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Post 2011
- 7 years and 14 days since I started this blog -
- 7 years and 14 days since I started this blog -
Chiang Mai is a cosmopolitan city. Lots oi international flavor here. Every day that I've been here, I've spoken with people from Europe, Australia, and other Asian countries besides local Thais.
I assume there are some people here with the kind of life issues that make them hostile, and that there are some people who are prejudiced against other people, but I haven't met them. Everyone I met has been (or seemed to me) happy to be here, and friendly. People smile when they speak with me.
Thai culture has a social norm that discourages conflict between people. Thais don't raise their voices in social situations. If you do, they are embarrassed, not for themselves, but for you. Saving face is important, and that means you don't behave badly towards others in social situations, nor do you .
I mention this because as I went out to an advertised open mic/special lunch, I felt... tested. First, my Uber driver got lost picking me up, so instead of waiting five minutes I had to wait fifteen. OK - I already know that being in any foreign country, being impatient gets you nowhere, and my own ADHD has taught me over the years to be patient whether it feels good or not. Once in the car, it doesn't matter any more how long you waited. Move on.
My driver got lost on the way to our destination, and I had to offer encouragement and navigation support to finally get dropped off at Poppa Rock, which was in a part of the city new to me. Well, I guess that's how you learn your way around.
On the other hand, these little problems with Uber and its drivers are getting old.
I had been forwarded an ad and a FaceBook page for what Poppa Rock called their "Sunday Sesh": A roast dinner beginning at Noon, an open mic beginning at 2, followed by bands from 4 to 7. Not knowing whether the place would be crowded for what seemed like a bargain special meal and a long schedule of music, I had tried to get there early in the proceedings. My goal was to get there at 12:30pm, but I got there at 1. The '12-minute' ride had taken about 50 minutes. So it goes.
I was given friendly, if not exactly prompt, service, at a table in front of the stage. Poppa Rock is a British pub and a hangout for British expats. It is run by Thai. Once I ordered (patience!) the pork roast special, price marked down to 175 Bhat Sunday only, according to the ad, .
Two o'clock rolled around and there was no sign of musicians. In fact, since I was enjoying the juke, and the meal, and I wasn't the only one waiting, I just hung out.
At around 3:30, and post-meal bears in, the first of the musicians came in. Just before the start of the set, the bass player and guitarist came in. I recognized both of them. The band started playing before I even had a chance say, "Hello." Nods of recognition were it.
It was two hours late, and I'd been charged regular price for my meal, not the discount I was expecting, but no sweat: The set was great, really interesting: a kind of swamp-rock/jazz fusion groove that was pretty effective at communicating some some rock classics, and gave plenty of time for the musicians to stretch. Then I got up and backed some more conventional classic rock. Once again, I found myself on stage with good musicians, happy to be making good music. Grateful that it turned out well.
Last week, I completely missed the Sunday Night Walking Market, mistaking it for the (regular) Night Market that happens, obvious to everyone but me, in a different place.
When I say obvious to everyone but me, I mean everyone in Chiang Mai but me. Because the Sunday Night Market is huge. And crowded. It happens on one of the main streets and extends for block after block on that street, and all the cross-streets. And it is shoulder-to-shoulder, mosh-pit packed with people. It isn't something for tourists, either, because I believe half of Chiang Mai was there, and Euro tourists were a fraction of the shoppers.
I wasn't shopping though, except as in window-shopping. I have zero extra room in my suitcase to bring anything extra back, having already exceeded capacity with the pants and shirts I bought when my luggage was delayed.
I wasn't there to shop. I was there to soak up the atmosphere, check out the unusual, the interesting, the odd, the intriguing. These I found in abundance, while threading my way through the throng. Pictures I took don't come close to doing the scene justice. There was a whole street lined with two rows of reclining chairs, and what seemed like hundreds of people getting a foot massage. The Thai are serious about massage, man.
There were many street performers. Clowns, musicians, novelty hawkers, contributing to the din. There were many temples within the bounds of the Market - I stopped at one, took off my shoes, picked out my offering (for free, not for sale) and took a moment while I thought about where I was and what I was doing. I just spent that moment checking out my own feelings and thoughts, mindful of the sounds and scents around me, and then letting go of the external stimuli for a few seconds.
