Day 235 - Happy Chances

The Chiang Mai University which is near our hostel has an attached gallery. Said gallery is usually closed on Mondays, but I had seen a neat exhibit through the window when I passed by after closing on Sunday, and wanted to show Cz. When we arrived, the doors were open. Perplexed, we wandered in, and no one tried to stop us. The exhibit was called "In My Mother's Footsteps", about a woman who goes back to Germany and later Eastern Europe to trace the route her mother took during the Holocaust as a Jewish prisoner. It was a very good exhibit, and there is apparently a documentary film coming out about it if you are curious.

Better though were the exhibits upstairs. Little did we know, but we had stumbled into the last-minute setup of the undergrad thesis shows. Much of their work was far better than even grad level work at home, and we were duly impressed. That said, we couldn't help but feel a little warm and fuzzy nostalgia as we watched the kids frantically painting, stapling, and installing away.

After the museum, we debated having a sushi lunch or visiting the Wat nearest to our guesthouse. Luckily Wat won out - sushi is everywhere, Thai Wats, only Thailand. We were well-rewarded. This was the finest wat so far in Chiang Mai. The golden Chedi housing the Buddha relics sits serenely over a cluster of shining white stupas containing the ashes of departed royal family members. The temple itself had been destroyed over the centuries, but the golden Buddha collection still stands proud ina lovely painted shelter with some traditional architectural details. Best of all, there were only two other foreign visitors. Everyone else there were monks or locals. It was a fine way to end our Chiang Mai sightseeing.

We still had time for a quick late lunch, and indulged ourselves in another round of Mike's burgers before grabbing our packs and heading out to the train station.

When we arrived at our platform, the grimy cars and diesel-belching engines did not inspire confidence. When we purchased our tickets, all the cheap sleepers were sold, so we had to splash out on 2-tier AC (for all of $22 each for a 14hour night train). That was the best thing that could have happened to us. When in seat position, the chairs were soft and huge enough to curl up it. The train flashed through the mountains with nary a curve nor a bump - far better than a bus. We played cards on the nearly full-sized table provided us until bedtime. And then the real treat.

The seats tranformed into two almost twin-size beds one above the other. Not only that, but they came with 2" thick mattresses (on top of the already nice surface), sheets, pillows, a blanket, even curtains to block out light and noise from the other berths.

We should arrive in Bangkok bright eyed and bushy tailed with this kind of service.