Our 5-6 days in Chiang Mai were plagued with a bit of bad luck for our travel comrade Denis. After a few setbacks, we ended up staying in Chiang Mai a bit longer than planned and delayed our crossover into Laos (but we did get to spend some time in Pai! Which was awesome. More on that later.).
Chiang Mai was way busier than we expected. Lots of traffic and it really lacked the 'Thai' character we had experienced nearly everywhere else in Thailand. Maybe we set our expectations too high...all I read was how much backpackers loved this place.
Ok I admit it, I didn't like Chiang Mai that much. There were two great things about it. The first was our highly recommended Thai cooking class at Basil Cookery. The second was hopping on a motorbike and getting the hell out of Chiang Mai. The hills around Chiang Mai are lush and beautiful...and, even though the water is pretty chilly, I swam in a waterfall :).
Oh and how could I forget the skewered garlic cloves I saw at the local market? GENIUS.
Chiang Mai was way busier than we expected. Lots of traffic and it really lacked the 'Thai' character we had experienced nearly everywhere else in Thailand. Maybe we set our expectations too high...all I read was how much backpackers loved this place.
Ok I admit it, I didn't like Chiang Mai that much. There were two great things about it. The first was our highly recommended Thai cooking class at Basil Cookery. The second was hopping on a motorbike and getting the hell out of Chiang Mai. The hills around Chiang Mai are lush and beautiful...and, even though the water is pretty chilly, I swam in a waterfall :).
Oh and how could I forget the skewered garlic cloves I saw at the local market? GENIUS.
that temple looks gorgeous.
ReplyDeleteand that onion satay! haha
Funny enough Chiang Mai has never been high on my list of must visit places in Thailand - despite having heard good things. But - your pictures make it look gorgeous! Jurgen and I are thinking of heading to SE Asia for our honeymoon - if we do I'm coming to you for all the tips. Laos will definitely be on the itinerary!
ReplyDeleteRenting motorbikes looks like fun!! I love your pictures!
ReplyDeleteI visited Chiang Mai in the 90's and I don't remember it being busy at all. I suppose things have changed quite a bit there since then!