Although I was sad to leave Laos I was looking forward to going back to Thailand. The first month in the southern islands was amazing but I didn't feel like I got a true taste of authentic Thai culture-- I was hoping to get this in Northern Thailand. The first and main destination was Chiang Mai, the second largest city in Thailand. The commute from Laos to Chiang Mai was one of the longest and most frustrating yet. We had to wait at the border for about 5 hours and didn't get to the city until around midnight. Luckily, we called a guesthouse earlier in the day to reserve a room and they were nice enough to not give it away.
We started our first full day back in Thailand with one of the most delicious meals I've had yet. We stumbled into a small restaurant that served only two dishes so we knew they had to be good. It was a noodle soup with marinated pork that melted in your mouth. We went back to this spot several times. We spent most of the day exploring by walking around the perimeter of old city, venturing into a few of the city's numerous Buddhist temples and shopping outside of old city. Since it was our first day back in Thailand we couldn't resist getting a cheap Thai massage in the afternoon :)
Our food tour was such a success in Vietnam that we decided to start our Northern Thailand experience the same way. Learning about the street food and traditional cuisine really does enhance my experience. The food and the guide were not as exceptional as our Hanoi food tour but it was still well worth the money (only $20). We went to two street food markets and tried over 10 dishes. Once again we were in a food coma and called it an early night
The next day we changed hotels, had our delicious pork dish for breakfast and rented a motorbike. Taking advantage of having the motorbike, we rode to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, a main attraction in Chiang Mai that is on top of a mountain about 45 minutes away from the city center. Almost more interesting than the temple was the ride up the mountain. There were several view points where you could see all of Chiang Mai.
That night we left the old city and went to the night bazaar for food and some shopping (we gave up on the shopping). Right near the market was a Muay Thai boxing match, an event that Andrew and I had been wanting to see while in Thailand. I have zero interest in normal boxing and usual dislike watching it on TV but i surprisingly LOVED watching the Muay Thai boxing matches. We saw about 5 matches and somehow were seated in the first row. It was such a fun night.
The next day we woke up and prepared to motorbike to a small town a but up North called Pai. About 20 minutes into our journey we passed a place called "Tiger Kingdom", a place where you can observe, pet and take pictures with tigers. The tigers are magnificent and there is really nothing like seeing one up close in person. I am really happy we did this but had some mixed feelings about the operation since we saw many lions cooped up in small cages and it is rumored that they sedate the lions to keep them calm. Got some great pictures though!
A few days in Pai
I'd like to think that at this point in our trip we have had a decent amount of experience motorbiking but this was by far the most difficult ride yet. Although the ride to Pai is very well paved, it is extremely hilly and irrationally windy. The road sometimes seemed like it was curving 360 degrees and the hills were especially tough with two people and a heavy backpack on the bike. The views were really nice though and we got to stop at a beautiful waterfall on the way.
Pai is very different than anywhere I've been so far in Southeast Asia. It doesn't even feel like it is Thailand. It is a mix of bohemian-hip and kitschy. There are tons of organic yummy restaurants, tea shops and white people with dreadlocks walking around but also large tacky signs for coffee shops and Thai tourists taking pictures of everything (apparently there was a popular movie called "Pai in Love" that was filmed here which brings in the tourists). It is a very relaxed place where you can find yourself spending hours just sitting at a restaurant on cushions reading a book. The night life is also pretty chill with some live music and hippie moms dancing with their "free spirited" children. We had some great burgers from a place called "Burger Queen", had some delicious street food (my favorite was the grilled corn) and drank lots of green tea. We stayed at really cute bungalow near the river and we spent part of one day swimming pool at a nearby hotel. Overall a very relaxing place to hangout and people watch. The surrounding areas of Pai were very beautiful with farmland and rolling mountains.
Mini trip to Mae Hong Son (The Cave Lodge)
We split up out stay in pai with a trip to Mae Hong son. After two nights in Pai we learned that a Bhuddist holiday the next two days which meant that you could not buy alcohol and all of the bars were closed-- naturally we decided to leave Pai and head up North to a more rural setting. We heard of this place called the Cave Lodge which people use as a home base for Tham Lod cave. What makes this case different from the many caves we'd already seen is the phenomena that happens every night at sunset-- 30,000 swifts fly into the cave to join the thousands of bats that are already occupying the cave. It was impossible to catch on camera but it was a really cool site. The next morning we used a map that the lodge gave us and went on our own trek in the surrounding areas. We spent three hours creating our own path through bushes, streams and fields (we were somewhat lost). I was convinced that we were miles away from the lodge but eventually learned we were never far off the whole time. It was still a fun adventure :) We then headed back to Pai.
Last Few Days in Pai and Chiang Mai... Sick :(
We split up out stay in pai with a trip to Mae Hong son. After two nights in Pai we learned that a Bhuddist holiday the next two days which meant that you could not buy alcohol and all of the bars were closed-- naturally we decided to leave Pai and head up North to a more rural setting. We heard of this place called the Cave Lodge which people use as a home base for Tham Lod cave. What makes this case different from the many caves we'd already seen is the phenomena that happens every night at sunset-- 30,000 swifts fly into the cave to join the thousands of bats that are already occupying the cave. It was impossible to catch on camera but it was a really cool site. The next morning we used a map that the lodge gave us and went on our own trek in the surrounding areas. We spent three hours creating our own path through bushes, streams and fields (we were somewhat lost). I was convinced that we were miles away from the lodge but eventually learned we were never far off the whole time. It was still a fun adventure :) We then headed back to Pai.
Last Few Days in Pai and Chiang Mai... Sick :(
Mae Hong Son
We spent another relaxing day in Pai but I started to feel under the weather that night. I felt feverish tired and achy and got very worried that I contracted Dengue Fever from a mosquito (since i get bitten more than the average person). The next day I went the hospital in Pai which was surprisingly efficient and tested negative for Dengue. We rode back to Chiang Mai the next day and I started feeling worse and worse-- my stomach was also starting to bother me . I was planning to hit the town that night since I was turning 24 at midnight but I was asleep in bed by 9 pm. The day of my birthday I spent most of the day in the room but made it out for some bagels (which I have been dreaming of) and spent some time walking around the infamous weekend night market. I wasn't feeling any better so the next day I went to the Chiang Mai hospital to get tested for Dengue again and to find out what could be causing my high fever and upset stomach (the Pai hospital told me I may have gotten the first blood test too early). I found out that I had a gastro-bacterial infection and was prescribed antibiotics that started working immediately. I was feeling much better by the time we took the night train from Chiang Mai back to Bankok. Andrew was so helpful during this whole ordeal and still managed to make my birthday feel special. I felt bad that he had to spend some of his last days traveling taking care of me.
Two days in Bangkok
Andrew was leaving in two days so we spent a little extra money on a hotel room in a different part of Bangkok. We went back to Koh San road to buy some souvenirs for his family and had a belated birthday celebration dinner at a delicious sushi restaurant. I miss sushi almost as much as cheese. We tried to see some more of Bangkok and ended up at some very high end shopping malls and walked through the red light district of Bangkok-- I lost track of how many times people tried to get us to go to a ping pong show. We got a really good Thai massage and made sure that Andrew had some great Thai street food as his last meal. Two days in Bangkok
It was really sad to say goodbye but we both know how lucky we are to have had this experience. We were so lucky to get along so well and it is evident we wanted the same things out of this trip. It felt like yesterday that we were packing up our backpacks for the first time and heading to the JFK airport. Andrew going home felt like an end of a chapter of my trip and I would be lying if I said I wasn't nervous for the next part.
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