If you head east towards Laos and away from the usual tourist path, you will find the quant provincial capital of Nan. The city is very small and doesn’t have many sites to visit and here in lies the beauty of the area. Very few travelers have the time to pass this direction, which means the town has a very authentic non touristy feel. The one must-see site is Wat Phumin. Its exterior architecture is unique for the banisters leading up the steps on both sides of the temple are two continuing nagas (mythical snakes). Two of the interior walls are adorned with murals depicting everyday life in the 1800’s and the other two tell stories of Buddha’s life. The murals are so unique compared to other temples of the same era that they have given the city a bit of fame (it was originally built in the 16th century, but renovated in 1865/1873). The region surrounding the city provides trekking opportunities and several expansive national parks.
What truly made Nan a memorable highlight of Thailand, was one inviting and giving woman. As we always do, we looked up the top vegetarian restaurants in the city. There were only a few, so we went in search of the closest one. Hidden down a side street we found a house surrounded by a tranquil garden with a running fountain. Two dogs lazily lifted their heads and quickly decided we were of no interest (btw the number of dogs wearing clothing was oddly high in Nan). A woman emerged from the kitchen wearing an apron and a huge smile. She showed us the four dishes we could choose from. One dish was 30 baht and two dishes were 40 baht. For just over a dollar we filled our plates with mouthwatering vegetarian fare. As we ate, she continued to bring over side dishes. She gave us Taiwanese tea, bananas, dessert dates, soup, etc. I couldn’t believe that this woman was giving us so much food for just a dollar. It was mind-blowing. I did several Bob Wiley impersonations. “MMMMMMM…MMMMMMM… Sooo Gooood!” She was quite tickled by how much we loved her food. She was even more enthusiastic when she found out we were vegetarians.
After that first meal, we sat and chatted with her for a while. She told us about the few foreigners that she had hosted over the last couple years (not many come to Nan and few are lucky enough to meet her). A man named David left his bicycle with her and plans to return next October to reclaim it. She proudly showed me where it is safely stowed. She then offered to drive us around the city once her restaurant closed at 2:00 pm. We were actually on our way to the hospital for some antibiotics, so we declined. She laughed and said that Buddha had given us good luck. She in fact works at the hospital several times a week and would be more than happy to drive us.
So my entire hospital experience was supervised by a woman I now call, Mama Thai. She crinkled her brow and looked very concerned while I fumbled through a very odd interaction with a doctor. I had been having some pain in the region of my kidney and just wanted to make sure I didn’t have a kidney infection or UTI or something. I asked the doctor to take a blood sample and urine sample to check. He said, “Discharge?” I said, “No discharge.” He said, “Discharge?” I said, “No discharge.” Since his English and my Thai weren’t up to snuff, several nurses were included in this slightly embarrassing but mostly hilarious interaction. Everyone was so excited to meet me and Jin gave a large smile and puffed out her chest a bit with each introduction. In the end the tests all came back negative for problems. He gave me antibiotics anyway…
Jin then drove us to see a reclining Buddha, up a hill to see a beautiful gold Buddha overlooking the entire city, to a night market for local produce, and to her brother’s roadside restaurant for dinner. Now throughout this evening she bought us nuts, rice desserts, and bananas in sticky rice. Her brother spoke excellent English and sat with us for a while. At one time he lived in France where he learned English and French. He was a funny character and joked about having a secret second family in France. We all went home with full bellies and smiles on our faces.
Jin is one of those people I have met on the road, whom I will always carry with me. She reminds me very much of my Taiwanese friend’s mother. Jane’s mother and Jin both emit a powerful sense of joy, goodness, love, and calm. Both are extremely giving and brighten the room they are in. Throughout the two days I ended up spending with Jin, so many people approached her to give her hugs and well wishes that I joked she knew the whole town. “Jin, you are so popular! Everyone loves you.” She would giggle and say that she has happiness to share.
We shared another two special days with Mama Thai. She housed us and fed us the two nights after we did a trek through the hills surrounding Nan. The night we returned Mama Thai took us out to a local market to buy produce for the restaurant. During this process she bought us individual juice bottles, caramel rice treats, and hot buns. The woman was out of control! Then we headed to a street celebration for Buddha Day. She said, “Shop till midnight?” Kellie and I looked at each other and wondered how this 61 year old woman could do it. She gets up around 4 am each morning to cook for her restaurant and then around 2 she goes to the hospital to work till the late evening. She is so full of energy! After watching the performers and eating papaya salad (purchased by Mama Thai), we headed home for sleep.
