Brit in Bangkok

Chiang Mai - Day Three

   

 

Two cool temples in the Thapae area of Chiang Mai - love the wooden one!

Monday was our last day in Chiang Mai, so we got up early and went to Ninety Four Coffee for breakfast.  Stayed there a couple of hours, checked out of the hotel, then took a tuk-tuk to Thapae so we could visit some of the shops we'd seen the night before at the Walking Street Market.  Tua had bought a really cool chalk board and decided she wanted to buy more for gifts - so of course I ended up buying one too :-)

We ate lunch at a place that was highly recommended by Rough Guide - Ratana's Kitchen - excellent Western food and Tua said the Thai food was good too and cheap!.  After lunch, we visited a jewelry shop I always buy at and spent a couple of thousand baht between us on earrings, bracelets and various gifts for people.  Starbucks was the next stop (where I took photos of a customer that had incredibly cool hair!) .....

then Aim picked us up and drove us out of Chiang Mai to a large market that sold dried fruit and vegetables. I bought bags of pickled dried cherries (delicious!), jujubees (like dates but not, but scrumptious), and dried sour plums (yum!) Thais love food so they were great things to take back to Bangkok for gifts for various Thai friends too!

Then onto a hidden market for pork rinds and sausage and I bought a bag to take all my extra stuff home. 

Tua and Aim at the local market - stop shopping!

We picked up Aim's boyfriend at the airport (he's a pilot for Thai Airways) and he took us all out for dinner to Riverside.  Riverside is a nice restaurant on the river front, great views, but extremely mediocre food. 

 

Aim and Noi at Riverside Restaurant, Chiang Mai

Later we went on to the Night Market for last minute gifts and I ate again there - cheap Thai food - delicious!

Air Asia had text messaged me earlier to say our flight was delayed one hour (typical Air Asia!) so we didn't leave Chiang Mai until almost midnight.  I got home at 1:45 am (traffic from Suvarnabhumi is non-existent at that time of night), just in time for a few hours sleep then on into work. 

Really wonderful time in Chiang Mai though.  Can't wait to go back!

Chiang Mai - Second Day (Part Two)

 

Songtaew Wall Painting at Iberry Ice Cream, Chiang Mai

In the afternoon, we decided to walk around the Nimmanhemin Road neighborhood as there are tons of coffee shops, restaurants, art galleries and shops.  We stopped off for ice cream at Iberry (one of the prettiest Iberry shops I've ever seen!), bought candles at a lovely handmade candle shop, and then I bought handmade pottery at a pottery studio (four cups and a big bowl).  

We had an early dinner at Black Canyon Coffee and back to the hotel for a quick nap before Tua's friend, Aim, and her boyfriend, Noi, picked us up to go to the Walking Street Market.The Walking Street Market is at the Thapae Gate and, as they block off several city blocks, it's ENORMOUS. 

They sell everything - shoes, handmade pillow cases, dolls, food, dried fruit, handmade soaps, clothing, belts, bags, purses, art, OTOP products - pretty much anything you can think of, and all at prices about 50% of the Night Market.  The place was absolutely packed with people, so walking the full length of the market just looking at stalls on one side took over 2 hours.  Then we turned around and walked back looking at the stalls at the other side.  I bought pillow covers, 2 dolls, handmade soaps, a pottery bowl, a bag, two paintings, two handmade photo frames, 3 pairs of slippers, 2 shawls, and tons of other stuff.  We also snacked on chicken and pineapple skewers, fried bananas, and had iced lattes and fruit juice.  Great night!  Didn't get home until after midnight, but we bought so much stuff it was well worth it.

Chiang Mai - Second Day (Part One)

Ninety Four Coffee, Chiang Mai

On Sunday in Chiang Mai we decided to have a lazy morning.  We ate breakfast at the hotel in the lovely little outdoor restaurant (breakfast was included in the price of the room) and then we settled in at Ninety Four Coffee, just down the street from our hotel. Tua got on her laptop to do some work while I hit the internet.  Ninety Four Coffee offers you a free hour's internet for every purchase (unlike Starbucks which charges you 150 baht per hour ($4.25) - ridiculously expensive!) so I spent 3 hours on the net.  I had two lattes and a piece of blueberry cheesecake for breakfast, and a ham and cheese sandwich and salad and another latte for lunch.  We arrived at 9:30 am and left at 1:30pm.  A nice relaxing time and for not much money.