Prominent among the scents was the warm smell of cooking food, the sweet smell of baked goods, food supplying the dominant aroma of the Market. So I started eating, and once I started, I couldn't stop:. A fresh pad thai for about 75 cents. A spring roll for 40 cents. A strawberry and passion fruit smoothy for under a buck. Steamed quail eggs for fifty cents. Grilled lamb satay for a buck. A water for thirty cents, khao soui with chicken (in this case, a whole chicken leg) for 2 bucks.
I needed that walk!
I arrived to find another small club where the stage took up almost half the square footage. Tiny stools and benches provided seating, and there didn't seem to be any inside, or out, where the music poured out into the warm night air freely. The same kind of seating was out on the sidewalk outside the club, at least as many as inside, and just as occupied. Standing room only, for me, until I saw my friend Dave, who had invited me, and someone near him provided a stool for me to sit close by him and Mai.
The band we were watching was playing some good progressive fusion. It was a two-guitar quartet, and they were hot. The soloists were good and the rhythm section was tight.
Then my friend Dave and his band quintet were up, backing singer Joy (I posted pictures of me and some of the same guys backing her up earlier in the week) took the stage. Joy's stage presence reminds me a lot of Janis Joplin's, in that she starts moving on the downbeat and never stops until the set is done. That was some very energetic rock'n'roll, indeed!
Again, I found the quality of the players to be very high, and when the set was over, congratulated them. I was asked when I was going to play next. That impressed me, because my style and repertoire is quite different from anything I've heard. So it was sweet to get the approval of musicians who'd played with me or heard me perform.
I took some time to listen to another band do a set, this somewhere between the jazz of the first and rock of the second. This band, all Thai musicians, seemed to have superior instrumentalists, but the singing wasn't at the same level. I used some of the time during this set to socialize, and, along with Dave, formed a plan to rehearse some songs before my return to Boy Blues Bar's open mic tomorrow night.
I felt my day was full and complete, and headed home, grateful for the wonderful time I'm having, and tired from a day of having it.
I assume there are some people here with the kind of life issues that make them hostile, and that there are some people who are prejudiced against other people, but I haven't met them. Everyone I met has been (or seemed to me) happy to be here, and friendly. People smile when they speak with me.
Thai culture has a social norm that discourages conflict between people. Thais don't raise their voices in social situations. If you do, they are embarrassed, not for themselves, but for you. Saving face is important, and that means you don't behave badly towards others in social situations, nor do you .
I mention this because as I went out to an advertised open mic/special lunch, I felt... tested. First, my Uber driver got lost picking me up, so instead of waiting five minutes I had to wait fifteen. OK - I already know that being in any foreign country, being impatient gets you nowhere, and my own ADHD has taught me over the years to be patient whether it feels good or not. Once in the car, it doesn't matter any more how long you waited. Move on.
My driver got lost on the way to our destination, and I had to offer encouragement and navigation support to finally get dropped off at Poppa Rock, which was in a part of the city new to me. Well, I guess that's how you learn your way around.
On the other hand, these little problems with Uber and its drivers are getting old.
I had been forwarded an ad and a FaceBook page for what Poppa Rock called their "Sunday Sesh": A roast dinner beginning at Noon, an open mic beginning at 2, followed by bands from 4 to 7. Not knowing whether the place would be crowded for what seemed like a bargain special meal and a long schedule of music, I had tried to get there early in the proceedings. My goal was to get there at 12:30pm, but I got there at 1. The '12-minute' ride had taken about 50 minutes. So it goes.
I was given friendly, if not exactly prompt, service, at a table in front of the stage. Poppa Rock is a British pub and a hangout for British expats. It is run by Thai. Once I ordered (patience!) the pork roast special, price marked down to 175 Bhat Sunday only, according to the ad, .
Two o'clock rolled around and there was no sign of musicians. In fact, since I was enjoying the juke, and the meal, and I wasn't the only one waiting, I just hung out.
