Cooking, Trekking.... Chaing Mai

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For my last week in Thailand I have ventured North to the lovely city of Chiang Mai. This northern city has a very different feel to it than any other place I have been to in Thailand. There is a blend of Bangkoks modernism, with an oldtown feel. There are the comforts of city life and just hours away you will find yourself in remote hills trekking amongst hill tribes. The cuisine has some unique characteristics and Chiang Mai is a fabulous place to learn some culinary skills. So for my last week in Thailand I'm going to indulge in all of the above. I'm taking a cooking class, I'm going trekking to visit some hill tribes, and I'm going to take in the delights of this city, which include but are not limited to, a Night Bazaar, Temples, the old city, and great food. Let's Go.....

Think of how you would like to arrive in a city for the first time. That vision is probably quite different than the reality of my arrivals in most cities I have been through on this trip. On the average I am showing up in a new city after a very long bus ride that has been anything but comfortable. Somewhere during the bus journey the driver gets the great idea to play really loud music, Thai music, on the speakers. It is not uncommon for this to happen at 1 or 2 in the morning on an overnight journey. Sometimes there is a movie playing which can help to pass two hours of the 10 hour journey. Other times you might get a seat open next to you so you can have a little room to breath. On a rare occasion the air conditioning works and you don't find yourself drenched in sweat at the final destination. But the overwhelming liklihood is that you are going to arrive in your new destination, probably in the early hours of the morning after an overnight journey, smelling of sweat, stiff from lack of space and sleep, and with the latest Thia pop song playing over and over in your head.

This was the case with my bus journey to Chiang Mai. You do get used to it. In fact I plan to take overnight buses when I can because I save on one nights accomodation, I usally fall asleep at some point, when I get to my destination I can take a nap and be ready by mid-day, and when I travel at night I don't feel like I'm wasting a day. You have to be prepared for the arrival however. This is always the same. When you get to a new town/city there is a central bus terminal that you get dropped at. More often than not this is not in a location that is anywhere near a guesthouse you would like to stay at. There will be plenty of guys in tuk-tuks or similar type transport there waiting to pick you up and take you in to town. As part of the fare you booked from the last city they will drop you off in town for free. But they are definately going to take you to the guesthouse of their choice. One that will give them a commision when you get there and book a room. This guesthouse may not be anywhere near where you want to stay either. There are a number of variables that you need to consider. The best you can do is just be prepared for all of them, keep your radar up for scams, and look around for genuine faces and honest smiles, they are the best to follow.

The Guesthouse I got shuttled to when I arrived in Chiang Mai was called Nice Place 2. There is a Nice Place 1 and 3, but 2 was unique in that it had a pool. If I booked a trek with these guys they were going to put me up in their guesthouse for free. This is precisely what I did. I knew I was going to trek while I was in Chiang Mai and the thought of not paying for a room was great. Plus the rooms were nice with big beds, my own bathroom, and the pool just outside. The location also happened to be great. Chiang Mai has an old town that is surrounded by a giant moat. Everything within is walking distance and is very safe. I was smack in the middle of it all. It would take me several days to figure this out and orientate myself to the maze of streets, but in the end I was happy with my decision to give Nice Place 2 my business. The early morning arrival scam, when they take you to a guesthouse at 5 in the morning when you feel sick with exhaustion, is not always the worst option. In my case I was happy with the result.

The trick to these overnight bus rides is that when you arrive at a destination, and the adrenaline kicks in, you have to get yourself sorted as soon as possible. Don't waste time. Be decisive. If a place looks like it will be a good stay then get a room and be done with it. But don't wander around in the haze of last nights long journey. When you have secured a room and the adrenaline fades away, take the nap that you need and don't try to be a hero and run out to explore just yet. After the nap, get cleaned up and then you can take on the city and your next adventure. I did this like a pro on my arrival to Chiang Mai. I went out to explore the city for a few hours. It was just long enough to decide that exploring a new city in Southeast Asia in the middle of the day, when the sun is hottest, sucks big time. I was not enjoying anything about it. So I gave in and went back to the pool. Some times you just have to listen to the body and when it says get out of the sun and lay low, you do it.

