Wat Suan Dok

Yesterday morning I went to Wat Suan Dok on Suthep Road. Vivid white clouds shifted in the striking blue sky as I walked past the tombs of ancient royalty of the Lanna Kingdom.

An old monk in an orange robe led me into the temple. We selected two yellow candles wrapped with a paper scrawled with a prayer in Thai.

The monk asked me where I was from (his assumption was Germany) and then asked for the names of my parents and my family. He inscribed my family name on the candles in the ancient Lanna language.

The sky has been bright blue during most days the month of August this year, with giant pure white clouds.

But out of nowhere, it usually starts to pour rain on most days - tropical rain for about 10 to 15 minutes - which stops as abruptly as it begins.

The rain also localizes to certain areas - for example, the rain may have stopped near Nimmanhaemin while it's still pouring in the old city.

The electrical systems of Chiang Mai have been having a lot of problems these days. After a brief downpour of rain, the traffic lights at major intersections often go out. Occasionally a policeman jumps into the intersection to restore some semblance of order, blaring a whistle and giving directions by hand while the traffic backs up - but other times it's complete chaos, especially when the power goes out on the traffic lights at busy junctions like the intersection of Suthep and Canal Road.

This month was the birthday of the Queen - a major Thai national holiday. Her birthday is associated with the color blue, so there are still blue flags flying high next to most Thai national flags. The week of her birthday Huay Kaew street was draped with a canopy of cascading lights, which was very beautiful while cruising by on my motorbike.