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Landed at Bangkok airport and took a taxi speeding down the 'Gran Turismo' style freeways into the neon-lit city centre, staying at the friendly Baan Boran guest house (with free fruit and iced tea !). Next day headed to the impressive Grand Palace, every surface of its temples and palaces either carved or gold-gilded, and with carefully pruned topiary decorating the gardens. A brief stop for a magnum ice cream provided temporary respite from the heat, before I caught a boat down the polluted river with a mixture of run-down shacks, ornate temples and upmarket hotels lining the banks.
A stroll through Chinatown revealed an eclectic mix of stalls and shops (selling everything from toys to guns to lawnmowers), and led back to Wat Pho, home of a giant reclining Buddha (the biggest in Thailand). Later enjoyed some fine Thai food with a tasty crab curry at the Krua Apsorn canteen-style restaurant. The following day walked to the hilltop Golden Mount temple, climbing through steamy gardens to the top of the pagoda for expansive city views, before catching the slow train to Chiang Mai, slowly clunking north through the night (with little sleep, seat-belted in to the top bunk...)
Wat Phra Kaew 2
Contains special emerald mini BuddhaReaching Chiang Mai chilled out at another welcoming guest house (Sri Pat), swimming in its small pool, before exploring the old-walled city and heading out to the night-safari; the highlight a very close encounter with giraffes as they stooped to feed from the mini-train carriages. Joined a mountain-bike tour from the top of nearby Doi Suthep mountain, having fun bouncing down narrow single-tracks through the forest, and stopping to pick refreshing lychees from abandoned orchards. Another day trip encompassed a ride on a grumpy elephant (him and his greedy friend extorting all my bananas!), a trek through the jungle to swim at a waterfall, and a tranquil but slightly dull bamboo raft down a river.
Took a minibus to Chiang Khong, briefly visiting the glistening 'White Wat' outside Chiang Rai before crossing the border over the Mekong into Laos (paying the visa plus 1$ overtime as staff working past 4pm !), and then caught a night-bus, claustrophobically crowded into 1/2 bed seats over 2 levels as the coach crawled around the mountain roads to Luang Prabang....
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Blanka
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YUM!
So lucky - love dragon fruit!!! So fun!