Chiang Mai

It only took about 5 hours on a very curvy road to get there. Relatively no probelm since we bought a first class ticket - which means no stopping every other minute to pick someone up, full AC, and snacks. Not a horrible way to travel.

After arriving in CM, we dropped our belongings off at the Little Bird hostel, and wandered over to the Sunday Night Walking Street - an extremely large market in the "old city." [Chiang Mai like many larger cities are separated by old and new city]. We got there early to see the vendors set up, and I am honestly amazed at how efficient these people are at packing. Tons of items came out of a box that probably wouldn't have fit if I tried myself. One thing good about being a backpacker, you limit yourself in what you can buy. This market had new items I've never seen before, which is quite refreshing, and fun to look at. Plus new kinds of snacks. Yum!!  Seriously becoming a bad trend. You'd think traveling in hot weather would help the pounds disappear...not quite true in our case.

The next day we did the walking tour of the wats recommended by Lonely Planet. Note: There are tons of temples all around. We just saw the 4 most famous. It's interesting to see how different the architecture was here then elsewhere in Thailand. After, we headed off to the CM Women's Prison for a massage. Yes Thailand does have crime as many of you mentioned, and while this might sound strange and weird, the massage along with the nearby restaurant and handicraft store are all part of the women's rehabilitation. The massage center gives these women a skill beyond whatever they did before entering. And I must say the massage was damn good. After a relaxing massage we jumped onto a  sorng-tau up to Doi Suthep, the highest mountain in Thailand to check out the temple. Too bad it wasn't clear for sunset. Damn slash and burn haze.

The next day was spent eating. Literally. We signed up for a cooking class, and between every meal we tested what we made. We did 7 dishes...I can't wait to try out the recipes at home. (Don't attack me about cooking for you. Taking a class doesn't make me a genius. Although I'm happy to share the recipes.) Follwing, we just slumped around town, wandering alleys, visiting used book stores, and eatting some more. Lots of shakes, fruit, and a delicious noodle dish called Khao Soi.  Oh yea and we went to the night safari. Enough said. We tried this amazing Vegan restaurant...and they had the best soy ice-cream ever. Who knew they were that health conscious in Thailand? I guess CM is an exception.

So I've come to fall in love with this city. So much to see and do with a great atmosphere. It's clean by Western standards, which is a feat in itself. I can see myself coming back and staying for longer if I can.