Chiang Mai Reflection Day 3

Day 3 of Chiang Mai Trip

Today we went to yet another temple, Wat Phra That at Doi Suthep. Compared to the previous temple (White Temple) that we had visited, this one feels a lot more like a “real” temple. I also noticed that there are more locals in this temple as compared to the previous one. The temple ground is arranged in a circular fashion, and there are many rooms for prayers, though I am not entirely sure if each room serves a specific purpose. Nonetheless, I see people of all nationality and races kneeling down and praying, including Caucasians. Though, whether they are true believers of the faith, or merely following the rest to get a taste of how it feels like, I will never know.

There are also some Chinese tourists around. Buddhism is still popular amongst the Chinese, albeit a little different from traditional Thai Buddhism. Nonetheless, I guess Chinese are probably used to praying to idols. Even though I am not a believer of any faith, my parents used to tell me to put my hands together in a praying fashion and slightly bow my head towards a Buddhist statue when I see one, perhaps just out of respect. Perhaps others are brought up in similar ways as well.

Recently, my father has turned towards Buddhism for answers. I thought he might like something here, so I bought a little statue that depicts one of the Buddha. I hope he likes it.

After the temple visit, we went over to Chiang Mai University (CMU), where we got to see the famed campus. The campus feels a lot more spacious as compared to NTU. NTU feels like a closed eco-system, a little piece of heaven that is separated from the highways and HDBS that surround it. Whereas for CMU, the roads and buildings still fits in with the surrounding Chiang Mai Landscape. Without the gate, I may not even have realised that I have entered Chiang Mai University. There are also many students in uniform walking around, which feels quite strange to me, but I guess different places have different rules, and that this is part of the inter-cultural experience after all.

When we were leaving the campus, May helped us to get one of the “school buses” to stop and pick us up. At that point in time, there are already students that are inside. In fact, in order to make space for all of us to get into the vehicle, one of them even voluntarily sat on the floor instead. They were laughing and chatting away happily throughout the journey and even after we leave, they smiled and wave us goodbye. They were so friendly to us. That made me reflect: in comparison, how did we treat the foreigners that we see in our campus? I guess they have become such a common sight in Singapore that we no longer grant them any special privileges or give them any special attention. But as a person in a foreign land, to be met with such warmth, it is truly a reinvigorating experience. I shall start to become a better host when I return to Singapore.

Apart from the interview in the morning, we did not really continue with our work today. In a way, today is our rest day. After touring around the shopping district and enjoying afternoon tea with Professor Liew at a café nearby, our group decided to visit the nearby waterfall instead. Unlike the nature reserves that I have visited before, the waterfall here has much fewer man-made structures for safety purposes, like railings or warning signs. I can easily foresee people getting seriously injured because of a misstep or simply slipped and fell after their shoes get into contact with water. But I guess this is also why this place is so attractive in the first place; the sense of danger, the adrenaline rush as you successfully overcome each obstacle. In the end, I scaled quite a few rocks and managed to find a good vantage point. We spent the rest of the afternoon there.

Then we met up with May for dinner near the student night market. After which we had a few drinks, went to a club nearby and the day ended. Even though we did not do much work today, I did get to experience a different side of Thailand, and live a little. I don’t usually go clubbing in Singapore, so this is quite enjoyable, though a little short. The club closed at 1am, which was rather surprising. May turned out to be quite the party-goer as well.

Overall, we did one interview in the morning, and then we spent the rest of the day wandering around, taking in the sceneries and the atmosphere. But it was a day well spent, as I needed the break as well.