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Published: January 31st 2007
Today we left Bangkok for trip around Thailand, first stop: Chiang Mai, in the north. We visited Chiang Mai on our last trip to Thailand 2 years ago and really enjoyed it. On that trip, we took a bus from there up to Chiang Rai (even further north) which was wonderful. This time around we only had a day to spend in Chiang Mai though, so we made the most of it.
J and CM met at the bagel shop where J worked in the summer of 1992. The owners of the shop have two children, a son who was in elementary school at that time and a daughter who was about 3 years old. Their daughter is now a high school senior living in Chiang Mai as an exchange student, so we met up with her for dinner. It was lovely to see her again and to learn about her adventures in Thailand! She's a expert at getting around town in tuk-tuks, finding the best coffee in the city, and knowing that 20 baht (50 cents US) is too much to pay for a plate of phad thai cooked on the street.
Chiang Mai has a fabulous night
market that runs until the wee hours. You can wander through the stands for blocks and blocks and buy just about anything. In fact, J came up with a great idea based on this. On our next trip to Thailand, we will fly directly to Chiang Mai with NO LUGGAGE. At the night market, we will purchase a huge travel backpack, all types of clothing, sandals, bathing suits, CDs, sunscreen, jewelry, watches, sunglasses....everything we'd need for the entire trip!! Everything is relatively inexpensive and bargaining is expected. Two years ago J met a local, young artist at the market and purchased a Buddha painting that now sits on our mantle. We found the artist at the night market again and got a CD of his works so that we can buy another and have it shipped home. J was tickled to find his message to the artist from 2 years ago (almost to the day!) on the wall of the shop.
We stayed a terrific guesthouse called the
Red Hibiscus in Chiang Mai. The hostess there was incredibly friendly and most helpful in planning activities. This was probably the cheapest accommodation of our entire trip at $22 US per night
with AC and ensuite; breakfast was just $3 more.
We hired a driver for the day who took us all over for a very reasonable price. Our first stop was the Maesa Elephant Camp. We went for an hour long elephant ride through the jungle, the views of the surrounding valley were amazing. Afterwards we watched the famous elephant show and were blown away by the talent of these animals! They played soccer, painted masterpieces, and lifted massive logs. Afterwards we were able to feed them some sugarcane and play with them a bit - check out the photos of them taking our hats off. Our next stop was the orchid and butterfly farm, a feast for the eyes. J sure wishes he could grow orchids outdoors at home in Seattle.
That evening we went for a private cruise up the Ping River at sunset. We stopped at an herbfarm where we were served fresh fruit and juices and learned about the herbs used in Thai cooking. On the way back, the bugs (moths) on the river were unreal; we literally had to hunker down on the boat facing backwards with eyes and mouth closed at some points.
By the time we got back to town, the bugs had cleared out and we were able to enjoy the lights. We finished off the day with dinner alfresco at one of the many restaurants along the riverfront and a massage near the night market.
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