Chiang Mai - First Day

Wawee Coffee, near Four Seasons Hotel, Chiang Mai

I just got back from an amazing 3 day holiday in Chiang Mai.  I went up there with my friend, Tua, and we stayed at a new hotel that was recommended by a friend of hers who's a Chiang Mai resident.  The hotel was The Empire hotel and was absolutely fabulous.  Only 1,300 baht a night (about $36.50) for an enormous serviced apartment room with flat screen TV, refrigerator, coffee maker, a huge bathroom, an enormous balcony and all incredibly clean.  We also got a great deal on Air Asia (round trip for less than $70), so the whole weekend was very cheap.

On Saturday morning, we arrived early and were picked up by Tua's friend Aim, who took us to the Wawee Coffee shop near the Four Seasons Hotel just outside Chiang Mai.  It was the most beautiful cafe I've ever been to with delicious cakes and a gorgeous view of the surrounding fields and mountains. 

Tua at one of the many cool coffee shops we found off Nimmanhemin Road

Afterwards, we went to the hotel, then walked around the Nimmanhemin Road area outside the hotel - which is stuffed with beautiful coffee shops, art galleries, restaurants and boutiques.  Later on, we took a songtaew (open-sided pick up truck) and went off to the Night Market where we shopped and had dinner.

Our first day in Chiang Mai was very fun.  The second day was even better........

The Rabbit Group

I just love how my rabbits all cram in together when they want to relax or sleep.  For some weird reason though, they don't seem to like the brown rabbit, and I don't know why because she is the sweetest.  The other three are Mum, Dad and baby and the brown one is the second baby - maybe she's the black sheep of the family, and that's why they're not fans of hers?

One of my AC articles

I write for Associated Content and recently had an article published about having boobs in Asia.  Basically, if you have boobs in Asia, buying anything that fits your boobs is a nightmare - and that includes bras, shirts, jackets - anything that larger than a size 34B will fit into. 

Big boobs in Asia

In the Bathroom

I always laugh every time I go into any bathroom in Thailand. It's always full of Thai girls preening at the mirror (Thai women take a looooong time in the bathroom - must drive Thai men nuts!), putting on make-up, making cell phone calls or generally just admiring themselves.

I snapped this photo one weekday at MBK mall in Bangkok.  A gaggle of school girls, all in their cute uniforms, putting on make-up and taking up the whole mirror and wash basin area.  Just had to take a photo! They all giggled after the photo was snapped, then went right back to what they were doing. :-)

Garlic

Here is a stall that sells garlic, only garlic, at one of my local markets.  I went there a few weeks ago with my friend Sue

The market is higher priced than a lot of other markets for most products, but the quality is good.You also buy everything direct from the growers, which is nice as it means they get more of the money

Love My Job

I just have to keep saying, I love my job.  I've never worked anywhere where people are so nice, so friendly and so kind.  Going to work is incredibly fun.  I enjoy every day I go into work and, on the weekends, I actually miss the people I work with.  Crazy, eh? :-)

Sky Trains

I love the sky trains in Bangkok.  Where the underground trains are boring, the sky trains are always covered in bright advertisements.  This one is covered in an ad for a drink. The platform is empty because I took the photo late at night, so only a couple of people got off the sky train with me at Mo Chit.

New Articles on Associated Content

I'm still writing articles for Associated Content and these are some of my latest ones talking about places you can go in Bangkok if you want to hear some live music, Madonna's would-be adoption, and Suvarnabhumi Airport. 

Where to Find the Best Live Music in Bangkok

Suvarnabhumi Airport

Madonna's Would-Be Adoption

Restaurants on Khao San Road