Ten Months in Chiang Mai: Getting Comfy

Month 10

Month 10 (besides one wild weekend in Chiang Dao) was relaxed. Comfortable. I mostly just worked & lived my life in a normal way.

I’ve been really getting into Muay Thai (Thai boxing), and I enjoy the training sessions with my Thai instructor P’Jin. It’s a great workout, and a huge release. A release of energy, of stress, of my frustrations.

Finished Teaching

I finished teaching this month. A whole school year, complete. We still have to be at school doing administrative work for most of March (dumb, I know), but I said goodbye to the kiddos and will not return.

I am glad that I decided to work in a Thai school for my first year in Thailand. I learned so much about the nuanced culture this way. I learned through every small interaction, to how things were handled, to the many festivals celebrated at school. I have a good understanding of how the culture works, how many Thai people think, because I was in this environment every day.

I’m not going to lie … it was difficult to be a foreigner in a Thai school. I’m learning that it’s difficult to be a foreigner anywhere. You are constantly ‘othered’ and work in a different sphere than other Thai staff. Our opinions don’t hold much weight, and it’s very hard to change things as a foreigner. The system is set in stone, the way that they like. It’s almost impossible to speak your mind without it being considered disrespectful. The school holds our work permits, our visas, our money. They have so much power over us, it’s eerie.

I’m so ready to move on. To close this chapter in my early 20’s, and open a new one. I expect this next chapter to be winding, but I know it will eventually lead me back to Chiang Mai. I love living here. But first, I have to scratch my travel itch. First up, Vietnam! Then Cambodia, Laos, & maybe Singapore & Indonesia. I’m SO ready to explore more of Southeast Asia! I’m starting this journey in Vietnam with my boyfriend Maksym at the end of March. Counting down the days!

Shambhala in Your Heart Festival – Chiang Dao

In the middle of February I entered an alternate universe: I found myself in the hippie-dippiest, vegan-lover, flower-children community of bohemian people from all over the world. They gathered in the tiny, gorgeous mountain town in northern Thailand, Chiang Dao, for one reason: to attend the Shambhala in Your Heart Festival. I attended with my two friends Robin & Becci, and we drove around 1 hour on our motorbikes to get to Chiang Dao.

I’ve never seen ANYTHING like this … the 10-day festival consisted of massive tipi tents, art workshops, music performances, fire shows, dancing, drum circles, and organic, wholesale artists selling their goods. It’s a huge international festival, with a big influence from Japanese people, that gather to this campsite in Chiang Dao. I’ve never seen so many dreadlocks in my life! And homemade chunky jewelry. And people walking around barefoot. It was a sight to behold, and out of my comfort zone. But I leaned into the experience … and ended up having a fantastic time with the hippies for a weekend!

It was fascinating to people-watch and have conversations with people from all over the world. I met people from Israel, Japan, Brazil, Netherlands, and more. For some of them, this is their life. They exist in this alternative lifestyle, traveling to festivals all over the world, selling their art or performing. These are the people who didn’t conform to their societies. Are they truly happy? Will they ever go back to civilization? It’s a reminder that your life can look however you want it to look. Judge them all you want, but they have passion for what they’re doing. That’s special.

Air Quality

Oof, I finally found Chiang Mai’s fatal flaw. The horrible air quality during burning season in February-April. Holy shit, it’s HORRIBLE! You can’t even see the sky, that’s how polluted it is here right now. The farmers burn their crops to prepare for the next harvest season, and as a result the air becomes extremely polluted. I am so ready to escape! Pro tip: don’t visit Chiang Mai during these months!

That’s All

Well, that’s about it for this month. Besides Muay Thai & tutoring, I love trying new restaurants around Chiang Mai. Maksym & I have become quite the foodies, and are lucky enough to eat at amazing restaurants almost every night. So far we have our favorite & authentic Chinese, Indian, Burmese, French, Mediterranean, Italian, Thai, and vegan restaurants. I feel so grateful to live in a place where I can afford to eat incredible, restaurant-quality, authentic food every day!

Thank you for reading! I miss you all and hope everyone is doing well.

xoxo Gracie