Northern Thailand

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Northern Thailand - Pai and Chiang Mai

Pai is a village in the mountains of Northern Thailand along a scenic, winding road. At the higher elevations here, it was cold at night (40F), but very hot during the day (95F). The first two photos are from Pai.

The rest of the photos are from Chiang Mai, the largest city in Northern Thailand...

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Photos

Sunrise in Pai
I attended a meditation retreat for 6 days here. No talking was allowed the entire time, which was a lot harder than I thought it would be. The setting was serene and peaceful and the vegetarian Thai food was amazing. We only ate breakfast and lunch, but no dinner. We got a warm "bag of spiced soy milk" at 6pm.

The front porch of my bungalow...
...where I practiced meditation. We had to rise at 4 am each day and we weren´t allowed to sleep until 10 pm. I was hoping I´d stick with the early rising even now, but no such luck.

The Night Bazaar in Chiang Mai
Every night from 5 - 11 pm they have a huge night bazaar in the city. Of course, they also have a McDonald´s.

Sunday Night Market
The Sunday Night Market is only once per week, and it´s closed off to cars, so it´s more mellow. This was one of my favorite cultural experiences in Thailand.

Sunday Market
I wasn´t brave enough to try the fried insects.

Pad Thai buffet
Now this is more like it!

Thai Cooking Class
I´m not much of a cook... but I couldn´t pass up the chance to learn how to make a few Thai dishes in Thailand! You can probably tell from the photo that I needed a lot of supervision from the instructor.

Wat Chedi Luang and City Pillar
Chiang Mai

"Monk Chat"
On Tuesdays and Thursdays at the temple, you can sit with a monk and ask all the questions you want. It´s also a great way for them to practice English.

Overlooking Chiang Mai
In March and April, the air is full of smoke from fires started on purpose in the mountains. They set fire to the ground brush every year to prevent dangerous forest fires and to enrich the soil. I picked the wrong time to be there... my throat hurt, my eyes stung and I never got to see blue skies.

Kathy and Laura
Kathy is an American who lived in my hometown prior to moving to Chiang Mai with her husband and kids four years ago. I met her through Chris and Sandy, my friends and world travelers from Seattle. Kathy made me feel very comfortable and welcome while is was in Chiang Mai.

Don, Seth and Kathy
Don and Kathy have five children. Pictured in the middle is Seth, their eldest. Don is the superintendent of Grace International School in Chiang Mai and Seth is a coach and physical ed teacher. Their two youngest currently attend school there.

Comments

[pesci]

Good to see ur post
How about the food in thai? you got the taste acquired, & how about the spice in red-curry, you liked it!!!!