Heading north in the land of smiles

(By Annie)

After our Thanksgiving Day in Bangkok we headed to the northern capital Chiang Mai. Much like Benin we had heard the south was crazy and the north calm, cool, and collected. Chiang Mai did not disappoint, in fact it all started at the train station. Upon arrival, we were greeted by the cutest Thai grandma, who offered us a cheap room and a free ride to the hotel. Sold! However, we still hesitated, wanted to figure out the catch, that is why we love Thailand, there is no catch. Well, just one or two, the cheapest rooms were on the 7th floor and the pool was more like a water feature.

We settled into our $5 room, found food, and then crashed suffering the effects of the 18 hour train ride. Side note here, to save money, we are “sleeping” on seats which resemble the Chicago L train. They are the perfect size for Thai women but neither Rachael nor I could fit more than our elbow lying down. Rachael finally contorted herself into a chair and I just said screw it and took up the isle with my feet. Hey, a girl’s got to sleep, right.

That night we actually motivated enough to go out and see a little bit of town. AND finally take in that much sought after rugby game. New Zealand killed England and it was fun to for a moment we forgot we were in Thailand on vacation. There were so many ex-pats there it was literally standing room only.

Day two was devoted to taking in the historical sites. So basically more wats or temples. Seeing the Buddha in every position and made of every material possible just doesn’t get old. The highlight of our evening was the Sunday night market, which was HUGE. Imagine Taste of Chicago or for your lesser informed individuals a food and music extravaganza. We did some shopping for Christmas Gifts (You guys better start posting if you want one too!:)) and even took in some Thai pop music. Although it ended up that we were at a protest rally, but hey who knew. We thought the red was for World AIDS day.

On our last day, we had a lazy morning and then stuffed our faces with some amazing Mexican food. We took in one more Wat and then taxied to the tribal museum. At the museum we watched this wonderful documentary film detailing the six main ethnic groups that live in the hills all around of Chiang Mai. Since we didn’t have enough time to visit them ourselves this was a great way to get to know a little more about the north from afar.

We got back into the city and then headed west towards the two Universities in Chiang Mai. One is a Buddhist University and at the nearby temple they host an English monk chat. Basically it was a conversation time for tourists to ask questions and the monks to practice their English. This was soooo cool and rivals all our other experiences in Thailand. After our monk chat we did what any self-respecting boozer does and headed over to the bar. We reveled in the free wifi and cheap beers. A great night in Thailand and a wonderful end to our three-day stint in the northern capital.