Week 16

When they first met none of them two could predict the future. They found each other by pure chance, at a party, and then they found themselves fatefully, in a garden.

From the very beginning they felt something, something new and exciting for each other - something like an expectation and a premonition. "I want to know you better," their eyes cried out, and that command none of them could disobey.

It's been years since then and they are still together. In the same city, at the very same house, and in parks and restaurants, pubs and town squares; enjoying their everlasting love's eternal words and some marvelous silences.

Dear You

I’ve been here in Chiang Mai for more than two months already and time just seems to have flown by. I’m glad however that I do have a lot of it to spend; more than ever before. And, truth be told, I do spend it in a constructive way: reading and writing a lot, and making plans for the future, or rather paving the way for it. I’ve already written a short story collection and I’m now half way through the re-writing of my first novel. In fact I’m so much into writing “mode” right now that I just had to Make myself take a break. Anyway, if everything goes fine I hope to finish it by the end of the month and then start working on a new one; my first crime novel. I’ve been thinking about it for quite some time, but I guess up till now I’ve never felt ready to dive into the deep waters of crime fiction. Time can only tell if I can make it.
Apart from the above, life seems to be as simple as ever; taking a few walks, having a few drinks, meeting with friends etc. Nothing to get really upset or excited about I guess. I just wish that it rained more though. Unless I’m mistaken this is the most dry rainy season of the past decades. Let’s just hope that things will get better as it draws to its end.
And I guess that just about wraps it up for today.
Cheers.

p.s. I’m now reading two completely different books at the same time: “The Buddha Tree” by Fumio Niwa and “An Unkindness of Ravens” by Ruth Rendell.

5th of August 2009

Dear You,
Here I am in Chiang Mai, Thailand, once again. And this time I will stay for long; maybe for over a year. Nothing much has changed since the last time I was here. I mean the price of beer has gone up but apart from that everything seems to remain the same. New bars and restaurants seem to open and close all the time, the weather is cloudy 24/7, and the heavy monsoon rains are at our doorstep.
What do I intend to do this time around? Well, what I usually do; read and write a lot. But now, that the time is not pressing, I will also try and do a couple of new things; some volunteer work maybe, a bit of teaching, some different kind of socializing. I have many ideas running through my head but I’m in no hurry to make things happen. I’ll just leave time and life follow their own course – do it the Buddhist way – and whatever will be will be.

Cheers from the land of smiles,

Lakis

Dear You 10

This is a very sad but yet happy man that writes to you today from Chiang Mai. Sad, because tomorrow morning I’ll be leaving my beloved city for Cyprus; happy, because I just found out that my last novel will probably come out in Greece by the end of the year, by a big time Greek publisher.
Will I miss Chiang Mai? Well, I cannot say for certain. The last time I was here I said I would return never again, but yet a hundred days later I was on my way back; and that is that. What I usually say that I like about this city is the slow pace of life. The truth is though, that I follow exactly the same pace back home. In the end, maybe I just need to move from the one place to the other, every now and then, to find inspiration and make the changes that I often need in my life.
Did I get here what I came for? I think I did. I wish I got or rather did more though; meaning I wish I wrote more. But, nevertheless, writing 55 thousand words in less than two months is not so bad I’d dare say; and reading 19 books is not bad either.
Talking on a more personal level I did meet a few very interesting and quite inspirational people here. No! Not Thai ladies. That’s not why I come here. I do have some female Thai friends I go out with and have fun every now and then though. The main problem that an “eccentric” so-called writer has to face when hanging out with Thai ladies is that when you tell them that you need some time for yourself, they really don’t seem to understand what you are talking about. I do agree with them on one thing though: “Thinking too much is bad for you!” But yet again, how can you stop your self from thinking?
Anyway, it’s time to move on to another subject, and this is quite important. The quiet nights at the pub came to an end as the EURO 2008 cup matches began. The funny thing is that most of the people watching the games, cheering, getting drunk and aggressive are English, whose team did not qualify!
Oh well, I think I’ll leave things at that. If all goes right and I don’t get stuck in Bangkok or Bahrain I shall write to you again on Friday from Nicosia.
Until then, take care and read well.

p.s. I’ve got over my flu
p.s.s I’ve finished reading Michael Connelly’s “Blood Work” and started with the “Void Moon”. Jeffery Deaver with “The Sleeping Doll” will follow.

Dear You VIII

It looks like that for the first time in years I came to know what “A writer’s block” is all about. I haven’t been able to write anything for a few days now, but I can’t really say that it bothers me. The thing is that I’ve probably “burned” myself up. What do I mean by that? Well, for the past eleven months I’ve been writing and rewriting almost non-stop, producing: a novel and a half, two novellas and two short story collections. All in all I’ve written well over two hundred thousand words, which in my mind’s eye is quite astonishing.
So, since I cannot write, what do I do? Nothing much really. I read a lot (I’ve read Michael Connelly’s “Echo Park” in just one day and started with “Blood Work”), I try to enjoy a bit of free reign walking around and drinking a bit, I “play” at my facebook and try to create a decent page at Red Room, and, of course, I go through the English translations of my stories yet again.
As you can see nothing exciting goes on in my life right now, and somehow I like things just the way they are.
Probably my “writer’s block” will not leave me by the time I go back to Cyprus, but hopefully I will be able to finish the book I’m working on by the end of June.
Anyway, that is all for now.
Keep reading and drinking!

