Blake and Deb Far Away

You can’t walk more than a couple of blocks in Chiang Mai without running into a Buddhist temple. I could write a temple blog post every day for a year (don’t worry, I won’t). But Wat Chedi Luang in the historic center is considered one of the more important ones, so here’s some photos of it. The huge, towering Chedi (similar to a stupa) dates to the 15th century. This ruin was stabilized and partially renovated in the 1990s. The top spire was left unfinished because no one could agree on what it looked like. Guardian nagas (serpents). Elephant sculptures on the base of the chedi. Inside the city pillar shrine. Women are not allowed to enter so upon exiting I naturally told Deborah that it was the most magnificent building I had ever seen. Paintings decorate every surface inside the city pillar shrine. Being a Buddha is tiring. The main sanctuary. Inside the main sanctuary with a standing Buddha flanked by two ...

We had an incredible day at Elephant Nature Park, a sanctuary for rescued elephants near Chiang Mai. These elephants may have been injured in the logging industry, stepped on landmines, blinded by working under circus lights, or suffered some other abuse by humans, including servitude in the tourist trade. You might think that riding an elephant is no big deal, but if you add the weight of the iron chair, the mahout (handler) and a couple of tourists, you can have half a ton of weight on the animal’s back. But to even get to the point where the elephant will allow you to ride him involves “breaking its spirit,” which means taking a young elephant away from its mother (often by killing or injuring the mother) then subjecting the captive young animal to a barbaric process known as “Phajaan.” The young elephants are constrained with ropes and chains, beaten, stabbed, screamed at and starved until they finally just give up and become submissive to their human trainers. This cruel practice...

Wat Phra Singh (wat means temple) is one of the most revered temples in Chiang Mai. It is located within the walls of the old city at the western end. Like other large Buddhist temples, Wat Phra Singh is not just one building but a complex of many including a assembly halls, libraries, monasteries, ordination halls, and chedi (where relics are enshrined). Some of the buildings date back to the 14 th century but most have been restored or rebuilt – some several times – over the centuries. Wat Phra Singh I'm not sure if this is supposed to me a serpent or a lion but such guardians of some sort are commonly found at temple entrances. I was really disgusted at a tourist who poked his camera right in the face of these monks. Then I realized they were wax figures. Half an elephant emerges from each of the four sides of this Chedi. It wouldn't be a religion if it didn't have lots of rules. (photo...

After shorter stays of a week or two each in Bali, Singapore, Cambodia and Laos, we decided to park ourselves for two months in Chiang Mai, Thailand. This will give us a chance to catch up with editing photos, blogging, and working on some projects: music for Deborah, art and architecture for me. There will still be plenty of time to see what Chiang Mai has to offer, which is plenty. The city proper has a population of 170,000 but the metropolitan area has about a million. It has dozens of Buddhist temples, museums, a historic center surrounded by a moat, a multitude of markets, great food, cheap massages, and it’s surrounded by mountains and lush countryside. And elephants! Chiang Mai is in the mountainous north of Thailand, and its higher elevation means cooler temperatures, particularly this time of year – mid-October to mid-February is known as the cool/dry season. We’re still talking highs of at least 27 ᵒC (80 ᵒF) with palpable but not oppressive humidity, but for Southeast ...