Chiang Mai - Palace Gardens
The view out of our hotel window. See that mountain in the distance? That’s where we spent the day.
We met in the club for breakfast at 8 o’clock. I ended up with a plate full of fruit and a plate of fried rice which was delicious. At 9:00, we headed downstairs to meet our driver for the day. I’m still blown away by the prices here. It cost each of us 200 baht to book the van and driver for the day. About $6 or $7.
Palace Gardens
We drove up the windy roads to the Palace Gardens and there we explored the marketplace and wandered through the gardens. We couldn’t get in with shorts on so the guys and some of the girls ended up buying some Thai pants. We had so much fun shopping and taking pictures! It was hysterical. Even without the Palace Gardens, the day would’ve been successful. The gardens were beautiful. So many flowers and unique lush greenery. Chris and I even found some large bamboo that was fun.
Wat Doi Suthep Temple
Our next stop was the Way Doi Suthep Buddhist temple at the top of a 350 step climb. We took pictures of the cutest kids on the way up who were decked out in ancient costumes ready for the tourists. The little girl was tired, but the little boy immediately smiled when we took his picture and then stood up and said, “Money money money!” as he approached with hand open. Chris got the whole thing on video. We gladly handed him his coin and he ran back to his mom very pleased with himself.
The temple was interesting. Every surface plated in gold.
The whole complex was beautiful. We enjoyed walking around and taking pictures and then ended our time at a table in the shade drinking different flavored Fantas - Strawberry, Orange and Tropical Fruit. There is just something about drinking Fanta in Europe.
Long Neck Karen Tribe Village
When we met our driver again he suggested we head to a market run by the Long Neck Karen Tribe. It felt a little awkward going in but was so interesting to be introduced to the culture, and support their efforts to make money.
Doi Suthep Pui National Park
Our last stop was a series of waterfalls in the National Park. It was so fun to hike from waterfall to waterfall. Just beautiful. Hard to pick which activity was my favorite of the day - but this may have been it.
It was definitely a full day. By the time we got back in the van, we were dead tired — and hungry. Back at the hotel, we quickly got ready and then headed to the Hard Rock Café for dinner. Not our best idea — but it was ok. We wandered around the night market for a while finding cooked crocodile and other crazy foods, but I didn’t last long. Exhausted, we walked back to the hotel and went to bed.