Chiang Mai!

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Hello!!

I spent about 6 days in Changmai and really liked it, especially after I changed hostels! I spent the first few nights in a really horrible hostel where they were no other travellers because the popular hostel was constantly full! I didn't really do much those first few days apart from wander around, read, catch up with emails and went to the dentist! I was a bit homesick and lonely so even ended up going into bars where they were showing English football with English commentary just so I felt more at home! :o) Luckily though on my third day in Changmai I managed to get into the hostel and finally ended my boring spell of having no friends! :o)

That day I did a cooking course which I had signed up to a few days before and ended up having a really cool group so it was lots of fun! We got to choose which meals we wanted to learn/cook but also watched everyone else cook their different dishes so learnt lots! If you're lucky you might get to experience my exceptional Thai culinary skills when I get home! :o)

The next day I went sightseeing with a Canadian guy who had a scooter so he took me to the big temple in the mountains, which was really lovely, then we went to a big lake just outside of Changmai and spent the afternoon swimming, sunbathing and reading! It was really nice and relaxing! :o)

On Thursday I had to do a visa-run to the Burmese border, as my visa for Thailand was due to expire on the 14th and I'm not flying until the 22nd! They have changed the regulations recently and you can now only get a 30 day visa if you fly into Thailand, if you come overland then it's only 15 days, which was annoying as I got 30 days when I flew into Bangkok to meet Michi, but then we left for Cambodia the next day, and then when we came back into Thailand 3 weeks lafter, I only got 15days! :o( However, the visa-run was OK... it took about 4 hours to get there, we spent an hour at the border and then got back to Changmai late afternoon! It was definitely worth doing as I saved a lot of money doing it that way rather than officially extending it at the immigration office! :o)

That evening I went out to dinner with a NZ girl staying in my room and convinced her to come to Pai with me the next day to see the elephants! :o) I had a Thai massage that night as everyone said I had to try it.... it was good! :o) I was thinking about doing a massage course in Changmai but I ran out of time in the end and it was also quite expensive.. maybe in Bangkok before I leave! :o)

Lots of love xxxxxx

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