My first evening in Chiang Mai I met a really nice girl from Holland named Angelique. We spent a while talking by the pool before we agreed to go for dinner together and out to the Night Bazaar. Before we get to the Night Market/Bazaar we stop off at the company she did here trek with and get invited to sit with them for beers and food. This was a welcomed invitation and we enjoyed some spicy local dishes that include a river moss salad, a wild boar dish, and some bamboo shoots. We left after a short while and got ourselves to the night market by foot. This took about 20 minutes but is a great way to see some of Chiang Mai. Angelique was going to a meditation retreat the next day and she needed some white clothes for the occasion. We searched the market for the right outfit, something white and modest. We found the place and needed to do some bargining. I was given the task of talking the man down. 850 Baht turned into a rock bottom price of 250 baht. Small victories.....

We did eventually sit down to a proper meal. The guys at the trekking place had given me a snack to keep me going until dinner. But I needed something more substantial. So I went to the place you can almost always trust, the roadside stall serving Tom Yum. A spicy sour soup of shrimp and veggies. It did not disappoint. Before we arrived at this stall I had walked for about 30 minutes evaluating other eating options that Angelique had seen previously. None of them met my standards. They didn't have the elements I look for in an eatery while on the road in Southeast Asia. You might ask yourself, "Marcus, what are those qualities you look for?" I'm still working on a list, but so much of it has to do with instinct. You can't write rules for this kind of thing. You have to feel it out. I have been taking lessons from Anthony Bourdain for several months now. I've read his books, watched his programs, listened to his lectures, and have come away with some great skills. I found myself watching the Anthony Bourdain episode he filmed in Chiang Mai before I came up here. I was in Bangkok still and I wanted to get a feel for Chiang Mai and write down all the places he had been so I could follow his footsteps like I had done in Hong Kong and Singapore. I did enjoy the program. He has a great way of introducing you to a city and presenting his experience. But I realized something when watching the show. I didn't need him as a guide anymore. I could navigate Chiang Mai and have my own culinary adventures that would rivals his anyday. Not to take anything away from Tony, he has been a tremendous influence on me, but I am doing this on my own and I'm doing it well. I research what the local dishes are, I find them on my own, and I manage to avoid the tourist traps. I realized that my training was over with. The training wheels are coming off and I'm taking on food world with my own set of skills.

My plan the next mornign was to go trekking. Because of lack of numbers on the trek the staff at the Nice Place 2 asked if I would postpone my trip to the next day. I said yes only after the idea was presented to me that I could take a cooking course instead. Sure, why not, I take a cooking class like I wanted to, go trekking the next day, and then I can still get back in time to leave the country and not overstay my Visa. It was working out perfectly. I went for breakfast with Angelique before we said goodbye. She was off to meditate with monks and I was off to meditate with a Wok and Apron. The cooking class began at 10am at the Market. Our instructor, the directore of The Best Thai Cooking School (actual name of the school), was named Permpoon. He was dynamite. See the photos. More than a decade doing this has given him an ease that only experience can give you. He was a class act and showed us local ingrediant we would be using at the market. He educated me on coconut milk. The difference between cocnut juice, milk, cream, light milk, heavy milk. There was the egg lesson, size, sound, color. Veggies we spent little time with, but I did get some herb lessons. The rice was important as sticky rice is a northern Thai speciality and is very different than regular rice we think of. The market was also a chance to meet some of the the other students and have a few laughs. We made our way out of town to a small house in the countryside that had been converted into a cooking school. It was a perfect set up. I cooked several dishes. I learned Tom Yum Soup, Chicken and Cashew nut stirfry, Drunker Noodles, Som Tom (my papaya salad), Red Curry, Sweet Sticky Rice with Mango. This is the menu for the first feast I'll be cooking when I come home, so get your appetites ready and everyone is welcome. The class was over at about 4pm and I was stuffed. So much food but sooooo good.

The other main event in Chiang Mai was my trek. The itinerary was leave at around 9:30 and head a couple hours outside Chiang Mai. We would ride elephants for an hour before continuing on to our lunch stop. Lunch would be prepared for us before we left on our trek. We would trek from there through jungle. Stop at a village or two before arriving at our final destination. We could clean off in the river before dinner and then we would spend the night in the forest. In the morning we would pack up and hike a few hours out to the truck that would be waiting on us. The truck takes us to a river to do some bamboo rafting and then it was lunch and back to Chiang Mai.

