Hi everyone,
Well our schedule-sticking ability seems to be slipping away along with our memories of work, responsibilities, time… and we ended up spending a couple more days than we’d intended in Bangkok. This was partly because we liked it so much, but mostly because we were kept awake for most of the night by some unusually noisy Swedes the night before we were due to leave – so quite honestly we just couldn’t be bothered to get up!
Anyhow, it gave us a nice couple more days getting lounging and watching the Thais sweat it out in mass aerobics sessions in Lumphini park, plus a chance to have a really good rummage in the Chatuchak weekend market on Sunday. It’s apparently the largest market in the world (but then as we have seen, the Thais do seem slightly prone to these exaggerated claims so we’ll stand to be corrected…).
It’s a really brilliant place anyway –like a spicier Spitalfields! There’s a stall for just about everything you can imagine (from ‘strange animals’ to Buddhist relics) in a mixture of open air and covered stalls. As just a small indicator of its range, we bought some retro sunglasses, a large cowrie shell, some Tiger Balm, some green jelly biscuits, some funky Japanese coat hooks… and those were just the things that would fit in my handbag!
So we finally got to Chiang Mai (about 700km North of Bangkok) early on Monday morning instead – so early in fact that we ignored Rule 1 in the ‘How to be a Backpacker’ rule book and agreed to stay in the place we were taken to by the bus company’s taxi driver associate. But at 6am the temptation to crash in a perfectly nice and clean room with hot shower, balcony and TV, all for less than a fiver seemed too good to pass up.
On Monday we explored Chiang Mai’s old town a little - which is a lovely laid back little place – basically a network of lanes containing loads of elaborate temples, teahouses, spa/massage centres, art galleries, bookshops etc. The weather here is perfect too – it’s still sunshine all the way, but since we’re on higher ground (getting up towards Burma) you get the occasional cool breeze and cooler evenings too – which really comes as a welcome relief after the sticky-ickiness of Bangkok.
That evening, we went to visit an old school friend of Sarah’s, Rachel, who recently moved out here to set up a bar here with her fiancé, Chas. It’s a great place called Tuskers bar (www.tuskersbar.com – check it out if you’re thinking of visiting Chiang Mai!) - and with a stroke of luck we arrived just in time for quiz night, and (double-luck!) managed to join the winning team!
Yesterday we hired bicycles and went off exploring temples in the town itself and just outside into the area West at the bottom of the surrounding hills. It was a lovely day out with lots of stops for coffee and cakes etc. and then back for ‘High Tea’ at an old colonial tea house which has just been restored in the Old Town. As we returned home with pink cheeks and sore saddle bottoms we were feeling very Last of the Summer Wine!
That evening we went out for a delicious seafood and fish feast at a place in the Night Bazaar with Rachel and Chas –a lovely evening and also a great inspiration for our Thai cookery course the next day!
The course was today, and was excellent. It was held at a place 17km North of Chiang Mai itself, on a gorgeously picturesque organic farm, so we got to see how a lot of the key ingredients are grown as well as trying our hand at cooking a few of the classic dishes (curry pastes, Pad Thai, Tom Yum soup, spring rolls, mango and sticky rice…). So now Phil can burn Thai dishes as well as English ones!
We ate some of the results for lunch and still have 4 dishes left in the fridge which will serve as a useful picnic for this evening and, as a double plus, will also save us having to go out and dodge the Chinese New Year firecrackers being let off in the streets around the hotel!
Lots of love, and Happy Chinese New Year for tomorrow - especially to any Rats out there!
Sarah and Phil x x
