Chaing Mai – Katie Says Go!

March 13, 2019March 13, 2019

Old Chaing Mai and U Chaing Mai

The Sunset from the balcony at U Chaing Mai.

U Chaing Mai Hotel and Old Chaing Mai

When we got into Chaing Mai and were driving to our hotel, our tour guide, Pin, explained that the hotel, U Chaing Mai, was located in the middle of Old Chaing Mai. It was really easy to figure out when you were in Old Chaing Mai, as the original gates and corners were still there, along with the moat, yep, that’s right, there was a MOAT!!! It was so cool looking!!!!

Pulling up to our hotel, it didn’t seem like a hotel, and you wouldn’t guess it from the front! The lobby was all open air after you walk over a pond that was right next to the street. Through the open air lobby was the pool and all the rooms overlooked it.

Before we left, I was checking out the website for the U Chang Mai, and saw they had hotel rooms where your balcony of your room gave you private access to the pool. It was actually cheaper than the suite we had booked! I tried to convince Hubby we should downgrade to that room, but he didn’t see the appeal… if we go back sometime, I’m not taking no for an answer!

Our suite was on the 3rd floor and at the end. Not a big deal, u til you find out there is no elevator. The staff was tipped very well for dragging our bags up and down 3 flights of stairs! The other bad part of being on the 3rd floor was after spending a day walking around Chaing Mai, you are exhausted. When you get back to the hotel, you still have here flights of stairs to walk up. That can be somewhat of a joy kill.

My favorite breakfast in Chaing Mai…pink noodles!!

The food at the hotel was good. We had breakfast included, which was a small buffet of fruit, cereal and breads, along with a hot meal of a limited menu. My best piece of advice when traveling abroad, don’t order American food, u less you are at McDonald’s (and even that can taste different. Don’t say I didn’t warn you!!!). No matter how hard they try, it won’t taste right. Example, one morning I decided to order an omelette with fried potatoes. How bad could an omelette be, right? Let me tell you, it can be bad. I basically ate the potatoes. After that I would eat the pink stir fry noodles and Hubby would have either the Pink noodles or Thai Sausage and Jasmine rice.

We ate dinner a few times at our hotel as well, when we were not in the mood to wander around town to find a place to eat, or one time when we did wander and didn’t find anything good. Their dinner menu was a little limited, but good.

On the last full day we were there, I decided it was time for a massage. We got back to the hotel after wandering around 1:30 and I spoke to the front desk about booking a massage. I had one a half hour later! It was AMAZING. A 90 full body aromatherapy massage cost me approximately $40 US dollars. Hubby sat by the pool and read while I was relaxing. I was so glad I waited until the last day and after we were done walking around. I kind of wished I would have done one more while we were there!!!

A word on their WiFi, it sucks. This is no joke. We could get on, but half the time it was so slow it wouldn’t even load Facebook. It worked ok to jump on and see if we had any text messages about the kids, but other than that, good luck doing anything.

All in all, this was a pretty good hotel. I would definitely stay here again, but on the 1st floor with pool access!!!

March 13, 2019March 14, 2019

The markets of Chaing Mai

This Chinese market in Chaing Mai was HUGE!!!

Throughout our three day stay in Chiang Mai, we went to more markets that I think Hubby was ready for! Honestly though, besides temples, really the only thing else to do in Chaing Mai was to shop!

The first market we discovered after our temple excursion when we were walking to eat. Somphet Market was a very small market located about half a mile from our hotel. This was just a small food market, but was very cool. After this market we learned that even the alley ways were worth walking down and exploring, as that is how we found it.

The next market we went to was with Our tour guide, Pin. Pin took us to the biggest market in Chaing Mai, and where she shops, Tom Lam Yai Market. This market is in Chinatown (yep, there is a china towns everywhere!) And was HUGE!!! It took up two or three city blocks and was inside and outside. It had EVERYTHING. Pin would walk around and have us try all these different kinds of food and of course all the Thai tea you can drink!! Thank goodness she didn’t have us try the bamboo worms!!!

That night we also visited the Ploen Rudee Night Market. Holy smokes, that was nuts! There were streets upon streets of booths selling things. A little secret about this market though, we kept seeing the same things for sale over and over and over again. This market was all about the food and live music. We wandered around until Hubby could tell we were being followed a little too close (pick pockets are crazy all over in these markets), so we decided to walk back to the hotel.

The next day we were on our own, so we went back to Tom Lam Yai market to explore a little on our own. There we found counterfeit toys, and specifically fake legos! We spent probably an hour looking through them! It was crazy!!! We also found some beautiful bowls and dishes made from the saffron tree. The wood looks like zebra wood, and was so beautiful!

We also discovered the the other two or three floors of shops that we didn’t get to.

Our final night in Chaing Mai, we ended up on the Walking Street, which is the Saturday Night Market. We thought the other market was crazy, this one was INSANE!!!!! It started at the gates of old Chaing Mai, and went on for MILES! We started around 6 pm and by the time 7:30 came around, there were SO MANY PEOPLE! They were actually making announcements periodically to watch for pick pockets and also to not smoke, even though we were outside. This market actually had a lot of more the home made and hand crafted items as compared to the other night market, which was all mass produced, or so it seemed.

Unfortunately, we left on a Sunday, so we missed the Sunday night market hat was setting up right in front of our hotel as we were leaving for the airport. That would have been really crazy!!