That is the skeleton of the trek. The real meat of it was in the guides, the other trekkers, and the scenery. We didn't get a very inspiring village experience. We stayed in the jungle with a family that had two huts built. One for them and one for us. We didn't really interact with them at all other than when they cooked our meal and invited us into their hut to play various games. The night we spent in the jungle was very memorable. Our guide Dave captured our attention for an hour or more with what he called Drama Talk. He was really drunk and high on opium at the time of telling us his stories and giving us some history of the land and the people that is was hard to really follow him. But he was entertaining and did provide some very useful information about the tribes in the area and how he came to be the guide he is today. We also played some fun games that night. One game was all about clapping and snapping and saying the right thing at the right time. When you didn't you ended up with black ash all over your face. In the end we were all an ashy mess. We also played some games with sticks and cards. The two younger guides that were with us lead the evening of games. They too were high on opium and were the most talkitive they had been all day. They each gave themselves guide names. David Beckham was the older one and Brad Pitt the younger. Beckham was an ex-muay thai fighter. I found this out when we were joking around the next morning and sparing and he landed a great kick to my face. Oops... he knows what he is doing.

I spent my last night in Chiang Mai with Dan. Dan was on my trek and came back early with Scott, Heather and myself because he didn't feel well. Dan and I chatted after dinner and walked around the night market where I bought some new sunglasses (i lost mine somewhere) and a pair of thai fisherman pants. (thats right Chriso, Joe, Ben.... I bought some thai fisherman pants and I sport them everywhere now.... I look good, trust) My dinner on that last night was memorable as well. I have fallen in love with thai sausage. This hot and often spicy stuff is always available and ready to eat. Street vendors sell it for cheep. Fast food in Asia is kick ass. I got myself plenty of sausage after two days of trekking with a diet of pretty much just rice. I then capped it all off with my last papaya salad in Thailand. The man who made my Som Tom was a legend. He had a stall on the street in a busy part of Chiang Mai. He was so busy that he had us taking numbers like you would do at the deli. The line he generated was long, about 6 or 7 people deep. His hands worked so fast. A few chilis, garlic, peanutes, fish sauce... then a quick mash up, add the next ingrediants and work the mortar and pestel some more. He was working with such efficiency. This man could dominate the line in any kitchen in the world I'm sure of it. He even had a little bit of english prepared for when it was my turn. Many hand gestures and signals were necessary for me to get the authentic salad, thai style. This meant with many chilis, and fermented crab in the mix. They usually leave that stuff out for westerners but I wanted the real deal. It was a fitting finish to my time in Thailand. I would be for Laos tomorrow and having had papaya salad just about every day I was in Thailand it made sense that this man make my last one, the perfect combination of flavor, speed, and style.

I left Chiang Mai on April 25th. I had one more day on my visa that would be spent in Chiang Khong, a border city to Laos, and my last stop before getting on the Mekond to take the slow boat to Luang Prabang. The evening in Chiang Kong was relaxed. It was another long bus ride to get there. Chiang Kong was a quiet town and I was at a guesthouse with 20 or more people just like myself, on their way to Laos. We all bonded a bit over a buffet dinner that was really tasty. I walked up the street to see what there was to see and found an outdoor aerobics class. Fifteen Thai women were being led through an 80's style aerobics class by a very fit instructor up on a stage. The scene was priceless. Out in the middle of town, fully exposed, loud music playing, these women got their workout on. Legend.

Chiang Mai was a perfect end to my time in Thailand. It was also a nice transition for me to Laos. I was sort of living in a dreamland while I was in Southern Thailand. Everyone down there does. It is a paradise of beaches filled with backpackers. There is only so much culutre you can really take in there. You are in Southeast Asia when you island hop in Thailand, but you are not really in Southeast Asia. It is a bit superficial. It takes effort to seek out something authentically Thai. It is amazingly beautiful and one hell of a good time, don't get me wrong, but it is very different from the rest of Southeast Asia. Chiang Mai hints at what is to come on the backpacker circuit through Laos and on into Cambodia. Even here in Chiang Mai you are blinded a bit by tourist comforts but it reminded me of why I came and where I was headed.

I loved my time in Thailand. I have been dreaming about coming back here ever since I boarded the plane from Bangkok back to the States. I missed out on the Islands, the North, and I was going to come back and see it all. Well I did just that. Check it off my list of things to do. I learned a great deal about myself and made some wonderful connections with people. I had experiences that have inspired me to do new things. I really did come without expectations. I am leaving fulfilled. Thanks for following me through this country and now it is on to the next.

