We took the train to Lampang (50 baht one way), about 2 hours south of Chiang Mai. It is hard to leave town if you do not have motorbikes or a car, and train or bus is our only option. With our friends Alex, Aiden (Australian) and Roland (French) we went on this little adventure. Lampang was extremely underwhelming but we were able to take a songtheaw (covered blue truck) to the “Unseen Temple” 1.5 hours outside of town. We then entered the Chae Son National Park and walked the steep steps up to the temple. The views from the temple’s perch were awesome. The temple itself was simple, but beautiful. Given the remoteness and difficulty of seeing this temple, there were very few people visiting which lent the area a feeling of sacredness that is missing when seeing temple’s with hundreds of other tourists.
The view from the temple is of the rolling Thung Thung Valley below. Thirteen years ago the white stupas were built on the cliffs by a dedicated Lampang monk and 46 workers, who spent two years carrying up materials on foot, daily, until its completion. The dedication to spirituality in this modern day of conveniences is inspiring.
The distinctive base sound of the gongs rang through out our exploration of this temple. I felt the deep sound in my body and it was calming and peaceful.
Bochner Family Adventure 
It is great to tag a long and watch as your journey continues. We are learning a lot and enjoy seeing you all. Missing you, of course! Happy New Year!
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What an inspiring place. Is it still used for worship? Great to see all of you exploring it.
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That’s a long way to go just to avoid hearing “Little Drummer Boy” in a shopping mall. But BLESSED indeed; I can’t imagine how different a world view you and your children will have for the rest of your lives. We are planning a loopy European trip, the Mandolin Orchestra is playing in Germany, and Seiza has friends in London–we’ll spend time in the UK and visit Ireland before going to Germany. So far, we have a one way ticket, with wide open plans (or none). It will be a great time, but I don’t think it will have the magical and spiritual qualities that you are giving Addie & Jack. Happy Elephant Days!
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Thank you for following our adventures with such vigor! I am excited about all your new plans. When do you move into the new house and sell the old? We might need a place to stay for August!
On Thu, Dec 28, 2017 at 8:29 AM, Bochner Family Adventure wrote:
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We are signing the final papers today, so we will own the house as of this weekend. But we won’t physically move in until the spring–need to have serious work done on foundation (87 years old, uneven settling) plus fix up kitchen and bath. Also some remodeling here in Milwaukie before we put it on the market. Probably at least 3 months or so. But we would definitely be there in August, big house plenty of room, great town for the kids–easy walk, bike, cool downtown.
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