At around 3:30, and post-meal bears in, the first of the musicians came in. Just before the start of the set, the bass player and guitarist came in. I recognized both of them. The band started playing before I even had a chance say, "Hello." Nods of recognition were it.
It was two hours late, and I'd been charged regular price for my meal, not the discount I was expecting, but no sweat: The set was great, really interesting: a kind of swamp-rock/jazz fusion groove that was pretty effective at communicating some some rock classics, and gave plenty of time for the musicians to stretch. Then I got up and backed some more conventional classic rock. Once again, I found myself on stage with good musicians, happy to be making good music. Grateful that it turned out well.
Last week, I completely missed the Sunday Night Walking Market, mistaking it for the (regular) Night Market that happens, obvious to everyone but me, in a different place.
When I say obvious to everyone but me, I mean everyone in Chiang Mai but me. Because the Sunday Night Market is huge. And crowded. It happens on one of the main streets and extends for block after block on that street, and all the cross-streets. And it is shoulder-to-shoulder, mosh-pit packed with people. It isn't something for tourists, either, because I believe half of Chiang Mai was there, and Euro tourists were a fraction of the shoppers.
I wasn't shopping though, except as in window-shopping. I have zero extra room in my suitcase to bring anything extra back, having already exceeded capacity with the pants and shirts I bought when my luggage was delayed.
I wasn't there to shop. I was there to soak up the atmosphere, check out the unusual, the interesting, the odd, the intriguing. These I found in abundance, while threading my way through the throng. Pictures I took don't come close to doing the scene justice. There was a whole street lined with two rows of reclining chairs, and what seemed like hundreds of people getting a foot massage. The Thai are serious about massage, man.
There were many street performers. Clowns, musicians, novelty hawkers, contributing to the din. There were many temples within the bounds of the Market - I stopped at one, took off my shoes, picked out my offering (for free, not for sale) and took a moment while I thought about where I was and what I was doing. I just spent that moment checking out my own feelings and thoughts, mindful of the sounds and scents around me, and then letting go of the external stimuli for a few seconds.
Prominent among the scents was the warm smell of cooking food, the sweet smell of baked goods, food supplying the dominant aroma of the Market. So I started eating, and once I started, I couldn't stop:. A fresh pad thai for about 75 cents. A spring roll for 40 cents. A strawberry and passion fruit smoothy for under a buck. Steamed quail eggs for fifty cents. Grilled lamb satay for a buck. A water for thirty cents, khao soui with chicken (in this case, a whole chicken leg) for 2 bucks.
I needed that walk!
I arrived to find another small club where the stage took up almost half the square footage. Tiny stools and benches provided seating, and there didn't seem to be any inside, or out, where the music poured out into the warm night air freely. The same kind of seating was out on the sidewalk outside the club, at least as many as inside, and just as occupied. Standing room only, for me, until I saw my friend Dave, who had invited me, and someone near him provided a stool for me to sit close by him and Mai.
The band we were watching was playing some good progressive fusion. It was a two-guitar quartet, and they were hot. The soloists were good and the rhythm section was tight.
Then my friend Dave and his band quintet were up, backing singer Joy (I posted pictures of me and some of the same guys backing her up earlier in the week) took the stage. Joy's stage presence reminds me a lot of Janis Joplin's, in that she starts moving on the downbeat and never stops until the set is done. That was some very energetic rock'n'roll, indeed!
Again, I found the quality of the players to be very high, and when the set was over, congratulated them. I was asked when I was going to play next. That impressed me, because my style and repertoire is quite different from anything I've heard. So it was sweet to get the approval of musicians who'd played with me or heard me perform.
I took some time to listen to another band do a set, this somewhere between the jazz of the first and rock of the second. This band, all Thai musicians, seemed to have superior instrumentalists, but the singing wasn't at the same level. I used some of the time during this set to socialize, and, along with Dave, formed a plan to rehearse some songs before my return to Boy Blues Bar's open mic tomorrow night.
I felt my day was full and complete, and headed home, grateful for the wonderful time I'm having, and tired from a day of having it.
aPlease leave a comment when you visit my blog. Thank you!
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