Lampang Around Town

Lampang Around Town

The morning started with breakfast at the guest house restaurant and lounge area.  It was very relaxing to sit and watch the river go by and the towns folk hurrying off on the road across the way.  

Breakfast Area - Note Bamboo Hammock Behind Me

Hammock Made of Bamboo

In the late morning, I headed off to the annual 'ceramics fair'.  Another adventure.  The taxi took me to a place called Makco that was a kind of supermarket. They said the fair was just up the road.

Lots of Plastic!

I walked up the road to a large building which turned out to be a school. The guard told me the fair was just up the road. He rode his bike to the corner as I walked to be sure I found it. 

Garden Center Along the Road

So I walked on up the road, across a dried drainage ditch, across the train tracks, over the road barricade to the next place.  Sure enough they had ceramics, but it wasn't the fair - that was just another 200 meters up the road.  

I trekked on.  Got there and the place was buzzing - two humongous tents full of stalls. Most of the ceramics were plain dinnerware although there were a few creative pieces. 

Couldn't Resist these Weird People Vases
Hope Mine Makes it Home Okay

The shops with clothing were more interesting and I ended up buying a very colorful jacket for myself.

Cast Sandstone
Images of Flowers and Butterfly
Make an Outline of a Woman's Face

Electric Motorcycle Marketing

There was also a booth with motorcycle based utility vehicles. They had an all electric motorcycle for 20,000 Baht. 

I think they said it would go 40. The speedometer redlined at 50 kph. That would be about 25 to 30 mph, so a bit on the slow side. Still for $666 it could be fun around town! No USA outlets though.

The whole 'fair' was in front of the Thai equivalent to Home Depot.  I couldn't resist.  It wasn't much different from Idaho - more teak, Thai style (squat) toilets, and minimal english signs. I bought some teak house ornaments with vague ideas of what to do with them.

Back to the guest house for a short rest (somewhat easier to return). After my rest I went on a photo journey around town. Highlights were taking daytime photos of the White Temple (my name), more motorcycles, and a Chinese temple.

White Temple by Day (front side)

Doors - White Temple

Detail of Doors

Asian Cowgirl on Sign
Promoting Horse Feed

Motorcycle Parking by Bicycle Sculptures

School Girl on Motorcycle

Honda 50 circa 1965 - Lookin Good!

Dragon Guardian Inside Chinese Temple

Goddess Figure in Chinese Temple

I visited a Chinese temple on my walk. It had a very different feel than the Buddhist temples I'd seen in Chiang Mai and in Lampang.

Dragons, drums, goddesses, and tall vases all full of color.  I especially enjoyed a porcelain vase with deep red glaze below the neck.

Vases in the Chinese Temple

After my walk I went to the more upscale Riverside Restaurant for dinner.  I feasted on Chinese mushrooms and cashews over rice.  The steamed rice they brought me was heart shaped - a nice touch. 

Steamed Rice Heart

Following dinner I did a little more walking, stopped by an outdoor bar with a singer and guitar player. The young woman doing the vocals was using an iPad, I think to follow the words. As I drank my beer, I noticed the girls at the next table were intently staring over my right shoulder and looked rather sad.  When I turned around, I saw they were watching a Thai soap opera on TV. There was some tragic "he left me - cheated on me - or otherwise did something wrong" scene going on. At first I felt a bit bad for the vocal group but then saw that the singer was keeping an eye on the soap opera as well.  Its an obsession. 

No photos from the bar, but I did find the bridal shops around town interesting. Most of the dresses were white and very western in style.  I did like one of the more traditional Thai silk dresses.

Traditional Thai Silk Wedding Dress