All in all, we did a lot of shopping in Chaing Mai and a lot of walking. The Saturday we were on our own I logged over 22,000 steps! They were well worth it though, and the experiences were a must do.

November 5, 2018November 4, 2018

Tribal Villages and Orchid Farm

Our full day excursion started in the morning with a trip to the tribal villages in the foot hills around Chaing Mai. We toured the Hmong village, the Dara-Ang village, the Karen Long Ear Village and the Karen Long Neck village. It was crazy to see how they lived.

We also saw the rice paddy and how they harvested the rice. Pin, our guide, took us for a little jaunt through the rice paddy so we could see the different stages! It was crazy to see how they harvested the rice, which was a bit like harvesting wild rice, but also not so much…

In the Karen Long Neck Village, Pin explained that they came from Burma, but were displaced by the war there. They put the brass rings around their necks as it is their belief that the brass rings keep the tigers from attacking the women. Not only do they have brass rings around their neck, but also around their knees.

A tribal member from the Karen Long Neck Tribe.

Karen Long Neck Tribsl member and her baby.

After the villages, we went to an orchid and butterfly farm. The orchids were awesome! There were so many of them! Then we went into the butterfly farm. It was like in Costa Rica, but not as many butterflies. Unlike Costa Rica, there were a lot more varieties of butterflies to see.

One of the butterflies at the orchid and butterfly farm.

After the orchid farm, Pin took us to see the biggest market in Chaing Mai (more on that in the market post!), followed by a boat ride down the Phang Kong River. The boat ride was very telling, as there was not really any wildlife at all. No ducks, not really even any birds around. There were a lot of people fishing, but they didn’t seem to be catching anything!!!

Dried shrimp, fish, crab and squid at the Chinatown market.

The River seemed so muddy, and red from pollution and iron in the soil. I asked Pin if people swam in this river and she looked at me like I was crazy and said no!

One of the temples located on the bank of the river.

I’m super glad we took the day long excursion. We saw things we would have never seen on our own. Having Pin was invaluable!

November 4, 2018November 4, 2018

Temple Time!!!

Emerald Buddah at Wat Prathat Doi Suthep.

We spent our first full day in Chaing Mai visiting three different Buddhist Temples. It was an amazing experience. Having our own personal tour guide also helped things along!!

The first temple we visited was Wat Su Dok, which was built in the 14th century. This Wat is where a large number of the royal family is buried. They have their own area of the Wat dedicated to them.

When we arrived, our guide, Pin, explained that there was a funeral taking place that day for one of the Buddhist Monks from the temple. Apparently, only the monks are placed In caskets before they are cremated. Another monk then was talking over a loud speaker explaining the life of this monk.

This was our first experience in a Wat, so Pin walked us through what to do when you actually enter the building with Buddha in it. First, you take off your shoes. Then, you walk up to the Buddha statue get on your knees and bow your head to the floor three times. (We discovered everything in Buddhism has to do with three!!).

Pagoda at Wat Su Dok that holds Lord Buddah’s ashes.

Our next Wat was the most famous in Chaing Mai, Wat Prathat Doi Suthep. This Wat is located up in the foothills outside of Chaing Mai. Pin explained that the followers would walk for 5 1/2 hours to the temple before the road was built. After driving up to it, with the road so steep, that walk would not be for the faint of heart! The scenery was beautiful though. Located inside a National Park, we drove by three or four different water falls.

When we arrived at Wat Doi Suthep, Hubby was given the choice to walk up the 370 stairs to the temple, or take an elevator. Hubby chose the stairs. Let me tell you, when ever you are given this choice, TAKE THE ELEVATOR!!! Hubby and I trekked up the stairs, along with Pin’s intern. It was not a pleasant experience! Honestly though, I’m secretly glad we did it (although I will NEVER admit that to Hubby!!!). Once there, it was Amazing. To me, it looked like what Shangri-la would look like.

While there, we were blessed not once, but twice by two Buddhist monks. One of them even gave us a string bracelet. Pin walked us through the story of The Lord Buddha, which was painted on the wall of the temple. We also have our future told by a game that is played in the temple. It was crazy weird how good mine was. Hubby’s, not so close!

We were also able to see the whole view of Chaing Mai. The city doesn’t seem so big until you are up there!!

Our final temple was Wat Jedyod. This Temple looked like we stepped right into Lara Croft Tomb Raider. It was awesome. After leaving Wat Doi Suthep, which was insanely busy and popular, Wat Jedyod was so quiet.

The buildings, which were there before Columbus sailed the ocean blue, were somewhat overgrown and falling apart. To me, that added to the charm.

The most intact statute on the side of Wat Jedyod.

The temples are DEFINITELY. A must see in Thailand.

October 30, 2018October 30, 2018

Thailand!!!!!!

yep, that’s right folks! Thailand! We had a ton of people as Hubby and I, “why Thailand?” Our answer, “why not???”

Thailand has always been on my bucket list, between the jungles and the beautiful beaches. Hubby quite honestly thought I was crazy when I first suggested it, but luckily hubby is willing to go with some of my crazy ideas!!

Our trip takes us from Bangkok, the capital city of Thailand, to Chaing Mia, one of the northern providences, and then finally to Phuket, on of the southern islands. This two week trip includes almost 4 days of travel between getting there and coming home, time changes, and all the little flights in between. I can’t take credit for putting this one together. Our awesome travel agent did it all. We just told her Thailand and the island of Phuket, and she did the rest!!!