Loving you all
Marcus

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Photos

Adventure Cooking
"If you want Adventure cooking then tip your wok forward" Who doesn't want adventure. So I tipped my wok forward and next thing you know, BAM! Fire in my face and adventure takes place.

Surrounded by Water
The old city of Chiang Mai is surround by a giant moat, turning the old city into a perfect square where you can walk, get lost, and feel safe all at the same time.

Cheap Massage
Say the title very slowly and put some seductive emphasis on the ...sssage. Now you can hear what I hear every day and every night walking around Thailand. "You want cheap massssaaaage!" An hour of Thai massage really is cheap. Just how cheap. This sign says 120 Baht. This is 4 US dollars. I have seen as cheap as 100 Baht, but I think the extra 20 or 50 may be worth not having to deal with any unwanted hastles.

A welcomed invitation
I stopped by this trekking company with a friend I met that day to talk to the guides she had on her trek. They invited us to join them for some food prepared by their family. It was a pleasant surprise and a tasty one too. We had a wild pork stew, a moss salad, and steamed bamboo shoots. All of it spicy and delicious

Still after those Chicken feet
This one was deep fried. I don't think I'll be getting any more chicken feet until I find a properly prepared one from a chinese person. This one just flat out sucked.

Class Begins
Cooking class started at the local market where we got fresh ingrediants to cook our meals with that day.

Permpoon
This is my culinary instructor. His name is Permpoon and he has been doing this for 14 years he says. The same thing every day I think and he has his routine down so well.

Sausage Addiction
As my blogs have no doubt highlighted, one of my favorite parts of this travel experience has been the food. I'm on a culinary quest as much as I am on a journey of self discovery. I have developed certain food addictions. Well, perhaps not addictions, but passions that go beyond the normal craving. On this list are things like, thai pancakes with egg and condensced milk, salted and fried broad beans, papaya salad, bbq chicken, and the latest is Sausage. Chiang Mai has been the sausage capitol of thailand. I have had it other places, like in Krabi I wrote about it, and a few other stops on the way. But here it is ubiquitous. You cannot walk down a street and not see this delicious looking meat. It is hot and ready to eat. It comes looking like this, or in tiny balls, or in coiled loops, or sometimes a pork and rice mixture inside (my least favorite). My advice to you is get your hands on some pork sausage today and stop thinking it is bad for you....

Classmates
These boys were good for some laughs. Look at them dress one another, how cute. I had fun talking with the three of them during our class and hearing their story. They began in England and took a train from Europe to Mongolia. This took 5 days and didn't stop. Wow!!!!

I will Wok for you
Permpoon asked for a volunteer and guess who raised his hand first. I was enlisted to make so Pad Thai. This might be the easiest dish in Thai cooking to make but I did it with style. I think I remember him saying "unbelievable"

Elephant Riding
This is me on an elephant. I did it and here is the proof. But I'm not happy about it. I won't be doing that again. It just felt wrong I guess. Oh well, it was an experience. I felt sort of like the woman from Indian Jones, the one who unwillingly gets on the elephant and is appalled by the smell. She sprays the thing with perfume.... you remember the scene. Well I was somewhere close to that.

OOOUCH!
Maybe this is why I was not having the best experience. I had the giant neck of this animal between my legs. Every step his neck bones were trying to reduce my chance at having children in the future. It also took all my strength and balance to stay on the beast.

Our Guesthouse in the Jungle
We arrived at the small collection of huts that we were calling the village. We would stay here for the night. So we all went for a quick shower in the waterfall and here we chat about the days events while we dry off and wait for dinner to be prepared.

Waterfall Shower
This is the waterfall that was just outside our hut in the jungle. Not much to look at but a goldmine when you are living in the bush.

Dave
Our guide called himself Dave. He was a funny man that had been guiding tourists through Thailand for years. He loved to tell stories of England, where he studied English, and he seemed genuinely happy about his job.

Heather and Scott
These two joined me on the last day of our trek. The group was split. Some people stayed an extra night in the jungle while the three of us had to get back to Chiang Mai to make it to our next destinations in time. This was the typical terrain that we were navigating.