The Chiang Mai weekend night market is probably one of the best I have ever seen. Every Saturday and Sunday Tae Pae road is shut down to traffic and vendors from all over set up stalls and sell everything from rattan lanterns to fried quail eggs. Just walking around and staring at all the wares was enough for me, but having access to all kinds of different food was also a plus.







Alas, I was too full to try to fried bugs when I got to them. I talked to a guy who ate some but he didn't remember how they tasted. Apparently he ate them as quickly as he could and followed it up with a beer. Shame, in Vanuatu my friends told me the steamed ones tasted like lobster.


I still don't know what washing the Buddha is all about. I went to Waht Umong last Sunday and talked with an English speaking monk who told us that rituals have no place in Buddhism. So all the big temples, gold leaf statues and relics are all for people who don't really understand Buddhism. The monk also said that there shouldn't even be images of the Buddha because he didn't want to be worshiped after his death. So much for last wishes.

Buddhism is such an interesting way to live your life, focusing on how you interpret life's events instead of going out and changing them and just letting go. I feel like I can relate to it more after Peace Corps. By the way, the real Jade Buddha looks almost like this one, not very impressive.


These girls were just adorable. I don't know where they came from or what the name of the instrument is they're playing but I've seen it around before. One of the coolest things about the night market is that right in the middle of the street there are people playing instruments, doing traditional dances or asking for money to support schools. I don't know how to describe it, Bislama has robbed me of most of my English skills.







As I was about the leave the market I noticed a large crowd had gathered. Being the curious person I am I checked it out and found this little girls dressed up like some kind of ostrich? Flamingo? See, I can't even remember the name of the bird this little girl resembles. They have them at the San Diego Zoo, they live in some places in Encondido and are really annoying.

So if I had a checklist of things to do in the night market it would read like this:

- Walk down the market until I find finger food
- Eat finger food, find noodles
- Eat noodles, wander around and look at carvings
- Play with the pug dressed in a bee outfit
- Give money to the blind singers
- Buy freshly squeezed orange juice
- Watch people pour water over the Buddha
- Find the end of the market, people watch for a while
- Stare at white tourists
- Start to make my way back, avoid people calling out to me
- Eat sticky rice cooked in bamboo, watch random dancers
- Watch the old guitar player rip it up with his distortion effects
- Get back to the guesthouse, sleep

The End