Downsize

Chiang Mai’s population is between 5-10% as large as Bangkok’s, depending if you count the whole metropolitan area. The tallest buildings are under 20 stories high, and those are rare. The skyline resembles Rapid City’s.

Not everything here is on a scale smaller than the capital’s. The city sits in a valley between mountains. These peaks are high enough to have much lower temperatures at the top than at the bottom. Looking down at Chiang Mai from Doi Suthep, the tallest one, you see many, many more temples than malls. They’re so plentiful that yesterday with a friend I toured nine wats in a single afternoon. All of them were within three city blocks of each other.

It’s lovely to have nature and relative serenity so close by. I can be at the trailhead for many of Doi Suthep’s hikes in just a few minutes by taxi (actually a roaming, shared pickup truck—private taxis are uncommon). Recently I went out for a run in the foothills and within 20 minutes of leaving my place had seen a dozen deer.

This northern sabbatical will be a nice chapter.