Second part of the Chiang Mai and the Swiss Lanna Lodge article.
Saï Khan Dok or the Inthakin festival, takes place during the first full moon of the lunar semester, so it’s not a set date on our traditional calendar. It lasts for a week.
We had the pleasure to witness the finale of the Saï Khan Dok festival, taking place in the Wat Chedi Luang temple. Processions coming from all part of town crowd the streets from dawn till dusk, carrying offerings.
The festival attracts old and youngs alike. Traditional costumes, flowers and fanfare color the streets.
There’s also a fair, street vendors and dancers.
According to popular belief, and before Chiang Mai existed, there lived the Lua people. The God Indra lent them a pillar in order to shelter them from cataclysms. Once the pillar was given back to Indra, an exact replica was erected at the exact same spot as the original.
The Wat Luang temple.
Obviously, that’s where met a Swiss couple. (Well yes, we had already met André Marc, , the healer we met in Rishikesh.)
The feeling of getting back a clan, a family, gave us a balance we were craving for, a new momentum.
This time around, it was André and Miryam, a Swiss couple who came to Thailand for 6 months. Their alias: the Bébous team.
They create quality content about their passion for travels on their Youtube channel! qui est aussi leur passion !
Fun fact: picture a 1m85 tall black woman such as Miryam (who comes from Senegal) walking in the street of a country where most people don’t even reach 1m70, and where dark skin is a rarity! It’s safe to say we (well she really) attracted a lot of attention!
Coming back from our Northern adventure in [Chiang Rai)...
...turned out to be the start of a bad work-related burnout for Delphine (that + having to adapt and change constantly). We gladly accepted the invitation to stay at the big house the Bébous were living in at the time.
We had a blast there, navigating between the Lodge and this newfound home!
Before leaving Chiang Mai, we met Margot (who was exclusively frugivore at the time) at the Lodge. She also is coming from Switzerland.
The staff sharing their meal with us
We finally decided, Delphine and me, to leave for a peaceful retreat in a Buddhist monastery in the South of Thailand, before hitting the road again.
By train :
The Bébous’s video, Chaing Mai -> Bangkok
All these precious moments amongst our new friends made us stronger than before, leaving with the promise we would see each other again.
We met Margot once again in New Zealand. According to the latest news, she’s to remain there until 2019.
We also had the humbling honor to be a part of the Bébous’ wedding, in Dubrovnik (Croatia) in July 2016!
RSS website