Hello and welcome to Northern Thailand part two!

At the end of the last post, you left us driving through the picturesque mountain passes on our way to Chiang Mai. We arrived, very hot and sweaty into Chiang Mai and collapsed at our hotel. Only after wobbling around and talking nonsense for a while did we realise we had heatstroke…silly us! 2.5 litres of water each later and we were starting to feel a little more human.

The following morning we had a delicious breakfast at a cutesy bakery called Angel’s Secret (never found out what she was keeping secret, but the food was a good).

We had been considering massage courses and wanted to check out the different types (what strenuous research I hear you say- yes, we know, but someone has to do it!). We went for a one-hour foot massage that Chloe loved but I found too painful due to a rare condition I suffer from called Totalwussitus. (which is very serious ailment and totally not made up to make me feel better about being a wimp about a massage).

In the evening we set out to the Chiang Mai Night Bazaar, hoping it would have the charm of Chiang Rai’s Night Bazaar. Unfortunately, this was not the case. Aside from a few nice little stalls, it was a complete tourist trap and not worth the 45 minute round trip to get there. However, on the way home the heavens opened and we were treated to our first tropical thunderstorm! It was an utter deluge, so we sought shelter under a shop’s awning, then ran for it.

The evening was salvaged by a very tasty meal at Cooking Love. James had a pineapple green curry and Chloe had Huang Lui pork curry, her favourite northern Thai dish (in fact, she bought 12 packets of special Thai masala curry powder just so she can make it at home!)

The following day we had our first of two massage courses at Namo Massage and Yoga– head and neck. Our teacher, who also doubles as this small studio’s receptionist was sweet, patient and good humoured. We really enjoyed learning something we can do to help one another relax when we rotate back to the ‘real world’.

In the afternoon we hung out of our lovely roof terrace and as the sun went down the gin came out. We went off for a lovely Indian meal close-by and crawled into bed for late night giggling and drawing silly cartoons (anyone who knows me, knows that I may be blessed with many gifts, but artist ability is not one one them…)

The next day we returned to Namo for our second course, foot massage and reflexology. This was much more challenging for James, as the movements required were more precise and the target areas smaller. We used some lovely smelling oil and had a lovely time relaxing one another.

After lunch (brilliant noodle soup at our favourite little place), we drove out on our one remaining scooter to the Chiang Mai Zoo. This has to be the most challenging zoo to navigate on foot. At first, we pooh-poohed those visitors who hopped on and off a mini-van, taking in only the ‘headliners’. After walking up and down hills in humid 36 degree heat for several hours, we could see their thinking…

On our way home we stopped off at a small night market outside a shopping centre and had the best gyoza we’ve ever had and far too much chocolate milk.

On Friday it was ‘Cooking Class and Temple Day’! We were picked up by a songthaw (like a van turned into a minibus, with seats facing each other) at 8.15am and went out to a market on the outskirts of town. Our teacher, the lovely Mae, was very knowledgeable about the local produce and how to pick the best ingredients. Then we hopped back into the songthaw and drove out to her rural home for our cooking lesson.

The food was amazing and she was astonishing! She span around the room like a diminutive Thai whirlwind guiding us in creating the best dishes we could- a little more water there, a quick stir there. The results were delicious and we were presented with recipe books that had been personalised with photos of our group on the cover.

 

 

On our return to the city we toured the local temples, including one made from ‘silver’ (it was mostly aluminium and only finished in 2016!) The last one we visited was a beautiful old ruin of what must have been the centre of the city, back in the day. At the site we found the old City Pillar of Chiang Mai, which it is said was first erected by King Mangrai at the founding of the city in 1296 AD. All we knew was that Chloe wasn’t allowed to go into it as her ovaries could destabilise the city and cause untold destruction to the social, and economic stability of the region. (I’ve always had my suspicions).

Saturday we hung out at a cafe until it was time for us to get our first night train to the airport for Cambodia!

Until next time!

Love the Backpack Duo x

By Chloe

With a heavy heart, we left the beautiful beaches and crystal clear seas of Tioman Island, ready to move on to the next leg of our trip! A two-hour ferry ride, six-hour sleeper bus, one-hour taxi ride, two-hour flight later and another 45-minute taxi…. (pheww!) and we were finally in Chang Mai, Northern Thailand.

We’d been told that March/ April is pretty much one of the worst times to visit Northern Thailand because it’s a) just before the wet season and so very dry and hot, b) It’s not as green and lush as it can be in January and February, and c) It can be very hazy as the farmers burn their rice fields ready for re-planting. However, we loved it! The scenery was still stunning, even if it was a little less green than it would have been, and although it was hot, it wasn’t as humid as we were expecting, which was a bonus!

