Thailand: The Rose of the North

After our quick trip (long layover?) in Bangkok, we got on the road to Chiang Mai.  We really lucked out with some great travel tips from some of the other families at Osan.  One of them paying off with the hotel in Chiang Mai.  There aren't enough adjectives to describe how utterly fantastic Yaang Come is.  

View from our front door

Then again, there aren't enough for Chiang Mai either.  It is such a vibrant city with a laid-back vibe.  Over breakfast, we decided to hire a car for the day and tour some of the sites around town.  First up: Tiger Kingdom.  A friend of ours recommended heading there if we had time - and I'm really glad we made time.  The draw of Tiger Kingdom is that you get to go in the enclosure and touch the tigers and take all sorts of pictures.  The whole family went to the baby tigers.  One of them was loving on Sarah, laying all over her and even licked her toes when she yawned.  Of course, that's not necessarily a good idea, so they straightened the tiger up quickly.  After we got done with the baby tigers, Ronnie and I went in with the 2 year old tigers. 

Left: the tiger laying on Sarah; Right: our family photo op

After Tiger Kingdom, we wanted to head to one of the many waterfalls Chiang Mai has in the area.  We visited Mae Sa waterfall. The hike was relatively easy, we couldn't have asked for more perfect weather or a more beautiful area.

After a good hike into the 8th fall, we headed back to our driver and decided to check out the silver factory in San Kamphaeng.  San Kamphaeng has a lot of artisan showrooms and have the factory set up where you can see how they make everything.  First up was the silver factory. The girls were enthralled with watching the workers make the different items.  They were working on Pandora bracelet beads that day, and the girls had to be peeled away.  We also checked out the silk factory that was nearby.  Again, the girls were amazed by the silk worms, cocoons and how they wove the silk by hand.  It was starting to get late, so we headed back to our hotel to rest up a little. 

Left: watching them make molds for silver beads; Right: the silk weavers.

After a quick nap and a change of clothes, we headed out around town.  We headed to Wua Lai road to check out some of the silver stores there and then walked along the Old City Wall.  The Old City was set in a perfect square with the walls oriented to the cardinal points.  Then they dug a moat around the city and people would enter Chiang Mai after crossing the moats on bamboo bridges which could be withdrawn at night.   Eventually, we hailed a tuk-tuk and set off for the Night Market area. 

We were there early so we could grab some dinner and watch the set up.  As we ate dinner, it was amazing to watch the place come alive.  There were trinkets and clothing, fabrics and food.  So much to look at and just fun to get out and barter.  We picked up a few items and headed back as we had a big day planned for the next day. 

Left: Holly and Sarah's favorite motorcycle; Right: the South Gate

Left: the girls at the Old City wall; Right: the Night Market

We woke up early Tuesday morning, as we were getting picked up to spend the day at Patara Elephant Farm.  Yet again I am left speechless for the experience we had with the elephants and the staff of Patara.  We were able to meet up with our friends JoAan and Jason, who were also on "holiday" in Thailand after the TDY.  My elephant, Mae Com, is a 33 year old female who had a mind of her own, but was extremely sweet with the girls.  Ronnie's elephant, Boom Pak, is a 19 year old male.  We fed them, bathed them, took them for a walk, fed them some more, and walked them some more.  It was a once in a lifetime experience and one that I would do again if I ever got the opportunity.

Left:  Ronnie and Holly meeting the babies: Right: Us and our elephants

To cap off our time in Chiang Mai, Ronnie and I arranged for a sitter through our hotel so we could have some time on our own to explore the city.   The girls snuggled in and watched a movie while we headed to the market.  Ronnie and I walked around, bartered for goods, and got a fruit smoothie.  I took full advantage of the 70 Bhat 30 minute foot massages ($2.30) while Ronnie looked for a shirt.  I was spent from our day so we retired to bed early. 

Our last morning in Chiang Mai was bitter sweet.  Ronnie took the girls swimming for a bit after breakfast while I finished packing up.  Finally, the time had come to head to the airport.  The staff at the hotel was so incredibly sweet and the girls were sad to say goodbye.  One of their favorite girls even came with us to the airport to help out and give the girls big hugs.  But we had to be on our way to other parts of Thailand; namely Phuket and Kata Noi.

Left: the market; Right: Saying goodbye at the airport.