Chiang Mai, and Thailand itself, seems to be filled with vast and wondrous creatures of all sorts. The problem is, I don't like creatures, and neither does Joe. We don't handle them well.
Our first night in Chiang Mai, we stayed at a guesthouse called Eagle House. Our room was a little run-down with only a fan but for $8 a night we couldn't complain too much. The place itself was located right in the heart of the city, close to the old-town (inside the moat) and the "downtown", so it was a great starting off point to explore from.
After our first day's adventures we were exhausted as we made our way back down the twisting alleys and lanes of Chiang Mai. Night had fallen on the city and the sound of insects buzzing slowly builds into a roaring symphony. It's not so bad from the comfort of your own (sealed up) room, but walking around is a bit like walking through a war zone, any kind of creature could drop on you without notice and completely ruin your life.
Joe and I had found a great Tex-Mex place (in Thailand, no doubt) earlier that night and I ate an incredible and much-needed cheese quesadilla. The only downside to our perfect meal was when I noticed a cockroach crawling on a chair behind Joe, and so I sat, eyes wide, ready to bite into the aforementioned perfection, when I had to place it down, and attempting calm, relay the information to Joe. We were both on edge at this point, eyes darting around us, and suddenly said roach made a run for it, scuttling under our table, under my chair, at which point I may or may not have caused a *tiny* scene. I have a serious cockroach problem (I know that nobody likes them), but something inside me shuts down completely in the presence of roaches and other crawlers of its magnitude. So needless to say, we were (I was) a bit shaken up after dinner, heading back to Eagle House, through alleys and lanes, roar of insects, etc.
The room was no prize, but we knew if we just stuck it out for the night, we would be rewarded by a weekend at a really nice bed and breakfast we had previously booked. This turned out to be the longest night of my life. I suppose we both drifted off somewhere around nine o'clock, maybe, and at around midnight I woke up with stomach cramps. Miserable, and fumbling through the dark, I found the
lightswitch and grabbed the ibuprofen. Unfortunately, at this point we had no water with which to take the ibuprofen, but this would turn out to be the least of my worries. I made my way into the bathroom, shut and latched the door, still groggy, and when I turned...there...it...was...A huge cockroach! Crawling all over my toiletries!! I would have to burn them!! But first, I had to escape, clanging the doors helplessly until I got them unlatched and I was back out in the room. I screamed, waking up Joe, and I tried quick to think of a plan. Rather than go back in and face the roach, I devised a solution of avoidance, figuring out a way to keep the bathroom door shut all night (it opened inward with just a latch). As I pulled the door shut, wincing, Joe grabbed the materials. We ended up tying a phone charger to the handle of the bathroom door and the top of my backpack, and then carefully positioned the pack so that it leaned away from the door, just enough weight to keep the door shut. Then we proceeded to stuff the cracks of the door with pamphlets and brochures.
"
Yes, tired and weary, we trapped him in rather than considering any other options, and soon we were drifting back to sleep. Well, Joe was. I refused to turn off the lights, and sat up against the wall, extrasensitive to any sensations or sounds. I was exhausted, with cramps, and now with the burden of knowing what was creeping around nearby. I did fall asleep and woke up, hopng , praying it was morning when in fact it was only 1am. This happened several times throughout the night and I spent most of it lying stiffly on my side, horrified, as the insects roared outside. Around 3am, I sat up again (awakened from a cockroach dream) and saw something scurry across the wall. A LIZARD. Yes. A lizard. Albeit a tiny one. It was a lizard and that was enough for me. Around 4.45 we tired to escape the room, walk around outside a bit, but the minute we stepped outside it was pouring, so we had to head back in, to our creature's paradise. I know, it probably doesn't sound so bad, and we need to toughen up. And who knows, maybe in a year we'll be catching roaches and frying 'em up for dinner. But it was our first night. And luckily, the lack of sleep and general nightmare of the night previous all disappeared when we arrived across town, at Baan Orapin...
