A Quick Hi to Chiang Mai

I started to write this blog entry last week and meant to finish and post it on Wednesday or Thursday, but I received about 3 hours notice last Wednesday that I had to head to Laos on an overnight bus with another girl from my program because our work permits would not be ready before our 90-day visas expired on Thursday, January 19th.  We were told we had to leave the country, apply for a new Thai entry visa in Laos, and then return to Thailand 24 hours later.  We decided to stay the weekend in Laos, and we had an amazing time!  I will post about that soon, but here's my write-up about the previous weekend.

On the weekend of January 13th, I headed to the north of Thailand to visit the much-talked-about Chiang Mai.  I totally get it; this place really is awesome.  It’s clean, pretty, artsy, laid-back, outdoorsy, and above all, fun.  There is so much to see and do in Chiang Mai, and I barely put a dent in everything I had planned.  The outdoor markets and shopping are incredible (crafts, jewelry, silk, art, you name it), the daily excursions would blow away even the most hardcore adrenalin junkie, the nightlife and coffee bar/restaurant scene is funky and friendly, and the opportunities to experience the town’s history and temples, as well as interact with all varieties of wildlife, are overwhelming.  I wish I could have spent a few more days there.

The moat that runs through the city and the remains of the defensive old city wall

I arrived late Friday night, and on Saturday, I went white water rafting on the Mae Taeng River with Tracy and Joey from my program http://www.siamrivers.com/home.  I had only been white water rafting once before, and it was years ago when I traveled around New Zealand.  When I woke up and it was raining, I wasn’t happy (it’s the dry season so why does it keep raining on the weekends?!?), but it actually worked out really well because it lead to optimum water conditions.  We had about 6 rafts go out at the same time, and we all pretty much stuck together on the course.  We had a great day on the water!

That night, I hit the massive Night Bizarre with Tracy, and then checked out the bar scene with Tracy, Joey, Kelli, Laura and a few others from our program; it was a long and fun evening!

With ladyboys at the Night Bizarre

Cocktail cart- I love these things!

At the reggae bar- who's the guy on the left?!

I ran around on Sunday solo and tried to check things off of my to-see/do list.  I knew I had to see Doi Suthep, which is one of the most famous attractions in Chiang Mai.  It’s a temple that is part of a three-tiered national park on a mountain, and one could spend hours there http://www.chiangmai.bangkok.com/attractions/doi-suthep.htm.  I went to the highest part of the mountain and saw a waterfall and some hill tribes, skipped the second level (Bhubing Palace, the vacation home of the royal family), and finally went to the lowest level to see the temple and the pretty view over Chiang Mai.  And although I’m not usually a flower show kind of gal, I then headed over to the Royal Flora Ratchaphruek, which is SE Asia’s largest horticultural exposition.  People come from all over Thailand and the world for this event, so I thought I should at least check it out.  I was glad I did; it was really amazing.

Sunday night, Laura, Kelli, and I spent several hours shopping at the Sunday Walking Street market (again, massive), and on Monday (after hearing great reviews from Kelli and Laura), I went over to Tiger Kingdom to star in my own photo shoot with one of nature’s biggest cats.  Funny how I’m not even a cat fan; don’t tell this big guy that though!  These tigers ended up being very sweet animals, but I'm not going to lie, I wanted to take my pictures and get out of the cage as soon as possible!

I'm glad that my visa issue is now sorted and that I haven't been deported on the slow boat back to the US.  It would have made a good story though!  Until next time....Sawatdee kah!