The next day, Kellie and I got up at 4:40 am to cook with Mama Thai. Since that day was Buddha Day or Buddha's Birthday there were more customers than usual and several extra special dishes were on the menu. We got up, not wanting to stand in the outdoor kitchen at 5 am, but excited to spend time with Mama Thai. Unfortunately, many of the ingredients were new to us and most likely unobtainable in the States. In addition, Mama Thai was in a rush for the special day and couldn't take a lot of time to explain many steps to us. She kept saying, "Next year you come back for one month and I teach you to cook." She was also insistent that we must tell her when we both decide to get married. She would like to cook for our big days. We opened the restaurant at 7:30 am and Mama Thai told us we would learn about guest service. I guess she doesn't realize that Kellie is the front desk manager for a large hotel and that I managed 278 people at one point in time. Nonetheless, we enjoyed our customer experience and stayed at the restaurant until closing at 2:00 pm. Mama Thai showed us how she measures the food for each customer and how to properly tie the bags to go with a rubber band. Of course she constantly fussed that we weren’t giving the customers enough food, even if we were following her measuring rules. It is just in her nature to be generous. Several customers asked to take a closer look at our eyes. They had never seen eyes the color of Kellie's blue or my hazel green before. All showed the appropriate enthusiasm that we planned on returning next year for a month of cooking lessons.
In the evening we had a jammed social schedule. We were to stop and see three temples, go to her friend’s house to fish, then go to another friend’s house to eat dinner and to Karaoke. The real story worth telling came from the dinner party. We arrived and the two hosts didn’t speak much English. Mama Thai disappeared to cook something extra and we just sat around unsure what was happening. Then Mama Thai returned and all the dishes were shifted from one table to another. It seemed like a lot of extra effort for no real purpose. It was only the four of us and three of them. Anyway, we finally settled into eating. Of course by bite number two I had found a way to injure myself. A bit of the lime chili soup had splashed into my eye. In serious pain I ran to the sink while the others laughed. I threw water in my eye. One of the hosts ran over and insisted I put salt in my mouth. I was so focused on the pain that my brain could not wrap itself around the idea of putting salt in my mouth to help my eye. She was very sure that is what I needed, so I put salt in my mouth. My travel companions were in stitches giggling at the sight of my sour “salty” face. The only thing Kellie could muster was, “Why salt…. Giggle… salt!?” I was pleasantly surprised by how much we all enjoyed karaoke. They set up the system and disappeared. So the four of us belted out things like, I’m Gonna Getta Ya. That song is uber creepy by the way. Read the lyrics. It is a song about stalking. The only one who remained in the house with us was Mama Thai. I think the two hosts just assumed us foreigners were going to want to karaoke into the wee hours. Little did they know I am an old person in disguise. All we wanted was sleep, but we had to wait for them to return. So our singing progressively deteriorated until we all threw in the towel and screamed, We are the Champions…. Sleep eventually came.
Mama Thai made us breakfast and took us to the bus station in the morning. She shoved a bag of fruit, nuts, honey, and crackers into our hands. It was emotional to leave her. She really was one of the most special people we have met thus far.
Stay tuned to hear about our trek through Northern Thailand!
What truly made Nan a memorable highlight of Thailand, was one inviting and giving woman. As we always do, we looked up the top vegetarian restaurants in the city. There were only a few, so we went in search of the closest one. Hidden down a side street we found a house surrounded by a tranquil garden with a running fountain. Two dogs lazily lifted their heads and quickly decided we were of no interest (btw the number of dogs wearing clothing was oddly high in Nan). A woman emerged from the kitchen wearing an apron and a huge smile. She showed us the four dishes we could choose from. One dish was 30 baht and two dishes were 40 baht. For just over a dollar we filled our plates with mouthwatering vegetarian fare. As we ate, she continued to bring over side dishes. She gave us Taiwanese tea, bananas, dessert dates, soup, etc. I couldn’t believe that this woman was giving us so much food for just a dollar. It was mind-blowing. I did several Bob Wiley impersonations. “MMMMMMM…MMMMMMM… Sooo Gooood!” She was quite tickled by how much we loved her food. She was even more enthusiastic when she found out we were vegetarians.
After that first meal, we sat and chatted with her for a while. She told us about the few foreigners that she had hosted over the last couple years (not many come to Nan and few are lucky enough to meet her). A man named David left his bicycle with her and plans to return next October to reclaim it. She proudly showed me where it is safely stowed. She then offered to drive us around the city once her restaurant closed at 2:00 pm. We were actually on our way to the hospital for some antibiotics, so we declined. She laughed and said that Buddha had given us good luck. She in fact works at the hospital several times a week and would be more than happy to drive us.
