50shadesofbrave

The end of week 1 in Thailand saw me hop an internal flight north to Chiang Mai. Just a short 1 hour 15 took me to a completely different landscape and vibe.

I arrived at my hotel mid afternoon- was very pleased with my choice of accommodation, which was a little oasis in the corner of the city, walking distance from everywhere yet a sanctuary from the bustle and with a lovely swimming pool to boot.

I hardly had time to dump my bags and freshen up before I was off out to activity number one – a Thai cooking class run by Galangal Cooking Studio (www.galangalcooking.com). At the time of booking we had been ask to decide what dishes we wanted to make… but that was weeks ago and this evening was a complete surprise as I couldn’t remember what I’d chosen! In the event, I made a chicken Tom Yum soup, a Pad Thai (best I’ve tasted after the Patpong Market one!), a chicken Massaman curry and a papaya salad. I cannot remember the last time I felt so full and everything was delicious. The class was fun and well run – a perfect way to spend my first evening.

Sunday was deliberately planned to stay local and low key. I spent the morning reading and relaxing beside the pool and in the afternoon booked a walking tour of Chiang Mai which took in the main sights and temples with a local guide – very informative and interesting. After the tour I met up with Bev (from Canada) and Christina (from USA) for a coffee before we tackled the Sunday ‘Walking Street Market’ – an enormous street market with all sorts of stalls (clothes, souvenirs, trinkets, jewellery… and most importantly FOOD!). We probably only covered a third of what was there, sat and enjoyed some street food in a temple courtyard and had a cheap and cheerful foot massage before I headed back to my hotel, exhausted but happy.

Monday saw me up early to join a group tour to Chiang Rai. I was attracted to this visit because of the spectacular-looking White and Blue temples. As it turned out, this was one of my least favourite days. I have learned that a 3 hour journey by road when you have the same to get back ‘home’ is too much for one day, especially when you’re not even fussed on what you discover at the end of it!! I didn’t like the temples – found them too ostentatious, too packed with people, too much like a conveyor belt. The day was hot, the guide wasn’t great, and all the other party members were half my age! Do you get the impression that I didn’t enjoy it…?! In fact the best part of the day was the amazing Pad See Ew and beer that I had at a restaurant just a stone’s throw from my hotel on my return!

Tuesday gave me a nice slow start again. After breakfast, I took a 15 minute walk to the centre of old town to the Chiang Mai Women’s Correctional Institution Vocational Training Centre. Here, the Thai government offer training to female inmates in massage and hospitality, so that they have a skill to set them up for post-release life. I had a one-hour Thai massage for 250 Baht (about £6) and it was amazing.

I was back at my hotel in time for a midday pick up for one of the highlights of this section of my holiday – a half day visit to Elephant Nature Park, an ethical elephant sanctuary in the hills about an hour outside Chiang Mai. This was an amazing experience – well organised, informative and uplifting. A chance to get close but not too close to elephants from 3 to 70 years old and see them eating, bathing and playing together. No ‘hands-on’ stuff – these are animals that have been rescued from poor conditions and are being allowed to live out their days with human kindness but not human interference. A wonderful afternoon.

If I thought Monday had been an early start, Wednesday was something else. My alarm went off at 5am for me to get ready to be picked up from my hotel at 5:30 by Tana (Chiang Mai Guide Driver, if you want to look her up on Facebook) for a personal guided visit to Doi Suthep temple at dawn. Tana picked me up in her car, and we headed for the hillside temple. Our first stop, however, was at the 7-11 store, where on Tana’s recommendation I bought 10 packs of instant noodles which would be my ‘offering’ to the monks for ‘good karma’! We arrived at the temple in the dark, parked the car and started up the 300 steps to the temple entrance. We made our way to a viewing platform with pagoda, from where we watched dawn unfold over Chiang Mai… It was noticeable how the city was clearly defined by street lights while it was still dark, but became less and less so as the light broke, due to the thick air pollution hanging in the morning air. Nevertheless it was a magical moment seeing the sun appear through the clouds.

Next stop was the temple courtyard, where I took part in a ceremony of offering (my noodles!) to the monks and in return received a blessing. It was very moving and the sight of a tear on the cheek of the lady standing next to me also made me well up a bit. Once this ceremony was over, we explored the temple, took loads of photos, made wishes, said a few little prayers / meditations before heading back to the car. It was still quiet since it was still not 8am, but people were beginning to arrive as we left.

On the way back down the hill, we stopped at another completely different temple – Wat Pha Lat – nestled in an oasis of nature, with ponds, waterfalls and gardens. We explored that one and talked about how lovely it would be to retire to such a peaceful place…

I was back at my hotel just after 9:30 in time for breakfast and a dip in the pool before doing some last minute shopping and packing my case.

Saturday morning saw me squeeze in one final temple – different from the others as it was silver all over- before heading off to the airport for my flight to Phuket for the final segment of my adventure.

I have definitely fallen in love with Chiang Mai and would heartily recommend a visit to any would-be Thai travellers!