writer. traveller. life unraveller.
When I started living full time in Thailand’s northern urban darling, it was during COVID, and each soi I turned into held the same eerie hush. Shutters were closed over windows and “traffic” amounted to the echo of an odd car, motorbike, or tuktuk. I half expected to see tumbleweeds rolling down Thapae Road, to... Continue Reading →
In Chiang Mai, there’s a city wide clean up in effect at the moment. Well, it’s more of an eastern side of the city effort, since the old town and west of it were unaffected by the flood. Some homes were filled neck-deep with floodwaters and people are now dealing with the smelly, sodden mess... Continue Reading →
The Chiang Mai flood of 2024. That’s how we’ll refer to it years from now. It’s making history. And it’s also presenting a bizarre juxtaposition to which I have a good view from where I live. The Ping River broke its banks not once but twice in the past 10 days, flooding streets, homes, markets,... Continue Reading →
There are few things in the world that don’t bring me joy these days. Living in Chiang Mai has that effect on me. But one of the main givers recently is tiny, potted plants. Tiny, potted, hanging-by-beaded-strings plants, even. One or two will do, though every Sunday evening I find myself strolling Chiang Mai’s Sunday... Continue Reading →
Listen instead 😉 I have about 10 books on the go at the moment. Passing by my favourite book shop in Chiang Mai, I stop in “just to look” and admire the heavenly stacks of all-the-answers-to-my-questions, the panacea to my spiritual angst, the antidote to my existential restlessness. (I know I’m not the only one).... Continue Reading →
the sound of devotion released to city streets knitted into urban life cast out into soupy air that hangs like a blanket on a line and holds a golden hum aum mani padme hum aum mani padme hum deep, monotonous, real enough to almost stroke with my fingertips but not quite held in by mountains... Continue Reading →
There are few things I love as much as I love riding my bike. When I was 8 years old, I’d spend whole summer days riding my bike, making up destinations just to have an excuse to push pedal my way down empty roads spotted with afternoon sun and the promise of something magical. The... Continue Reading →
I have a favourite breakfast spot in Chiang Mai. As we’ve been living out of a kitchenless hotel/guesthouse for the past few months, I’ve been forced to obtain sustenance in restaurants in lieu of making my own meals. Hard life, right? I actually inwardly complained about it at first, until I realized how nice it... Continue Reading →
A long time ago, in what seems like another life, I sat at a temple in Chiang Mai, Thailand chatting with a young monk. The experience was part of an initiative called “Monk Chat”, offered at several Buddhist temples around Thailand’s northern urban darling. The city’s novice monks––the young, and effectively in-training monks––sit with interested... Continue Reading →
Have you ever noticed that as you’re about to leave a place, really good things happen? As I near the end of my stay in Chiang Mai again, and feeling ready for a change of scenery, I begin to notice, once again, everything awesome about this place. I LOVE Chiang Mai. I have since the... Continue Reading →
colleen thornton 