This is the focal point of DoiSuTep Temple. Unfortunately we caught it when it's undergoing a face-lift. 

DoiSuTep yet again. I really like this shot with the purple blossoms and the white dragon/lion or what-ever-they-are thingys. 

Me in front of --oh my God-- an elephant.. So strange to see one here! :) (Still at DoiSuTep) 

Very cool gong at DoiSuTep.. Sounds cool too! :) 

My personal Budda for protection. This is the Budda you have if you were born on a Saturday. 

Monk getting water at DoiSuTep 

ELEPHANTS!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

Here's a closer pic of the same temple with the elephants on the ledge. 

Taxi Temple Day. I think this one may be the oldest temple in ChaingMai.. There's elephant's stationed on the ledges. Elephants, Elephants, Elephants, and more Elephants. 

Giant Budda. This is from our last day.. We hired a taxi (a real one.. Not a Tuk Tuk) and he took us to some temples before we had to catch our flight. Had a nice chat with a monk here too.! 

Su and her elephant. 

no explaination needed. 

They don't really have taxis here. You can get them, but they're a little hard to come by. They have the Tuk Tuk.  

Thailand

Well here is my trip to Thailand that I did MONTHS ago. I can't believe how behind I am on this stuff. Well... actually... I can.

Anway, our vacation pretty much resided in ChaingMai and the surrounding country side.

Our first stop was the hotel and the next day was a tour of DoiSuTep temple (Wat). It has a pretty interesting history. It sits at the top of a mountain outside ChaingMai. When the king had to decide where to put the temple, he was told to have a white elephant (extrememly sacrid animal) carry a budda around an they followed the elephant making little temples everywhere the elephant stopped for a short bit. Then after -I forget how long... 3 days?-- the elephant dropped dead at the top of the mountain. That's where they built it.

It's been so long that now I cannot remember the order of which we did what. So bear with me. We saw a dinner dance show.. went bamboo rafting-where we got stuck and Su sliced open the bottom of her foot a good ways...did an arts and crafts tour and spent a lot of money... saw the Golden Triangle and the Mekong River ... got harrassed my Thai people at the night bazaar trying to sell us things...and --of course-- went on an elephant ride.

The elephant rides were the best. We watched them bathe the elephants before rigging them up for work and then they showed us how they used the elephants for logging and then we jumped on the back of our own and rode it up to a little village ( I don't think it was real though.. but oh well). It's amazing how sure-footed they are and yet so damn big!!

The worst was Su slicing her foot on the bamboo. I had the pleasure of cleaning it out for her back at the hotel and she had the pleasure of enduring the pain while I did it.. yuk!

Our last tour was up to the Golden Triangle. This was a major trading area (traded EVERYTHING including opium--not now though). It was pretty interesting, but the thing that caught my eye the most was this 2 or 3 story housed sized budda sitting on top of a hill on the way there and back. I asked our tour guide to stop so I could take a picture, but he thought I meant another one and kept on driving. It wasn't in a place where they could turn around and drive back easily, so I let it go. But I'm still irked that I didn't get the shot. Imagine... a huge 2 story golden Budda sitting on top of a hill surrounded by green mountains. It was a site. This is where I wish I could draw outta my head and not have to have a referance in front of me.

Anway that's about it. The pictures are more interesting anyway...

Later!
Amanda