Posts Tagged With: Chiang Mai

Day 9 – From Chiang Mai to Singapore

Posted on July 20, 2023 by Greg

Tuesday, July 11, 2023 – Today was a travel day as we made our way to Bali for the second half of our Southeast Asia vacation. As part of our flight plan we scheduled a 20 hour layover in Singapore to give us an opportunity to explore and experience a new city.

With a late afternoon departure we had some time to walk around Chiang Mai one last time to see one of the old city gates, do some shopping, and grab another iced Thai tea.

We arrived in Singapore around 8:00 pm after a three hour flight from Chiang Mai. Fortunately this was only a one hour time change, so no adjustment was necessary. While our luggage remained checked through to Bali, we rushed out of the airport with just our carry-on bags to see the 9:00 pm nightly water and light show in front of the Marina Bay Sands casino. Karen read that the best place to see it is from Level 33, a craft brewery on the 33rd floor of a business building. After the fact we realized that being 33 floors up to see a water and light show that is only 4 stories high requires you to be sitting at the edge of the outdoor seating. So this was a planning fail – we did not see the water and light show but we were able to have a late light dinner while sampling a beer at the “world’s highest urban microbrewery.”

While there we took in the magnificent view of the Singapore night skyline. Then we checked in and dropped off our bags at the nearby Singapore Westin and headed out for a walk to explore the Marina Bay area and see the Singapore Merlion. After a day of walking and traveling we were quite tired, but planned an early morning to get up and explore Singapore before resuming our trip to Bali.

Categories: Thailand and Bali - July 2023 | Tags: Chiang Mai, Singapore, Thailand, Travel | Leave a comment

Day 8 – Happy Elephant Home, a day we will not forget.

Posted on July 18, 2023 by Greg

Monday, July 10, 2023 – One of our main reasons for traveling to Chiang Mai was to go to an elephant preserve. Although they only host and take care of 4 elephants, our day at the Happy Elephant Home was amazing.

@HappyElephantHome is about an hour outside of Chiang Mai. We were picked up at our hotel and transported with several other people to Happy Elephant Home. Along the way we passed several other elephant preserves. Unfortunately, there are many places that still mistreat elephants today. In some cases the elephants were not abused, but not able to be cared for when the owner lost work during the pandemic. Happy Elephant Home has tried to buy additional elephants, but the price can be 2 Million Thai Baht or more.

When we arrived we were given our “Karen clothes” for the day: one size fits all loose pants and a shirt to put over our bathing suits so we won’t get our own clothes dirty. Then out to the elephants with a shoulder bag full of bananas. All of the visitors for the day (17 for the morning) were divided into four groups. We had an opportunity to meet, feed, and get to know each of the four elephants. Elephants love bananas!

After providing the elephants with their morning snack, we led them on a walk down to the river where they could cool off and bathe. Karen got in on the action with her bucket. After a rocky entrance into the river she had fun helping to give an elephant a bath.

We then took another casual walk back to Happy Home (elephants take their time walking) where the elephants could graze while we had our lunch.

Several members of the group left after lunch, but we stayed for the full day experience. One of the elephants at Elephants Happy Home is a little undernourished so our afternoon started with making a mixture of bananas, corn powder, and salt. After smashing these ingredients together with a lever mortar and pestle, we took handfuls to make large “meatballs” that we could feed to this elephant. The trick was to hold the food up to the elephants eye so she could see what you had, and then pop it right onto her open mouth.

Our last chore for the day was to lead the elephants to a big pit for an afternoon mud bath. Fortunately, a man in our group and his 11 year old daughter volunteered to go down into the mud pit to assist with the process so the rest of us could watch and enjoy the elephants waiting their turn. Once in the mud the helpers covered the elephant bellies with mud. Some of the elephants used their trunks to throw mud and dirt on their backs. The mud acts as sunscreen and insect repellent until they bathe in the river the next day.

We thoroughly enjoyed our Happy Elephant Home experience, lifetime memories for sure. After a van ride back to the hotel (at breakneck speed…driving is very different here) we had a little down time at our hotel pool before some time at the spa and dinner.

Categories: Thailand and Bali - July 2023 | Tags: Chiang Mai, elephants, Thailand, Travel | Leave a comment

Day 7 – Doi Suthep-Pui National Forest & Sunday Street Market

Posted on July 18, 2023 by Greg

Sunday, July 9, 2023 – This morning we set out to explore and potentially do some hiking in the Doi Suthep-Pui National Forest outside of Chiang Mai.

Our Grab driver taking us to the forest ended up being our ride for the day. He was willing to wait an hour or two at each of our stops. I believe he appreciated the off-app fare.

Our first stop was Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, a Buddhist temple that sits at the top of a mountain inside the National Park. To reach the temple you climb a large staircase with long serpent figures on both sides. The view over Chiang Mai is fantastic.

On the way down the mountain we stopped by the Montha Than Waterfall. I encourage you to listen to the video with your sound up. The sounds from the insects in the forest were astounding.

After lunch and a change of clothes we ventured into town to the Let’s Relax spa. This time we tried an aromatherapy massage and Japanese body scrub…much more enjoyable than Thai massage in our opinion. Massages in Thailand are very common and very inexpensive, so we took advantage of this treat often!

As if Saturday night was not enough, Chiang Mai also has a Sunday night street market that is bigger than Saturday’s. After a day of steps and walking and a relaxing massage we enjoyed a cocktail overlooking the street, grabbed some yummy food from street vendors and then did a little shopping.

Categories: Thailand and Bali - July 2023 | Tags: Chiang Mai, Thailand, Travel | 2 Comments

Day 6 – Jim Thompson House and Chiang Mai

Posted on July 16, 2023 by Greg

Saturday, July 8, 2023 – Today we were preparing to fly to Chiang Mai. Our flight was not until the afternoon so we spent the morning taking a tour of the Jim Thompson House Museum. Jim Thompson was an American who visited Bangkok in the late 1940s while in the military and saw a tremendous opportunity to organize the production of silk. He is credited with tremendously growing the silk trade and is also known as the “Thai Silk King.”

The house was built in 1958-1959. It is a design by Mr. Thompson, a trained architect, himself. He purchased several small Thai teak houses that were disassembled, transported to Bangkok and then reassembled into his house. The grounds include some beautiful gardens and additional small homes for his wait staff.

As the silk business grew and expanded, Mr. Thompson used some of his wealth to acquire and accumulate a unique collection of artwork and sculpture that is still displayed at the House and Museum today.

Mr. Thompson also enjoyed adventures. His last trip was to Cameroon where he disappeared in 1967. Despite a large search and reward for him, he was never found. The house and the silk business is now held and run by a foundation.

The tour was very interesting and a great way to spend the morning. Off to our next adventure in Chiang Mai via a quick flight on Scoot (Singapore Airlines low cost alternative).

We arrived in Chiang Mai and easily checked into our next hotel. We were encouraged to experience the Saturday night market in the old city, so after a quick tuk tuk ride we found ourselves in the midst of a lot of activity. Streets were lined with food stalls and small tents of souvenirs and various other items. It was fun to walk around and sample a few yummy things while getting our bearings in a new city. Karen sampled the local Thai rolled ice cream and Greg thoroughly savored a mango smoothie.