Last Day in Chiang Mai

Last night we spent about 30 seconds looking at the menu at Loco Elvis to decide that we were going back to Taste from Heaven for Thai food instead. Western food is usually about twice as expensive as Thai food (and not as good).
After dinner, we chatted with a waiter for a while. He told us he belonged to the Karen hill tribe. His family had emigrated from Burma and he had gone to a Christian missionary school when he was a child. Now he is studying business in university in Chiang Mai and working as a waiter to support his studies. It's important to remember that, like First Nations in Canada, the hill tribes are not frozen in time just waiting for tourists to accomplish their photo op.

 This morning, Anita and her friend from next door to the hotel greeted the day.

 We walked up to Wat Chiang Man, the oldest wat within the city walls, built in 1296. There are several temples here, with the original one containing a glass Buddha and an emerald Buddha that are both about 2,000 years old. The walls are covered with murals depicting important events in the life of Siddartha Gautama, the Buddha. At first, he was a privileged prince who had no idea of human suffering. He came upon an old man, a sick man and a dead man outside the city and decided to forsake all his privilege and seek the truth about the human condition. This mural seems to be about that.

 There are lots of beautiful blossoms all around the shrines and temples at this time of year.

 This is another smaller temple and stupa around the back. Count the dogs (we counted 10 in view right there). Southeast Asia has way too many dogs.

 Afterward we went to the Lanna Folklife Museum which showed us more about the Lanna Kingdom around Chiang Mai. We learned that the latest Buddha for our age is only one in a series of Buddhas and that another Buddha is expected. There are many parallels between Siddartha Gautama and Jesus Christ. The building we're in used to be the provincial court and we're looking toward the old city hall, now the cultural museum. Nice blossoms. Springtime in Chiang Mai is over 30C.

Anita couldn't resist this picture of pork rind drying in the sun on a  old metal sign set in the back of a pickup truck. This can't meet our standards of food safety.
After a banana shake, we came back to our room to cool down. We're trying to plan a train trip from Hanoi to Sapa in Vietnam in about 11 days, but we haven't got it worked out yet.
Tonight, we go to the Night Bazaar after dinner at a restaurant near there. Tomorrow it's off to Sukhothai on the bus.