Saturday, February 28, 2015

Back in Thailand ~ Chiang Mai and Pai


Well, after a great 3 weeks in Vietnam (and 5 total) we took off from Hanoi to Bangkok where we left 3 hours later on a flight to the city of Chiang Mai in northern Thailand.  Chiang Mai is Thailand's second largest city and one of the countries most popular tourist areas - for a variety of reasons.
it has a more temperate year around climate, it is surrounded by mountains and 2 national parks and is a popular for treks into the back country.  The old city is surrounded on all 4 sides by a moat and the remnants of a brick wall and is filled with winding streets with restaurants, shops, massage parlors, etc.   Pad Thai? $1.    Hour Massage? $5.    Birkenstocks $8.  You get the picture..... deals on every corner and lots of fun just cruising around.
Lots of options for food ~ Thai, Indian, Western, French, Italian, etc.   One of Chiang Mai's most popular to do's is a variety of night markets located around the city and which feature hundreds of stalls selling an amazing variety of Thai food to all sorts of crafts, art, and other goodies.

Night Market Scenes:
The Cowboy Lady is one of the more popular street stalls after being featured on
Anthony Bourdain's "Parts Unknown"  for her stewed pork leg with egg
 

 the scene
 
Grilled Quail
 
So anyway ~ we met up with Stuart and Sara in Chiang Mai and explored the night market area and then took a bus the next day to a Pai ~ a smaller town about 3 hours north which has a lively backpacker/tourist scene with another great night market.  We stayed just outside of town  at the Pai Water House which had a great pool in a rural setting and it was a great place to relax and just hangout.
 
 Our Bungalow at Pai Water House
 



 Pai Market  ~ some of the options ~ Quail and Spare Ribs

 Sates, Squid, Insects


 
Temples ~  All over Southeast Asia there are Amazing Buddhist Temples. You also see some that are Hindu in origin but pretty much Buddha Rules!  Chiang Mai itself has over 300 in and around the city.  We probably visited a dozen or so in the city and one outside on a mountain top reached by a pretty arduous hike, especially in the heat of the afternoon, but well worth the effort.  Some of the temples date back to the 8th century but others are from more recent times.  In all there often dozens if not hundreds of Buddha statues in a temple complex ~ some fat, some thin, some smiling, some serious, some standing while others are sitting or even reclining, some carved from teak, or jade, or rock, or other materials.  Animal statuary is also prevalent ~ often realistic, but often dragon headed snakes or 5 headed elephants or other species.








 
We are now down in Hua Hin on the coast and spending the next week in 90 degree sunshine on a beautiful stretch of white sandy beach!
We will update you in a week or so and Stuart and Sara fly home on the 7th of March and Carol and I fly home on the 10th.
Best Wishes to All     ~    Don and Carol

1 comment:

  1. Hey did you know that a woman can become Buddha, All she has to do is die and come back as a man. The pictures of the temples and Buddhas are beautiful. I like Stuart's facial hair. You all look wonderful in with the scenery. I have enjoyed my time here in Bow and love seeing your travels in your Blog. You will be home in 9 days seems just yesterday I took you to the airporter, I look forward to hearing about your adventures.

    ReplyDelete