong!
19 Jan. Wat Umong, Chiang Mai
The monks at Wat Umong asked people
attending the retreat to wear white clothing, as Thai laypeople normally do when
staying at a monastery. So I headed east of the center to Chiang Mai’s biggest
and oldest market, Talat Warorot, where I easily found shops where I could buy a
pair of pants and three shirts. Today would be my last chance for Indian cuisine
for awhile, so I had lunch at New Delhi Restaurant. Afterward I took a songtaew
to Wat Umong. Like most retreatants, I got my own small room. The retreat began
in the evening with a talk, then the teachers asked us to remain in silence
until near the end of the retreat except for interviews and emergencies.
20-27 Jan. Wat Umong, Chiang Mai
The teachers state that training one’s mind
is the most difficult thing one will ever do, and I fully agree! Each full day
had the same schedule with a wake-up bell at 4:30 a.m., then periods of sitting,
walking, and standing meditation until the evening talk at 6:45 p.m. We had a
simple breakfast at 7:15 a.m. and lunch at 11 a.m. Although a light dinner was
offered at 4:45 p.m., I never felt the need for it and made do with just the
morning meals. Each of us also had a job, and the very easy one of sweeping the
men’s building was assigned to me. We had three interviews to ask questions,
which the teachers were very skilled at responding. I highly recommend a retreat
with Steve and Rosemary if you can. Their retreat talks and meditation
instructions are also available in books and audio at
https://www.rosemary-steve.org/
We had tasty Thai food during the retreat!
28-31 Jan. Chiang Mai
The retreat
ended in the morning of the 28th with final instructions and opportunities to
talk with the people we had been silently with for so long.
Steve (seated 4th from left) and Rosemary (seated 5th from left) with
retreat participants
In the afternoon I headed back to the center of Chiang Mai, where I again had used Airbnb to book a place, this time for nine nights in a large room above a shop; cost was US $139 ($15.44/night). It was very clean and in a central location, but nearby bars kicked up a lot of noise until late. In the evening a retreatant friend and I headed over to the Sunday Walking Street in the center, passing temples and a huge crafts and food market that runs along several streets that had been closed to traffic. We especially enjoyed a stage where children and young people gave very fine dancing or singing performances. Many of us retreatants got together with Steve and Rosemary at a restaurant the next morning for a very nice visit.
Constructed of
teak, Wat Phan Tao dates to the 14th century and once
served as a throne
hall for King Mahotara Prateth whose symbol is the peacock.
Paying respects to
the Buddha inside Wat Phan Tao
Celebration lights
behind Wat Phan Tao
Part of a huge
night market
And lots of food, of course!
A traditional dance
of Chiang Mai area
Hand gestures play
a big role in traditional dancing.
Glittering crowns
and very long fingernails add to the spectacle.
Amorous couples in
a graceful dance
This super-talented
boy could belt out all the popular songs, both Thai and English!
The enthusiastic
audience
On the 30th another retreatant and I headed west by songtaew into
the mountains to visit Wat Phra That Doi Suthep (30 baht), one of northern
Thailand’s most sacred temples. It has a grand setting with views, but to reach
it we climbed the 306 steps of a Naga Staircase. A series of shrines surround
the glittering golden chedi at the center, and we admired the many Buddha images
and decorative artwork all around.
Then we got a ride higher into the
green mountains to Bhuping Palace (50 baht), open to the public when not in use
by the royal family. Extensive flower gardens and landscaping make this a very
beautiful place to explore, though the palace buildings are closed to the
public.
1-5 Feb. Chiang Mai
Beautiful old temples dot the old city, and I managed to visit only a small
fraction of them. So I hope to return for another visit without waiting so many
years! Chiang Mai may be touristy, but it has a fantastic variety of
good restaurants. I especially frequented Taste from Heaven and Aum Vegetarian
Restaurant, then for Indian cuisine, dropped by The Grill of India.
On
the 3rd, my last weekend, I got to see a massive parade of the 42nd
Chiang Mai Flower Festival with lots of pretty young women, elaborate floats,
and marching bands—all well decorated with flowers. After the parade I
walked to a park packed with floral exhibits and bonsai. The parade floats were
parked here so people could have a close-up look at them.
The next day I
met up with fellow traveler Barbara Weibel, who writes the popular blog Hole in
the Donut Cultural Travel
https://holeinthedonut.com/ in which she explains how she chose its name.
Barabara travels the world in search of good stories. She has become very fond
of Chiang Mai and has an apartment here as a base.
On to Malaysia: Kuala Lumpur—KL Bird Park
Back to beginning of Southeast Asia Backpacking Jan.-April 2018