Dear You VII

As my days in Chiang Mai are fast coming to the end I’ve started thinking that I should extend my stay here for at least two more weeks. I haven’t made up my mind yet though. The thing is that while here I have my life completely under control and can work without much trouble towards my goals; something I really can’t do back home.
I’ve just finished writing the first part of my new novel -which will count forty to fifty thousand words- and hopefully by tomorrow I’ll start with the second. The story keeps changing direction every now and then, the “tragic” touches are increasing by the page, but the end is well written into my mind and probably nothing will change it. The only thing I can say for the time being is that it’s not going to be a happy end.
As for my readings, well, nothing really changed since the last time I wrote to you, since Michael Connelly is still the writer who keeps me company. I’ve just finished with one of his “Harry Bosch” novels called “Lost Light” and started “Echo Park”.
Weather-wise it’s been brilliant for the last five days; all in all maybe we got maybe an hour’s worth of rain. However the low season is low as ever and only really tasteless places like Spicy and Hot Shots seem to get some serious business these days.
Ok, that wraps it up for today.
Have a nice day from the land of smiles and keep reading.

Chok Tee

p.s. As time goes by I seem to miss more and more my classic readings: Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Oscar Wilde, Kazantzakis and so on. Well, maybe I should to something about it when I get back to Cyprus

Dear You VI

Greetings from Chiang Mai. We’ve finally had a few days without rain and that was… refreshing!
Since the last time I wrote to you I’ve been very busy reading, writing and reworking my short stories. The last books that I’ve read were “The Closers” and “City of Bones” by Michael Connelly, and I’ve just started with “Chasing the Dime” by the same author. Waiting on the list still are “The Chronicles of Narnia” by C.S. Lewis, “Of Human Bondage” by Somerset Maugham and a couple of real crime books on serial killers. However, I’m afraid that these will have to wait until I get back to Cyprus.
As for my writing, I’ve been working on a new novel in Greek titled: “Two voices and a silence”, and so far so good. I’m writing at a pace of 1200 words a day, which is nor fast nor slow for me. The story is shaping a bit different than I expected, but there’s no real surprise there; it always does. I’ll just allow the flow of the text lead me where it will.
Thinking back I feel like my time in Chiang Mai has really flown by. In just 19 days I’ll be on my way home, but I’m not quite sure if I want to go yet. I just love the relaxed way of life and the serenity of people here so much, that I feel reluctant about returning to the west. Oh well, whatever will be, will be.
Have a nice weekend!

p.s. I’m listening to Nkosi Sikelel i Afrika at a cafeteria right here in Chiang Mai. Now, that’s something I’ll never forget; just like I’ll never forget listening to the Buena Vista Social Club at a restaurant in Luang Nam Tha, Laos.

Dear You V

We finally caught a glimpse of the sun today. And by today I mean just for an hour this afternoon, since before and after we had a few short spells of showers or fon tok, if you prefer it in Thai.
The last few days have not been too busy for me, since after finishing with the rewriting of my short story collection I needed some time to “chill out” and gather my thoughts, so I did little more than reading. I’ve just finished David Baldacci’s “Split Second” and started Michael Connelly’s “The Closers”. They are both exciting reads as usual.
Since yesterday afternoon I’m back on (my writing) truck. I’ve started writing yet another novella in Greek, which is all about the break up of a couple and the tragic consequences in their lives. It’s supposed to be a quite simple and plain story about people and emotions, but I intend to finish it with a “Bang” that will blow the whole narration apart. I’ll tell you more when the time comes.
As you can understand I’m in a good mood, but I’m a bit upset as well, because the story I’m writing now came out of the blue and so I didn’t quite get the chance to start working on the translation of one of my previous novels in English. Oh well, as they (don’t) say: “second things first”.
And that wraps it up for today.
Cheers from the rainy city of Chiang Mai

Dear You IV

This is just a short note to let you know that i've just finished the first of the many things that i've set out to do since coming to Chiang Mai; that is: rewriting a collection of my old short stories (33 in total). I can say that i feel quite happy about that, but i really do not know what to do next. I still have a lot of rewriting waiting for me, as well as research for a screenplay, and last but not least lots of translations and a new novel that's right now "cooking" in my head. Oh, well, i guess time will show me the way, as it always does.
As for life here, we do get our portion of heavy rainfall, but not as heavy as one would expect. The city is still peaceful and quiet and almost with no tourists.
That's all for today.

