Chiang Mai, Thailand

We flew from Delhi to Chiang Mai via Bangkok. Chiang Mai was a welcome climate change, ranging from a low of 60 to a high of 90 with low humidity. It basically felt like perfect late July weather without the humidity. The people are friendly, the massages are almost free, the flowers are amazing and if you like Thai food as we do, it feels like a real vacation!

We also lucked out and visited during the annual flower festival. The floats were so amazing, all hand done with fresh flowers, that only a shot is posted here with a flower festival post to follow.

S and I attended 'Grandma's Cooking School' for an amazing day, walking through the farm to picn ingredients and then making a thai paste, followed by coconut curry soup and then pad thai. Butterfly pea tea is from a bright purple flower and none for its beauty properties here. It tastes like a light, floral grape. We stopped at the market on the way too and S discovered Thai Tea, a milk based chai like cold tea. Yum.

We spent a day visiting Doi Intanon National Park which boasts the highest mountaintop in Thailand with the most beeautiful Queen's pagoda (in my opinion, the lavendar hued mosaics that surrounded the building and the gardens behind it with the King's pagoda off in the distance. S was given a long skirt to tour these holy burial places.

We stopped at the beautiful and rainbowed Mae Ya and Mae Klang waterfalls on our way.

The temples in the city are everywhere. The outsides are most impressive to us, as tourists and non-Buddhists. We saw the teak temple, Wat Phrasing and Wat Chedi Luang. We missed the famous Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep as we ran out of time!

We took advantage of the beautiful spa connected to the hotel. 7 services and tip all together over a few days = 1 massage elsewhere. And all services start with the most delicous jasmine tea and end with a famous plate of mango and sticky rice. The sticky rice is sometimes colored and made sweet with coconut milk. It is amazing.

We tried the local beers and they all taste the same but are the only things on the menu (in the beer and wine category) along with Heineken. The three are Singh, Leo, Chang. They literally taste identical. Coming from a craft brewing country this seems sad.

We attended and loved the night market! What a fun festival of lights, music, food and STUFF! S and I scored some sundresses at a negotiated 2 for 800 Baht ( take off two zeros and x by 3 so $24 total) and we then saw them at a shop down the street the next day for 1390 Baht each. Go Sunday Night Market!

We saw so many buddha statues its impossible to keep track.

We visited a pottery shop and saw how silk was made. The silk production process was fascinating and will be its own post.