So my entire hospital experience was supervised by a woman I now call, Mama Thai. She crinkled her brow and looked very concerned while I fumbled through a very odd interaction with a doctor. I had been having some pain in the region of my kidney and just wanted to make sure I didn’t have a kidney infection or UTI or something. I asked the doctor to take a blood sample and urine sample to check. He said, “Discharge?” I said, “No discharge.” He said, “Discharge?” I said, “No discharge.” Since his English and my Thai weren’t up to snuff, several nurses were included in this slightly embarrassing but mostly hilarious interaction. Everyone was so excited to meet me and Jin gave a large smile and puffed out her chest a bit with each introduction. In the end the tests all came back negative for problems. He gave me antibiotics anyway…
Jin then drove us to see a reclining Buddha, up a hill to see a beautiful gold Buddha overlooking the entire city, to a night market for local produce, and to her brother’s roadside restaurant for dinner. Now throughout this evening she bought us nuts, rice desserts, and bananas in sticky rice. Her brother spoke excellent English and sat with us for a while. At one time he lived in France where he learned English and French. He was a funny character and joked about having a secret second family in France. We all went home with full bellies and smiles on our faces.
Jin is one of those people I have met on the road, whom I will always carry with me. She reminds me very much of my Taiwanese friend’s mother. Jane’s mother and Jin both emit a powerful sense of joy, goodness, love, and calm. Both are extremely giving and brighten the room they are in. Throughout the two days I ended up spending with Jin, so many people approached her to give her hugs and well wishes that I joked she knew the whole town. “Jin, you are so popular! Everyone loves you.” She would giggle and say that she has happiness to share.
We shared another two special days with Mama Thai. She housed us and fed us the two nights after we did a trek through the hills surrounding Nan. The night we returned Mama Thai took us out to a local market to buy produce for the restaurant. During this process she bought us individual juice bottles, caramel rice treats, and hot buns. The woman was out of control! Then we headed to a street celebration for Buddha Day. She said, “Shop till midnight?” Kellie and I looked at each other and wondered how this 61 year old woman could do it. She gets up around 4 am each morning to cook for her restaurant and then around 2 she goes to the hospital to work till the late evening. She is so full of energy! After watching the performers and eating papaya salad (purchased by Mama Thai), we headed home for sleep.
The next day, Kellie and I got up at 4:40 am to cook with Mama Thai. Since that day was Buddha Day or Buddha's Birthday there were more customers than usual and several extra special dishes were on the menu. We got up, not wanting to stand in the outdoor kitchen at 5 am, but excited to spend time with Mama Thai. Unfortunately, many of the ingredients were new to us and most likely unobtainable in the States. In addition, Mama Thai was in a rush for the special day and couldn't take a lot of time to explain many steps to us. She kept saying, "Next year you come back for one month and I teach you to cook." She was also insistent that we must tell her when we both decide to get married. She would like to cook for our big days. We opened the restaurant at 7:30 am and Mama Thai told us we would learn about guest service. I guess she doesn't realize that Kellie is the front desk manager for a large hotel and that I managed 278 people at one point in time. Nonetheless, we enjoyed our customer experience and stayed at the restaurant until closing at 2:00 pm. Mama Thai showed us how she measures the food for each customer and how to properly tie the bags to go with a rubber band. Of course she constantly fussed that we weren’t giving the customers enough food, even if we were following her measuring rules. It is just in her nature to be generous. Several customers asked to take a closer look at our eyes. They had never seen eyes the color of Kellie's blue or my hazel green before. All showed the appropriate enthusiasm that we planned on returning next year for a month of cooking lessons.
In the evening we had a jammed social schedule. We were to stop and see three temples, go to her friend’s house to fish, then go to another friend’s house to eat dinner and to Karaoke. The real story worth telling came from the dinner party. We arrived and the two hosts didn’t speak much English. Mama Thai disappeared to cook something extra and we just sat around unsure what was happening. Then Mama Thai returned and all the dishes were shifted from one table to another. It seemed like a lot of extra effort for no real purpose. It was only the four of us and three of them. Anyway, we finally settled into eating. Of course by bite number two I had found a way to injure myself. A bit of the lime chili soup had splashed into my eye. In serious pain I ran to the sink while the others laughed. I threw water in my eye. One of the hosts ran over and insisted I put salt in my mouth. I was so focused on the pain that my brain could not wrap itself around the idea of putting salt in my mouth to help my eye. She was very sure that is what I needed, so I put salt in my mouth. My travel companions were in stitches giggling at the sight of my sour “salty” face. The only thing Kellie could muster was, “Why salt…. Giggle… salt!?” I was pleasantly surprised by how much we all enjoyed karaoke. They set up the system and disappeared. So the four of us belted out things like, I’m Gonna Getta Ya. That song is uber creepy by the way. Read the lyrics. It is a song about stalking. The only one who remained in the house with us was Mama Thai. I think the two hosts just assumed us foreigners were going to want to karaoke into the wee hours. Little did they know I am an old person in disguise. All we wanted was sleep, but we had to wait for them to return. So our singing progressively deteriorated until we all threw in the towel and screamed, We are the Champions…. Sleep eventually came.
Mama Thai made us breakfast and took us to the bus station in the morning. She shoved a bag of fruit, nuts, honey, and crackers into our hands. It was emotional to leave her. She really was one of the most special people we have met thus far.
Stay tuned to hear about our trek through Northern Thailand!