Dear You III

Life in Chiang Mai goes on peacefully as ever; however now people are openly complaining about the lack of tourists. If the number of tourists visiting the city, remains as low for one more year, lots of establishments will go out of business. But, besides that, and strangely enough, more and more new restaurants and guest houses seem to spring up day after day.
As for me personally, well, I spend my time rewriting my old Greek short stories and taking some mental notes for future works. I’m currently reading a couple of my old novels and try to figure out a way of translating them into English without losing much of their “meaning”.
Talking about writing, the last ten and a half months have been quite hectic for yours truly, since during the given time period I’ve written or rewritten a big novel, a couple of novellas and two collections of short stories – all in Greek I’m afraid. The only problem for the time being is that I have no publisher, but that’s ok, I’ll get over it.
I’ve just started reading David Baldacci’s The Christmas Train, while before that I took a dive into Michael Connelly’s A Darkness More Than Night.
I spend my nights eating out, mostly Thai food at P.M. Restaurant at Loi Kroh Soi 3, and playing pool and drinking beer at John’s Place, right here in Moon Muang Road.
And that wraps it up for today. If anything new and exciting comes up I’ll let you know.
Drink well and be merry, my friends.

No floods in Chiang Mai

It looks like that there'll be no floods in Chiang Mai or, as it is, the north of Thailand, after the disastrous cyclone that hit Myanmar recently.

The government has issued a warning but according to the latest news, so far there's no danger in sight.

However, the cyclone did take its toll from a lot of people living here in the city, who have families back in Myanmar, as they've lost relatives in the floods and storms. Some of them are still in the dark as far as the wereabouts of their beloved are concerned, since they can't reach them by phone or in any other way.

Dear You II

Dear You,
It looks like the rainy season has already arrived here in the north of Thailand. For more than a week we daily get at least one rain shower in Chiang Mai, while the skies are cloudy all the time. However, luckily, we did see a bit of the sun today, but it is a bit windy. If the wind grows any stronger that means that we’ll have rain by tonight.
As for the way of life here, it’s peaceful as ever; more peaceful than ever rather, since the tourist industry, at least in Chiang Mai, has taken a plunge. You don’t see too many “young and restless” people going around anymore, and a number of businesses are facing financial problems. More and more “For Rent” or “For Sale” signs appear by the day.
Of course the Greek restaurant, Zorba’s, managed to go out of business, even before the “crisis” started. “No good food and very expensive” is what people used to say about it. The closing down of that place is such a shame, since many other restaurants that specialize in foreign cuisine, have been doing well over the years.
Talking of food, I can say without any hesitation, that Chiang Mai is a “hungry man’s” paradise. There’s a huge number of Thai or foreign restaurants and fast food franchises here. For some, of course, the best option is to grab a plate of delicious freshly cooked meal at one of the many road food stalls. If you come to this city, you’ll never miss “mama’s cooking”, that’s for sure!
Well, I’m afraid I’ll have to sign off for now, since I’ve still got some work to (yep, boring stuff, like writing and translating), but I promise to write again as soon as possible.
Until then,
Be well and keep smiling

Dear You

Since I don’t seem to be able to write a proper post in this blog, I’ve decided to send you a letter. And it goes like this:

Here I am writing to you from my favourite city, Chiang Mai in Thailand.
Chiang Mai has been the city of my heart for quite some time now. It’s not that there’s something very special about it, it’s just that I really really like it. I like its walls and fountains and canals; I like its lovely temples and amazing chedis; and I simply love its huge Mae Ping River, its bookshops and its people.
Chiang Mai is one of those cities that you either love or hate. If you hate Bangkok you will love Chiang Mai. That’s exactly how it works. The latter is what I like to describe as a “Human City”. The way of life is quite easy going; there are hardly any people trying to lure you into buying things or services; the nightlife is great. And it’s an extremely safe place, as well.
Over the years I’ve met a score of people who came here for a weekend and ended up staying for the rest of their lives.
Chiang Mai is not just a city for crazy young tourists who just want to get drunk and have fun. It’s a city for one and for all; for crazy and drunk, sober and wise. You’d be surprised to see how many bookshops there are at its historic centre, around Tha Phae Gate square.
It is also a very cheap place to live at. You can get a room for as little as a hundred dollars a month, while the food is excellent and can be bought for dimes.
To wrap it all up in a few words: Chiang Mai is a great place to retire, but also an amazing city where you can easily spend your days UNTIL you retire.

Sincerely yours,

Lakis

p.s. Just to put things straight: I am not Thai, and I do not live or own a business in Chiang Mai. I’m from Cyprus, but I really like returning here now and again, to relax and “refuel” my mind’s batteries. In the photo: A view of the Sunday Market. Cheers!

New Year's Day in Chiang Mai

Happy New Year from Chiang Mai, Thailand.

I've arrived here just in time to enjoy some fierce water fights and watch a few parades.

If everything goes well i will tell you all about it in my next posts.

p.s. the picture was taken yesterday afternoon

Next stop, Chiang Mai

I will "see you" on Monday