Here be dragons

I'm exhausted!  One of my best friends from waaaay back had a few days off in the middle of a business trip to visit, and the last few days have been a whirlwind tour of every possible fun thing to do in Chiang Mai.  Belynda and I hit the Chinatown shopping area, back sois full of scarves and bags and embroidery, the Sunday Walking Street Market, ate our way through the city (street food and restaurants), massage and manicures, fruit shakes and iced teas, temples, more markets, walking all over the place, and the grand finale of a fun-and-scary bus ride at rush hour.  She is on her way to the next leg of her trip, and I'm definitely going to bed early tonight. 

I'm feeling rather pleased with my rudimentary Thai language.  I might sound like a two-year-old with a bad accent, but I can negotiate market prices, talk to tuk-tuk drivers (and arrive in the right place) and ask where a bathroom can be found.  Not that I always understand the answers, however...

But now it's back to work, I have something like three t-shirt designs to work on that are slowly not going anywhere.  But they will look fresher in the morning.

Here's my favorite photo from the last week, dragon feet at Wat Buppharam, just outside the east gate of the city.