Dec 20 When in a Tourist Town,. . . . . you do as the tourists do.

Late December in a city that caters to tourists
comes replete with Christmas symbols but many of
these lights are all year events.


I found these bamboo umbrella struts drying in the
sun rather charming.

Heading out of town a bit to see some of the handicrafts,
a few of us accept a ride from a relative of the hotel
management to where she works stopping at a few other
shops on the way back.

It was still a vibrant and fun place to be. This family
seems at home and enjoying a very clever means of
transport. You can also get an idea of how narrow the
streets are.

This movable feast of oranges is the kind of thing
you'll see making its way along the narrow streets of
old town Chiang Mai inside the old wall and its defining
moat. Our little NE corner was only one of several
guest house/trekker catering neighborhoods. While
it was considerably less crowded than normal (so we
were told) due to economic and political issues it still seemed
very gringoized to us. When the menus are ONLY in
English, there's something not quite right.