[LEMONS] 1.09.2003
Enter Krieger (Mon), Exit Camera.
It's been a weird week.We arrived in Pai, Thailand, a week ago, and have been kicking ourselves ever since for not coming here sooner. Pai's a gorgeous village on the banks of the Pai river, hidden in a valley surrounded by mountains on all sides. It's foggy and cool in the mornings, hot and sunny during the daytime, and cold and clear at night. It's a billion star sky here. Pai reminds me of a cross between Mendocino, California and Silverthorne, Colorado.
Pai has lots of hippie-Farang favorites: massage, saunas, hot springs, a waterfall, cooking classes, yoga, meditation, and is awash in clothing made by the neighboring mountain people. We've taken a few bike rides through the hills (cycle, not motor), the best of which was to the hot springs and the close by Cafe Del Doy. It was a gorgeous ride, although it revealed just how terribly out-of-shape I've become in the last three months. Skinny, yes. Fit, no. There was one hill, in particular, that was a real barf machine. Really long and with an impossibly steep grade, even by Bay Area standards. But another great thing about Pai is that it's the first place I've been that's actually got decent bikes to rent. Shimano components, new rides, deraileurs that actually function (though they still tend to throw chains). I've even seen a few Gary Fischers being ridden around town, though I haven't rented one myself yet. In any case, it's a real gas to actually be able to change gears again.
Our guesthouse, Ban Tawan, is right on the Pai river. We've got the closest room t the river, and it lulls us to sleep every night. There's also a platform built out over the stream there--complete wit hammock and the triangular pillows--which is a great place to chill out, read books, write in your journal, and cry away the no-camera blues.
Speaking of which, there's even a great blues bar here called Be-Bop. It's genuinely one of the coolest bars I've ever ben to in al of my life. Talk about a scene. It's the kind of place that you hear about on four continents from other travellers. "Did you go to Be-Bop in Pai?" "Yeah, we peeped it." "Brilliant, innit?" "Yeah, it was allgood, yo. Killer blues band. Hellatight." "That lot can play the blues, but." "Word."
It's also close to the Burmese refugee camps, and there's a tremendous "don't visit Myanmar" movement here. It's been seriosly making us reconsider whether or not we're going. But I don't know. I want to see Myanmar. I want to judge for myself. I'm going. I think.
And then there was Krieger
This week we also met up with our (newly-dreadlocked) friend Nina from San Francisco. She left SF around the same time as us, and has been travelling in Australia and Brunei before hitting the Land of Smiles. She showed up in Pai a day after we did, and we've been hanging out ever since. The three of us are going to Laos together on the 15th. We've bumped into a few other San Franciscans here as well. It's been nice seeing someone else from home, someone with whom you have some history. Since we've been in Thailand a bit longer, it's also a refreshing change to be the "old hand," rather than the clueless guy.
But it hasn't all been pleasant. I kicked off the week with the news that the technology page in the newspaper I write regularly for is going to be merged with the business coverage. Which means no more column for Mat. The money was never that spectacular, but it was a really nice gig to have, I liked my editor, it was a steady paycheck, and (most importantly) I got to write about things that interested me professionally on a regular basis. Plus it was something to come back to. Something that I could point at and say, "well, there's this, you see. I gotta do this."
Oh well.
And about that camera...
My Nikon has been my third eyeball since September 2001. I've taken tens of thousands of pictures with it. Thousands here in Asia alone. It's been published online and in print, and although I've used digital cameras before, this was my conversion experience.
It fit in my pocket, it had amazing color accuracy for a digital, prints looked as good as 35mm, and I knew the settings so well I could adjust it in the pitch black so as not to alert my quarry that I was about to snap.
It was pretty much my favorite possession in the world. That and my bicycle. It was almost an appendage. I've taken it everywhere I've gone, and I've not ever been sorry. I've taken pictures while cycling, rafting, skateboarding, and all sorts of other extreme situations. I've even taken pictures while crossing the street in Vietnam. I'm not afraid. But now the Nikon's no more. At least, not for now.
Last night, I set it up on the small ledge up near the ceiling, where I've been keeping it at night for the past week. Only this time, when I let go of it, it tumbled down and hit the floor. For good measure, it bounced. Now, when you watch your electronics drop onto a concrete floor covered with linoleum, that's one thing. There's hope. There's always hope. Yeah, there's fear, but there's hope too.
When you watch your electronics bounce on the concrete floor, hope kinda ducks out the door and mumbles something about "maybe showing up at Be-Bop later on after you've had a few large Beer Changs and, hey, catch you later G, I gotta cruise, I'm due at a 49ers game (although to be honest with you, buddy, I really got no business being there), but, hey, Be-Bop, you and me, pal, okay?"
Yeah. So. There's that. I picked up the camera, which had split open at the seam. Although I was able to get it closed again, it won't turn on, and theres really no getting it repaired here in Pai, nor will there be time to do so before I head off to Laos. That is, of course, assuming it can be repaired at all.
So now I've got a dilemma. Having just spent a small fortune on a 30 day Laos visa, and an even larger one in Chiang Mai during the holidays, what's the good budget traveller to do?
Well, if ever there was a MasterCard (TM) moment for me, this is it. The good budget traveller goes back to Chiang Mai on the 12th, rather than the 13th, heads to the same mall where he saw The Two Towers, finds and electronics store, hopes like hell they have Nikon digital cameras, and hopes even more that they take MasterCard, because I'm damn sure not going to be mastering the possibilities in Laos.
Watching your camera tumble to the floor and smash? Priceless, yo.
- l i n k -
