Luck, luck, and more luck.

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Yesterday, I went to the very famous Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep on the top of a hill outside of Chiang Mai. I did a Buddhist fortune telling thing - shake a basket full of sticks and what ever stick falls out, the corresponding number on the stick to the sheets of papers is your fortune. I drew a 21.

"This number tell you about your good destiny, your life is likely to be happy and full of supporters. But many obstructions hindering your fortune. However, you should help yourself as much as possible. And make sure to think of and pay respects to your beneficial persons, it will make everything easy."

So, I need to kowtow to my benefactors. Piece of cake.

I also got a blessing from the monks. It was a bit difficult because you have to be on your knees when in the wat, and that hurt quite a bit. but it was worth it. I now have a bonafide string bracelet and holy water thrown on me by monks. It is supposed to be for luck.

Everything is lucky in Thailand: elephants, snakes, chickens, roosters, jackfruit trees, a bad event will be good luck in the future and so on. I put a spoonful of oil into a candle that corresponded to the weekday that my next birthday falls on. For luck. The Buddha for Monday is a Buddha of the body. Standing upright, tall, lean and with his right hand out. I put a coin in a jar for Monday. For luck. I gentely tapped a giant bell. For luck.

Apparently, bad luck comes in bad dreams.

As we left the wat, our guide told me the thais were talking about the poor injured foreinger: me. I found it amusing.

I shared a table at a street vendor with a woman, Liwen, from China - Shanghai. She told me all about traveling in China, gave me good suggestions and by the end of it, I have an email address and a place to stay if/WHEN I go there. And a classic route to Li Jiang in the Yun Nan provice, thru shangrila and then up to Tibet. Autumn is the best time to go to Li Jiang, but not the best for the rest of the trek up north. Too cold. She also talked about how the rural areas and open spaces of land are disappearing thanks to the suburbification of china: every town wants to be a giant city. She said there really aren't a lot of untouched areas anymore. She made me want to travel China NOW. Like right now. We talked about how once you start traveling, the list of places that you want to travel "next time" just grows and grows. I'm already thinking about next year. She also told me that Mao is not seen as a dictator in Chinese eyes. He was a great unifier who did what he had to do for the sake of China. Liwen is from his home town. We talked about history, salmon, San Francisco, books, traveling, india, heights, elephants and risks.

On my way home, there was a convoy. an exodus of planes in the night sky. Their lights are red and it looked like a string of red orange pearls in the sky. I counted 30 at one point, but they just kept coming and coming. At the same time, the silent sleeping cement colored dogs that blend into the gutters and sidewalks by day were upright, energetic and howling. And the moon isn't even full yet. It was bizarre.

Last night, I dreamed of walking along a high mountain road with huge polar bears and elephants at my side. The night sky was opened up into a huble telescope vision. Great celestial planetary orbs hung in the sky in a line and the milky way and stars were so bright and colorful. It was so magnificent and beautiful that I didn't want to wake up and when I did, I wished I could return to my dreams.

I'd say that was a good luck dream.

I could really get used to this good luck thing. It's a much nicer perspective.

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Comments

[Becca]

indeed
i'd say that dream was definately a good luck sign as well. sounds beautiful.