"It's not an adventure until someone has a near death experience."

Parting words of a fellow traveler just hours before I in shock find myself at an ICU wing at Chaing Mai Ram Hospital, praying next to a friend whose been nicked by a red truck as we crossed a busy intersection in Chiang Mai. The nick was enough to throw him to the ground and out of consciousness, blood pouring out of him from initially unknown sources. Time paused while the scene impressed indelibly in my mind, and I placed urgent calls to the higher powers that be to make this situation somehow better.

The situation unfolded tenderly and prayers were answered. The friend who was hit was accompanying me to the hospital to inquire about their denistry(!). Fortunately, if it had to happen, he was hit right outside the hospital. The ambulance did not have to travel far and his care began immediately. From the beginning of my time in Chaing Mai, I had been hearing about this wonderful hospital--Chaing Mai Ram--and about how people in the west come to Thailand for their exceptional denistry at very low cost and their other medical services. The rooms at the Chaing Mai Ram had been equated to luxurious Thai hotels. It was said the staff really listened to patients and were open to suggestions and treatment procedures. Soon and eerily enough all these hospital details I received leading up to the accident were all soberly verified. It almost felt like I was walking through a deja-vu episode because the hospital rooms had been described to me, I had visited the hospital earlier and made some premonitory comments, the whole scene was familiar , and I had just finished reading the book Waking The Tiger by Peter Levine about healing trauma.

My friend was shook up and definately in shock and traumatized, but he recovered quickly and the physical wounds, thankfully, were all superficial. He spent about 4 days in the hospital. As predicted, he received excellent care.

The whole experience, although unfortunate, if it had to happen, was healing. My brother had been hit and killed by a truck many years ago, and I was unable to help then. This accident provided me an opportunity to work through an old trauma in a new way. For the fella that was hit, he also had an old accident wound that never, until then, got a chance to be examined and healed.

While in Chaing Mai I visited this hospital regularly, it needed mention when discussing my "adventures" in Thailand. About denistry my other reason for going to Chaing Mai Ram, if you need any major dental work it is best to take a beauty filled vacation to Thailand, contact a dentist office maybe at Chiang Mai Ram, and know that you'll probably still have money left-over compared to what you would have spent in a dental office in the States. My dentist was truly lovely too. She spent a lot of time with me and her work was full of integrity. She graduated from Emory in the States and teaches denistry in Thailand. If you're in Chaing Mai, get in one of those infamous red trucks, for 15 baht, and go to the Chaing Mai Ram Hospital on the second floor, and make yourself an appointment for some dental work. I hope your stay in Thailand won't include the other hospital floors unless you need them, but if you do, know you're in good care.

Next, recouping at the ritzy and fabulous Tao Garden and a visit to the inspiring and healing Elephant Nature Park.