Thailand: Adventures in Chiang Mai (Part I)

“The Gladdest Moment In Human Life, Me Thinks, Is A Departure Into Unknown Lands”

– Sir Richard Burton

Northern Thailand, the gorgeous land of the road warriors or as they’re now referred to as the “digital nomads”. The city itself is charming with a very warm feel from the locals and foreigners alike. I personally fell in love with Chiang Mai; the food, the temples, affordable medical care, and aimless strolls up and down the moat were all fun experiences in themselves. It’s the simple pleasure in life that make us smile the most, as life is simple in northern Thailand, at least for a tourist like myself. The city is colorful and hassle free compared to Bangkok, also much more easy going then Phuket. I would move there in a heartbeat.

I personally enjoyed everything the city has to offer such as spending the day hanging out with elephants, exploring the temples, trekking and watching the sunrise. So many great memories were made in that city. I met a bunch of people during my time there but the two travelers that stand out the most were Millie and Laura. Millie resides in the UK and Laura in Greece. I kind of “picked them up” at the airport on the way from Phuket. We struck up a conversation and exchanged WhatsApp info to stay in touch. A few days later they ended up renting a car and wanted to go exploring the city. I happily accepted the invite, as the girls seemed cool and easy to get along with. I don’t exactly feel very comfy driving in Asia, so it was a perfect opportunity to explore the city from another perspective. Plus everyone ended up happy as we saved a few bucks by splitting the car costs three ways. I always say “Life is better with great company”. Our adventure started the next day at 4:15 am as we were heading to the mountain of Doi Suthep. It was a dark, curvy road but the views from the top were breathtaking. We watched the sun come up from the mountains overlooking a quaint village below us. Even though it was freezing, the greenery surrounding us, and the mountains peaking over the clouds was an experience I would not trade nor ever forget. The pictures unfortunately did not do it justice.

Once the sun came up we drove down the mountain road to check out the village. As we were strolling around the village, we spotted a monk walking up a steep flight of stairs and decided to follow him, as he was heading to an interesting looking temple at the top of the climb. The steps were quiet the workout for us as it seemed like they were endless, finally by the last set of steps we heard dogs in the distance. Thinking they’re friendly we kept walking towards the temple, boy were we wrong. I think they smelled the “foreigners” on us as they charged full speed, barking their heads off. Funny enough when the locals walk towards the temple the dogs were invisible and silent. We were scarred shitless and froze. I was sure at least one of us, if not all of us would end up in the hospital getting rabies shots. Laura calmly reminded us that they smell fear, so we quietly and slowly descended down the steps as the three dogs are following and sniffing us. I’m sure from the side this was a hilarious site to see, we just didn’t think so at the moment. As we made our way down, we decided that the climb was our cardio workout for the day, as the original plan of visiting the temple blew up in our faces.

Once we reached the village, we stopped by a few shops and grabbed coffee in a cute cafe to soothe the near panic attack we just experienced. After the breather we continued our adventure to the temple of Doi Suthep. It was filled with tons of tourists, but the temple itself was beautiful and overlooked the entire city as it was perched on a mountaintop. Even though it was busy it had a steady feel of serenity and peace. It was decked out in gold and orange colors with white marble pillars and floors, with a dragon staircase leading down. According to history, it has 1000 steps, but we didn’t bother to count. Of course once we reached the bottom of the stairs, the vendors were everywhere, waiting to sell you everything from paintings, to jewelry to fruit smoothies and snacks. Let me tell you, if you haven’t had a strawberry smoothie in Thailand, you have not lived.

We made our way back to the city and made plans for the next day to go “chasing waterfalls”. Once back in my area, I had an insane craving for sushi. I remember seeing a restaurant not far from my hotel and headed directly there. The fish was fresh and my tummy was happy, even though the sushi chef was not aware of the concept of spicy mayo (combination of mayonnaise, siracha and lime juice). It ok, I forgave him (hehe). In reality I don’t think I had a bad meal anywhere in Thailand, and mostly I ate street food and loved every bite. They make a lot of meat on stick (Sate) variations; chicken liver, chicken hearts, chicken butts, pork belly, unknown parts of pork, even fried dumplings on a stick and so much more. I did not discriminate and tried everything. It was all amazeballs and I was in foodie heaven, not to mention it all cost pennies. It is true what they say, Thailand really does have the best street food in the world and their coffee is pretty awesome too. Check out the post on Thai food and don't forget to come back on Friday for the continuation of adventures in Chiang Mai - chasing waterfalls edition.

Dates of Travel: 11/30/16 - 12/4/16 & 12/8/16 – 12/16/16

Modes of Transportation: Tuk tuk, car,

Food to try: Khao Soi, grilled chicken, fried wontons, roast duck with noodles, crispy pork belly, sai ua (spiced lemongrass sausages), mu ping (pork skewers), barbecue chicken dish kai yang, noodle soup with stewed pork, sushi.