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Published: September 23rd 2006
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I managed to get into Chiang Mai shortly before the airport was (temporarily) shut down due to the little military coup... Over the years I have started to see a pattern form where I decide to go to a country and then they immediately fall into some sort of political instability...or start bombing tourists and what not. This time I actually got to the country before it happened though (Lebanon had been in the top five travel possibilities earlier this summer, but was unfortunately attacked shortly after being added to my list...). I actually laughed a little when I saw the news on BBC World..."Figures..." I thought. But the situation in Thailand seems quite stable...and very well planned and executed. Aside from banks and airports being shut for a day or so, and a few more military checkpoints and soldiers, it is pretty much life as usual. A Thai man told me that as long as they have the King, then Thailand will be fine, no matter what happens.
Thailand is fabulous. A well deserved rest after my long journey. As I mentioned I flew up to Chiang Mai...apparently there is some area of the railway between Bangkok and Chiang
Mai that is a little wobbly and they are periodically shutting down the railway for repairs. I think people have to do combination of busses and trains. It should be fixed pretty soon. I arrived in Chiang Mai and checked myself into CM Blue House on Soi 6 off of Moonmuang road. It is just down from the popular Somphet fresh food market (where the cooking classes go for the market tour). I highly recommend this guesthouse, everyone is super friendly and the rooms are a really good value. Every morning I had breakfast around the little garden waterfall...
I spent my first day in Chiang Mai exploring the temples in the town. Actually the first thing I did was check myself into the dentist as I had broken a tooth in India the week before (on potatoes no less)...so I was able to just walk in, be seen immediately and have a general check, my tooth fixed, two other fillings done, and a cleaning. I think I was out within an hour or so...and all for I think $65 USD. So in case you weren't already aware, Thailand is great for all things dental. Alright back to the
temples...the most impressive being Wat Phra Singh. I think I liked the one with all the murals on the wall the best...pictures of village life, fights, fishing, farming... I ate lunch at a local place... and not speaking or reading any Thai, and nothing at this particular place being in English I just pointed to what someone else was having. It was a nice duck noodle soup and I wasn't disappointed. For dessert I had coconut ice cream, but it was different than I had had before. I think it was actually the coconut water that had been frozen and blended, like a coconut water slushy. It was tasty either way. That afternoon I caught a songthaew (red trucks) up to Doi Suthep, up the mountain to see Wat Phra That Doi Suthep...even more impressive than the wats in chiang mai...that massive gold chedi is something else. The ride up was really pretty as well. I didn't stay too long due to the clouds and rain that came rolling in. From up on the mountain I could actually watch it roll in... half the valley covered in sunlight and then the other half covered in sheet of rain, moving toward
me. That evening I went to the night bazaar, which was a bit too touristy for my shopping taste. It is irritating when after you have seen the first ten stalls the exact same items just keep repeating and repeating for hundreds of stalls...like the Grand Bazaar in Turkey. I walked for a good two hours through the place and hardly saw anything that I hadn't seen in the first block. I like my bazaars a little dirtier with unidentifiable items and smells. But I did have some more tasty street food...including this fried pancake with bananas and chocolate.
The next morning I was up for my cooking lessons with Chiang Mai Cookery School...(the original and still the best according to the guidebook). We started the morning with an hour or so of vegetable carving, and I wasn't too bad at it as demonstrated in the photos. Then we spent the morning between watching demonstrations and then cooking what had just been demonstrated. Given the short time of the class and the number of dishes to be completed, most of the prep cooking (ginger, carrots, meats etc already cut, curry pastes already made) was already done for us. And
for the spring rolls, we made the filling and rolled them, but then one lady cooked them all for us. I picked up a few tips from the class, but I'm already a decent cook...so for me I think the most invaluable item was the cookbook that I bought from them (they gave a smaller version free with the class, but I bought the comprehensive). It was also a treat to be able to cook with the fresh local ingredients...lemongrass and coriander root just don't taste as fresh in Olympia. Plus I don't think I've ever found, though never looked for, fresh squeezed coconut milk in the states. Maybe the have it in Seattle. If I had more time I would have gone through the series and then taken the Masters classes. After cooking class I was pretty well gorged...especially from the red curry with roast duck (with coconut cream, pineapple, eggplant, grapes, cherry tomatoes...an interesting mix). I spent the evening wandering around used book stores, and later had a nice hour long Thai foot massage when the rains got too heavy.
So far Thailand has been great...next on the list is the smaller village of Pai up in mountains along the river...
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David
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Sawassdee Krup
Glad you love Thailand as much as I do honey. I will be going on Nov 4th, but will probably see you here first. Very exciting times to be there. Please take photos of the tanks if you can, the guys from the restaurant really want some, especially if they have flowers or yellow ribbons. Be well, D