Bangkok to Chiang Mai...The beginning.

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A myriad of aromas dance around me as we walk down the road. Little sticks of mystery meats sizzle on tiny BBQs beside vanilla waffles filled with hotdogs. A waft of raw sewage makes me quicken my step past the begger with one leg.
The air is hot and the taste of Bangkok is intense.
The underground and sky train are easy to travel and have us feeling pretty damned proud of our navigational skills. We head to Hua Lumphong station early in the morning to book sleeper train tickets to Chiang Mai the following night. Upon leaving the station the tuk tuk drivers pounce like cats and we scurry off into the distance on foot under that hot sun. Walking for blocks past graveyards of train parts, old batteries, metal workers and food markets. We retreat into the air conditioned bliss of MBK, an 8 floor shopping centre with over 2000 shops. Lost in the maze, we find a some bargains.
Our feet ache from too much walking. We consider our choice of footwear and decide, next time we'll take the tuk tuk.

We board the sleeper train to Chiang Mai, our upper berths have no windows and as we rattle into the darkness I feel a strange, twisting queeze in my tummy. Motion sickness or the result of a random Bangkok street vendor, I'm still not sure.
By morning the air is cooler and with the beds now folded away, we see the red sun rise over the mountains. Broccoli and leafy greens grow in the spaces between the tracks. Children wave and giggle as we pass.

Our guesthouse in Chiang Mai is a little out of town and after catching a tuk-tuk into the old city we once again get lost and walk for hours and hours. About half of that was spent looking for a loo, the other half looking for somewhere to eat, neither of which were that spectacular once found.

We spend the evening eating the most delicious and cheapest vegetarian meals ever, walk into the street and are greeted by the ever so present "Hello.....Tuk Tuk!" Which is said more as a statement than a question.....as if to imply that I actually am a tuk tuk.

Tomorrow.......Trekking!

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Photos

Craig buying a hotdog in vanilla waffle tube
Strange combination!

Fish anyone?
A stick filled with fish in plastic bags, out the front of a school at knock off time.

Overnight to Chiang Mai
Upper sleeping berth.

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Morning on the train before arriving at Chiang Mai.