Back on the trail: Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai

I have changed my location by one letter.

This morning I bade Chiang Mai farewell with more than a little wistfulness. My feet have just finished healing up. I was just getting to know some great people there. And onward I go…

Chiang Mai really is a distinctive city. I love the laidback college town atmosphere, the plethora of temples, and the old town walls, complete with moat. Every time I saw those walls I would envision some impending Mongol invasion and feel like I needed a spear in my hand. I know, at heart, I’m still a ten year old wishing he could live in Middle Earth. You have to admit, though: any place that can feed that sort of romanticism is doing something right.

Anyway, I am now in Chiang Rai. It took about three hours on the bus to get here. My plan, such as it is, is to stay here tomorrow and catch a bus for Laos the following morning. My first impression of Chiang Rai has been favorable. The bus station is right next to a thriving night market, and there were plenty of tourists there to welcome me back to the traveling circuit. It’s a big enough town to have stuff going on and yet it’s small enough to feel peaceful, too. I keep telling myself I’m going to get back out there and explore the market further, but I’m starting to feel sleepy lying here on this hotel bed. We’ll see.

More yokel-ness ensued at the Chiang Mai bus station. With the public bus system down south, I learned that one bought a ticket on the bus itself. So this afternoon, I waited confidently until people had started boarding. Look at me, I thought. I’m so travel-savvy.

Turns out you buy a ticket at the ticket counter. The bus staff rolled their eyes and sent someone to get a ticket for me while I stood outside feeling like that dumbass tourist.

These things happen.

As for longish term plans, I have decided to stay in SE Asia and trade in my airfare to Turkey for a voucher. Once I looked at the cost of living in Istanbul and the surrounding region, it became clear to me that it’s going to be a lot more of a financial stretch to travel over there. You simply can’t beat the exchange rates here. My money goes much further.

Another factor was the weather. When I checked, it was in the neighborhood of 55 degrees F in Istanbul. That’s certainly not cold, but compared to 75 degrees here, it’s a tough trade to make. Couple this with the fact that I only packed for SE Asia and would have to buy warmer clothes upon arrival.

There is also the vague reasoning that taking off for Istanbul goes against the current of travel in these parts. The backpacker circuit has a way of pulling you along with it — it’s the path of least resistance. It feels abrupt and awkward to go straight from Thailand to Turkey. Or at least, that is my justification for the herd mentality behind this reason.

So on the one hand, it’s great to have more of a plan and to have the time/money to roam around Asia. On the other, I was excited about Eastern Europe and particularly about visiting my friend Val in Ukraine, where she is saving the world as a Peace Corps volunteer. However, I will have the voucher, and I can only use it with the one Eastern European airline, so let’s say maybe in the summertime, Val-Tron.

Overall, it feels good to be moving again. My mindset is shifting back into wanderlust mode, which is, after all, what this blog is supposed to deal with. I’m considering starting a separate blog for all the crap that isn’t related to travel. I was thinking about calling it “The ManBoy Chronicles.” (Yes, I do insist on being self-deprecating. It makes me feel better about how very, very seriously I take myself.) I don’t want to stretch myself thin, though, so we’ll see.

That’s always the last word: we’ll see. I’m seeing a coat of arms for the Ministry of Indecision in my mind’s eye… what is “we’ll see” in Latin?

Expect fewer updates for a while. Being on the move, combined with being in Laos, is going to cut down on my internet time. I am perfectly okay with that. I do not remember when I decided that daily posts were required. I continue to write every day, but I will no longer subject you all to the shit not worth sharing.

Then again… we’ll see.

Further Updates from the Ministry of Indecision

I might need to start a whole category of MoI posts. It’s one of the larger departments of my anxious, polyphonic mind. Here’s a glimpse into the murk.

I am leaving Chiang Mai on Wednesday morning. I will be going to Laos and then Vietnam. This much is certain. As for the rest… I need to make some decisions pretty soon about staying in Asia and teaching or sticking with my original plan to fly (recklessly) on to Istanbul and from there, tour Eastern Europe. If I’m going to the Balkans, I’m leaving 4 March, which leaves me only ten days to zip through Laos and the northern part of Vietnam, then get back to Bangkok and go halfway around the world again. That’s sounding a bit crazy right now, even to me.

I’m nearly ready to start applying for teaching jobs in Korea, once I get a copy of my diploma from home (still waiting on the university, but it’s in the mail). The thing is, most teaching jobs in Korea will pay your airfare into and out of the country. It’s one of the major draws of working there, in addition to high salaries and loads of other benefits like free housing. So really, I can fly to Korea from anywhere in the world, once I get a job. But, since I’m aiming for ASAP positions (like, starting within a few weeks), it would be sort of crazy to fly to Turkey, range up into Bulgaria and Romania, then turn around and fly back to Korea.

Then again, if I don’t, I’m SOL on the cost of that plane ticket.

I could try to find teaching work in Eastern Europe, which was my original plan — but then again, my original plan involved a TEFL certification that I bailed out on.

Anyway, this matter will remain under MoI jurisdiction until tomorrow. Then it passes on to the Ministry of Certainty, and from there will progress either to the Ministry of Good Decisions or the Ministry of Bad Decisions. I don’t need to tell you which one of those is the larger department.