Chiang Mai

We spent the first few days in Chiang Mai getting acclimatized and sorting ourselves out with new helmets, protective gloves and hiring scooters for the first leg of our tour! Chiang Mai is beautiful – we stayed in the old center, which is surrounded by a crumbling, old red earth brick wall and a moat. The small streets inside are filled with cafes and shops that perfectly cater to the laid back and slightly hippy travelers that find their way this far north.

Before we started on our motorbike tour, I just want to say…Thai food is just outstanding! We’re both massive foodies, and Thai food has without a doubt been the tastiest, cheapest, yummiest food we’ve eaten on this trip so far, and the 18 days we spent in Thailand were some of the best (gastronomically) ever!

Chiang Dao
Our first stop on our northern Thailand tour was to the sleepy town of Chiang Dao, in the shadow of a beautiful mountain, filled with amazing caves! We stayed in a beautiful little bamboo hut looking out over the mountain and were serenaded each night with the buzz of cicadas, croak of geckos, and mechanical sawing sounds of mating frogs (noisy bastards!)

We had a guided tour of some of the outstanding Chiang Dao caves – with just a little gas lamp and a petite Thai lady as a guide (who must have been half mountain goat), we were led through nooks and crannies, through tiny holes and across massive caverns filled with bats. It was amazing!

Chiang Dao is also home to the most bizarre temple we have ever come across….the torture temple. The grotesque and distended statues of torture were covered in blood, situated right by a cafe, and were used as a climbing frame for small children – I mean, what else would they be used for!

 

 

We did, however, happen to stumble across an amazing procession and religious celebration whilst at the temple complex. Everyone was wearing their finest, carrying colourful twigs filled with string and fabric, and carrying poles of pots and pans (we think to maybe be blessed, or just for the amazing noise they made).

Fang
We packed up our bikes and off we went to Fang- a few hours drive north of Chiang Dao. Fang has a beautiful national park called the Doi Fah Hom Pok National Park, with the park’s visitor centre surrounded by a natural spring, a geyser, sauna and mineral baths. We spent a beautiful day relaxing in the shade of manicured grounds, chilling out in the mineral baths and sauna, and having a go at boiling some eggs in the hot springs!

We finished off our time in Fang with a visit to an All-You-Can eat BBQ restaurant. Each table was given their own charcoal pit and metal grill, and you could cook your own food and drink as much as you’d like for a staggering £2.70 per person. Perfect!

Chiang Rai
After Fang, we got on our bikes again and made the three hour trip to Chiang Rai for a brief stop-over. It happened to coincide with James’ birthday, so we went all out! ‘All Out’ obviously means that we had to visit a cat cafe for breakfast, the most over the top white Hellscape temple, and then head to the most stunning 4-star hotel nestled in the mountains bordering Myanmar, just in time for dinner!

 

Phu Chaisai Mountain resort and spa was just another world – the view from our bamboo suite was stunning, the infinity pool was beautiful, and the food (ohhh the food)! We massively splurged for dinner as a treat for James’ birthday and blew a day and a half’s budget just on dinner…but what a dinner it was. It has to be one of the best meals either of us had ever eaten in our life! The staff at the hotel were welcoming, helpful and charming. As we’d splurged so much the previous night we decided we should have a packed dinner of cuppa noodles and biscuits for the following dinner (oh how the mighty fall), and the manager, having heard of our plight, sent us down a complimentary chocolate fondant….just because! We would visit here again in a shot; it was beautiful and so chilled.

Phayao
Feeling rested, we set off on a rather over-ambitious five-hour drive down to Phayao. Now, so far, we’ve resisted commenting on Thai driving and roads…but it was tough going. You needed to have all your wits about you, and drivers generally don’t check before pulling out, and people would undertake and overtake on very unsafe stretches of roads. We were incredibly glad that we’d taken our CBT (Compulsory Basic Training) for mopeds before we arrived in Thailand. Otherwise, I’m sure neither of us would have felt up to the challenge of staying upright (and alive) on our bikes whilst exploring Thailand by scooter.

Anyway! It was this five hour drive which convinced us that our road-trip time had come to an end – driving took to much mental energy, and being in constant fear that you’re going to die in a horrible road accident (we came across the aftermath of at least three whilst driving about), convinced us we should cut our road trip short and head back to explore Chiang Mai in more detail.

Phayo was beautiful, situated right by the side of a lake- not many tourists stop off here for longer than to see said lake- and it was a great place to chill our for a day, and explore the lively markets and food stalls at the weekly market.

The following day we got back on our scooters for the final leg and scooted back to Chiang Mai along some stunning mountain roads, with views across the lake and into the jungle-strewn mountains. Our road trip had been an amazing assault on the senses, but it definitely wasn’t a chilled out affair, and now it was time to relax and spend some down time in Chiang Mai before heading off to Cambodia to meet up with Chloe’s parents!

With love, The Backpack Duo x