Compared to the south, northern Thailand felt much cooler, and dare I say, quieter. I’m sure I could’ve spend way more time in the north, but my 2 and a half weeks let me see most of the major sites, while still taking it easy.
Chiang Mai
One says that you haven’t seen Chiang Mai until you’ve visited the Doi Suthep Temple. Its located about 15 km from the city center, perched up on top of a hill. There are a bunch of Songtaews that can take you up there, or if you’re feeling energetic, you can hike up. I actually saw some trail runners job up there. I’m not sure how they did it, because just walking up at a slow and steady pace, made me extremely hot and sweaty… and this was November, when it is suppose to be “cooler” already. I can’t imagine what it’s like during the middle of summer. The temple is very beautiful with all it’s gold finishings, and the view from the top, looking down at Chiang Mai is very gorgeous. Definitely worth the trip up!
Muay Thai boxing is a big thing in Thailand. This was my first time watching a live boxing match, so I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. And to be honest, I wasn’t quite sure what the rules were. But needless to say, the men were much smaller, thinner, and younger than I thought. There were several matches, which alternated boys and girls matches. The girls’ match was actually quite entertaining, and they were much cattier and feistier. The boys would dance around each other a little bit, trying to figure each other out before taking the first hit, whereas the girls would just go straight in, all in. For intermission (and entertainment for the audience?), they got a bunch of guys out on the ring and blindfolded them. They were like blind mice just taking random swings at each other.
Of course, with my love of food, I just had to do another cooking class. Especially because I heard that northern Thai food is quite different than southern Thai food. I took a full day class with Siam Rice Thai Cookery School. I was so impressed at how organized everything was! They picked me up at my hostel in the morning and drove us to a market and introduced some of the traditional Thai ingredients. When we arrived at the school, we got to choose dishes we wanted to make. Because I was doing the full day, I had 8 dishes to choose, from soup to curry to dessert and more! Everything was so delicious! At the end of it, we got a full recipe book of all the dishes that they offered! Now, the question is if I can execute it again when I get back to Canada…
After all that food, I figured I needed to work it off somehow. So why not go climbing with Chiang Mai Rock Climbing Adventures, and get out of the city, get some fresh air, and try to get over my fear of heights while I’m at it? I joined the “learn to climb” course, as I have only climbed a handful of times, a long time ago. Meaning, I remembered nothing. I was lucky to be the only person in my class, so I had all the climbing time to myself with two very fun and informative instructors. It was such an amazing experience and I got to meet such great people from around the world. We all climbed aboard a Songtaew, and 45 minutes later, we arrived at our climbing spot – Crazy Horse Buttress. The weather was perfect and the air was fresh. I couldn’t ask for anything more at that moment.
I found outdoor climbing to be a very exhilarating experience, that puts your strength and willpower to test. But there is nothing like the feeling you get when you reach the top.
I was so fortunate to be in Chiang Mai for their annual Lantern Festival. Due to the death of the late King (God bless him), the festival was toned down a bit, but it was still so incredible! Around the city, they had lanterns set up and they would light them in the evening. At certain areas, you can also purchase large lanterns that an be lit and sent up into the sky, lighting up the entire sky. It was so beautiful and felt very magical. Along the Ping River, people float little hand crafted bowls made of either leaves or bread or ice cream cones, with a lit candle on the top, down the river. The idea is to make a wish, and send it down the river. They use edible material so that the fish in the river can eventually eat it once it sinks. It was truly an incredible sight, and I feel very fortunate to have experienced the Lantern Festival, especially since I didn’t even know about it until people told me about it when I arrived.
Pai
Such a hippie town. That’s the first thing I got when I arrived after a hand clenched ride up. The road to Pai is infamous for it’s 70+ curves and turns. So if one is prone to motion sickness, I suggest spending a little more and taking a flight there. Pai is speckled with coffee shops, expats, people with dreadlocks, etc. It’s a wonderfully laid back town, and you can’t help me just slow down, relax, and enjoy life. I joined a day tour that went to the Lod Caves, the hot springs, and a sunset view at the canyon. The caves were quite impressive and exceeded my expectations. The caves seemed to have gone forever like a maze with all the stalactites and stalagmites. A lady with a lamp took 3 people at a time into the caves, so that we don’t get lost (trust me, it would totally be possible). There were steep stairs to go up and down into different nook and crannies of the caves. But careful, there are many bats, therefore, a lot of bat droppings on the handrails and cave floors. The lady would point out certain stalactites/stalagmites and say that it looked like objects like an elephant, popcorn, etc. In the middle of the caves there was a creek crossing where we all climbed aboard a bamboo raft to get to the other side. A man would be in the back rowing or diverting us into the correct direction, but when we were travelling a bit upstream, he would get out, hike up his pants, and manually pull us to the correct location.
The hot springs was a nice end to a long day of walking around in the damp caves. Especially because right after we exited the caves to walk back for lunch, it was pouring rain… it felt like buckets of water was just being dumped on us from the sky. The hot springs was quite a popular tourist destination, but I can see why! The temperature of the water was perfect and was located amongst the rocks and felt very natural.
Unfortunately it was slightly overcast, so the sunset was a little obscured. However, the view of the canyon was still very beautiful and serene.
Pai has a street that turns into a walking street in the evening, where all the food street vendors come together. The selection of food is amazing! It ranges from tranditional Thai food, to Italian like pizza and lasanga, to indian food, and much more! The weather was not cooperating and it began to really pour. I was fortunate enough to spot a traditional northern thai dessert stand and basically hid under their pavilion and tried one of everything. Hey, it was raining and I had to get out of the rain anyways!
Before catching my bus back to Chiang Mai in the morning, I decided to be a hero and run to the white Buddha that is up on a hill. Distance wise it was not far, but I didn’t realize that there were that many steps. It was actually a pretty fun, refreshing run. However, there was construction happening, so there was a lot of scaffolding which took away the beauty of the white Buddha.
Chiang Rai
Known for the White Temple (Wat Rong Khun). I decided to try my hand at taking the local bus there which costs only 20 bhat. The old bus terminal in Chiang Rai doesn’t have clear signs and although I read that the bus to the white temple is located on platform 8, there was no sign there, so I sort of had to mime my way through it to get on the right bus. As soon as I saw the White Temple, which was designed by Chaloemchai Khositphiphat, I got a sense of purity and serenity. The detail of the temple is so beautiful with its silver trimmings.
…until I took a closer look and saw these sculptures of hands coming out from the ground under the bridge. When I got back to my hotel, I googled to find out what that was all about. Apparently, its symbolism of having to suffer in life and go through hard times before being able to reach purity/heaven.
The Black House or Temple is also another tourist destination, though not as famous and well known as the White Temple, and designed by Thawan Duchanee. To get there, one can also take the bus from the Old bus station in Chiang Rai at Platform 5 (if you can find it). I didn’t have any expectations beforehand, nor did I know anything about it. The Black House is more of an art display than a temple, and drastically different from the White Temple. Obviously, the colour is different, but the mood is a lot darker as well. There are several black houses in the compound, with a few of them that you can enter. The largest house that is located at the entrance, and in there is a display of animal skulls, crocodile skin, and buffalo horns.
Northern Thailand is so beautiful and is definitely a place to come back to, especially since there are still so many places to explore! I have to admit though, I say “I have to come back here one day!” about many places…
One Hungry Explorer 