To Lamphun: By bus

November 8, 2016

I got up this morning, packed up, and had a very nice breakfast at the guest house. When I went out to my bike, there were 2 additional loaded touring bikes in the parking area. I went back into the restaurant and the waitress pointed out the couple that owned the bikes. I went and introduced myself, and we had a short chat before their breakfast arrived. They were Australian, and had come from Cambodia. They also commented that the backpacker scene in Lampang created a bit of culture shock. I let them eat in peace, and went out to head to the bus depot, where the plan was to catch a bus over the next big hill into Lamphun. That would put me in a good place to get to Dhamma Simanta tomorrow. I didn't get very far on my bike. The rear tire was flat. Not completely flat, but squishy and bouncy. I went back to the guesthouse and pumped it up. It held okay to the bus station, but I need to keep an eye on it.

At the bus depot, someone approached me and asked where I was going. I told him Lamphun, and he pointed to the ticket window. From the ticket window I was pointed to another ticket seller, and then to yet another. I thought I was set and was buying a ticket for 35 baht, when the seller let burst a lot of Thai, and gave me back my money. She went off and came back with someone who spoke a bit of English, and I was told I had to pay an additional 100 baht for the bike. Not a problem, why didn't they tell me when they said 35 baht? With that paid and everything taken care of, we loaded my bike onto the bus. I thought it would go in the luggage compartment, but it got lifted into the seating area and into the last row of seats. The bus driver carefully tied it up, and we were set to go. Except that the bus didn't leave for another hour and a half.

My bike in it's place of honor in the back row.

The bus was really hot until we got moving. Then, with all of the windows open it wasn't a bad ride. There were a few stops, and it was quite a climb that made me happy I wasn't riding. I would have been on the same highway we were driving. It took about an hour and 45 minutes, and we were in Lamphun. By the way, that's like National Lampoon, with a p, not f as in fun or in food.

In Lamphun, I stopped at a coffee shop to look up accommodation, and settled on the Pickbaan Hostel.

The coffee shop in Lamphun, complete with Wi-Fi and motorbike delivery.

I took the hostel bed at 400 baht for the night, including breakfast, but I'm the only person here. Based on the registration book, the last person to stay was on November 3.

So I checked in, showered, and went out to see some of the Wats that Lamphun is known for. This is a really old city with historic wats. It is pretty quiet without too much of a tourist scene, and I'm glad I stopped here. I'm staying in the center of the old city, which had a moat and the remains of the city fortification walls.

A section of moat and the city wall around Lamphun.

The most famous of the Wats is Pathatharipunchai, which is quite large and dates back thousands of years.

I wandered around it for a little while. There were all sorts of colorful paper lanterns strung up. I don't know if this is a special occasion, or if there is a special meaning behind the lanterns.

At the wat. I'm not re-typing the name here!

It would have been good to have a guide to interpret some of the murals.

There was a school attached to the wat, and the young monks were no different from other kids, with their nose stuck to their phone displays.

I was trying to be discrete about taking pictures.

I had a brief moment of panic when I lost track of where I had removed my shoes, but I kept wandering and found them again.

Then I went out, walked the city a bit, visiting some of the city gates. I went by another of the historic wats, but it was closed to visitors.

I had dinner at the night market, another pad Thai. It didn't have any peanuts! There is a monument in the area where the market is. It had colorful paper lanterns,too, and people were taking pictures. I hope to find out what the lanterns are about tomorrow.

The monument at the end of the night market, lit up and decorated.

And I think that's it for tonight. Tomorrow I head off to Dhamma Simanta for the 10 day retreat. I'll be off line the entire time, so this is it unless I do some edits in the morning. The retreat is scheduled to end November 20. Please don't anticipate any updates until then, or perhaps even the 21st. Thanks for reading, and thanks for being patient. Don't worry!

Fade to black.

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Today's ride: 6 km (4 miles)
Total: 694 km (431 miles)

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