Arrival and First Day

Sawadee khrup! (Hello, pronounced Sa-wa-dee-khrup, or sa-wa-dee-kah if you are female)

It was a LONG plane ride. Zach and I took SFO to Taipei (14 hours), then Taipei to Bangkok (3 hours), and finally Bangkok to Chiang Mai (1.5 hours). We arrived at the hotel around 9am, but could not check in until 10am. We met up with Lindsey and her roommate Sydney and went to breakfast. We looked for something more Thai-like, but ended up American. It was cheap though! Ended up being around $14 for the four of us. Cannot beat that! We walked around the main street by our hotel, looking in shops and what not. I already found some furniture I want to bring back, but I have no idea how I will pay for it or how I will get it back. But it is nice to look at!

It was so hot and muggy! I didn't think it was too bad, but everyone else seemed to complain a lot. After walking around a bit, we decided that it was time for a refreshing drink. We stopped by a UK Pub and ordered up. We thought it was around 3 or 4pm, but it wasn't even 11am! The time change must of effected us more than we thought. The owner, Graham, gave us advice and some pointers of where to go. Following what he said, we are going to the "Night Markets/ Bazaar" tonight. It is the place to get everything for cheap (knockoffs, counterfeits, and what not). I want to buy some shirts and some swim trunks (I knew I forgot something!).

We then attempted to make our way back, saying hello to everyone along the way. Thais are SO friendly! They always smile back and attempt to talk to us and make you feel welcome. I do not feel threatened at all or in any danger whatsoever. We followed the map wrong and ended up getting lost (EVERYTHING is in Thai so it is really difficult to know where you are). But we wandered a bit, taking a cruise through the more residential and high income homes. The streets have no logical order as you will come across a restaurant, and next door a club (Discotheque, pronounced disco-tech-a), next to a home, next to a daycare center, and next to a run down apartment complex. There seems to be no zoning at all and you can basically turn your property into whatever business you please. Like Graham said, "Yes there are laws, but hey, its Thailand." You can get away with anything if you know what to say or have enough money.

After we got back to the hotel room, Zach and I went for a run around Chiang Mai and ended up at a park with an outdoor training course. It brought me back to my football days (I used to be in a lot better shape), but after the heat caught up to us we called it quits. It is not far from the University, actually right across the street. I think we will be training there quite a bit.

We just showered up and now relaxing for a bit in the room. I think the girls and us are going to get dinner in downtown Chiang Mai. A tuk-tuk (a form of taxi) will take you anywhere you want to go for about 20B (less than a dollar, $1 = 33B).

I hope everything is well in the states!

La Gon! (Goodbye)