Hanging out at ‘Papa Rock’ the other night, and I hear about a new blues and jazz venue that’s just started up, here in Chiang Mai.
Sunday night I head down to check it out. It’s open mic night, and I’m keen to have a jam.
‘Roadhouse‘ is a comfortable, retro styled joint with warm, low lighting and a friendly barman. I see lots of familiar faces from jam nights at ‘Boy Blues‘. The house band kicks off the evening with some slick prog rock, and then segues into blues and R&B standards. I jump up on stage, first chance I get, and it’s great fun. Everyone is relaxed, and happy to jam out.
The place is packed by ten o’clock, and I get quite a sweat on, blasting out riffs on the harmonicas.
Orawun comes out to have a drink with me.
I met Orawun through Facebook when I was looking for a scooter to rent on the ‘Chiang Mai Classifieds‘ group. She messaged me and offered a really good rental rate.
We met up at the ‘Northgate Jazz Co-op‘ a couple of nights later, so I could check out the scooter. I thought to myself: “she likes jazz, she must be a good person”.
I was right. The scooter is awesome, and now I have a new friend in Chiang Mai, too.
BTW: lots of places in the world have community groups on Facebook. Chiang Mai has lots of them! They can be really useful for finding social scenes, accommodation, yoga classes and all sorts of stuff. This is another really good one for Chiang Mai Nomads. Try a search on Facebook for the city you’re in right now. You’ll find groups, public events, and lots more.
(Above: that giant white dude blasting out riffs at ‘Roadhouse’ open mic night. Thanks for the pic Orawun!)
(Below: Orawun and me.)
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If I needed any further confirmation that I had hired my scooter from the right person, I got it last weekend.
I got invited to Orawun’s barbecue. So delicious. The most tender pork ribs I’ve ever eaten, and dipping sauces to die for.
Orawun has cute dogs too, so it was a very lovely evening all round. The farangs told stories, some of us played table tennis, and Orawun barbecued enough meat to feed us all three times over.
I seem to eat too much every day when I’m in Thailand, but… what can I do? Everyone in this country cooks amazing food!
>> Want to read some stories about my experiences in Chiang Mai?
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