Chiang Mai, city of elephants & splendor, is our location for nine relaxing days.
The Loi Krathong festival is in full swing as we arrive. Loosely translated, this means a nonstop fireworks party for 72 hours, thousands of lanterns being released skyward and flower boats sent down the river.
The fireworks are soo much better here, Double happys, Tom thumbs, & skyrockets, ignited by young & old. Some school kids yell out "Stop its a bomb!" as an ear splitting cracker explodes on the footpath in front of us.
The parades stretch for miles. Utes with jumper leads provide electricity for the floats carried by Thai boys. Thousands of people & no one bumps us as we gorge on banana Roti.
Our hotel doesn't provide breakfast so Rebecca is dispatched to gather a chocolate Roti but the streets are deserted. She resorts to the trusty 7-11 & returns bearing cornflakes & UHT milk. It turns out that shops generally open at midday & close after midnight.
The following nights are a blur of night bazaars & haggling sessions. By perfecting the slow walk away method, you can negotiate rock bottom deals.
With more daytime hours to spare, Rebecca enrolls us into the Siam cookery school.
Class starts with a tour of the local market & a lesson in Thai ingredients. Our tutor decides to buy some fresh (still swimming) Snapper & we witness a horrific execution by the fishmonger. Thank goodness we hadn't eaten that morning...
Nancy, our voluptuous Thai chef teaches us seven dishes of our choice, including: spring rolls, spicy soup, curries & sticky rice. The school has a lovely outdoor area where you can lay about in the sun & groan with satisfaction. Geoff can vouch for it.
Chiang Mai is also home to the best zoo in Thailand.
It even has a 7-11 shop right by the White tiger enclosure, where you can buy a noodle cup & they have a boiling water kiosk too. Discover amazing Thailand!
The big cats are spectacular & seem to eye Geoff up for lunch, baring their teeth & pacing to & fro. A black jaguar reminds us of our mog. Aw we miss him vewy much.
There is a mono-rail to help you cover two hundred acres of tropical forest, but we opted to walk & came across three young Manhoots cleaning a pair of elephants. Against our instincts for animal welfare, we take the chance to go for a trek on the elephants back. After all, the ride was only fifteen minutes & no-one else was around. The giant beast took a fancy to Bec & they had an intimate moment staring into one-another's eyes, sharing deep thoughts. Bec is currently looking into elephant adoption.
The Loi Krathong festival is in full swing as we arrive. Loosely translated, this means a nonstop fireworks party for 72 hours, thousands of lanterns being released skyward and flower boats sent down the river.
The fireworks are soo much better here, Double happys, Tom thumbs, & skyrockets, ignited by young & old. Some school kids yell out "Stop its a bomb!" as an ear splitting cracker explodes on the footpath in front of us.
The parades stretch for miles. Utes with jumper leads provide electricity for the floats carried by Thai boys. Thousands of people & no one bumps us as we gorge on banana Roti.
Our hotel doesn't provide breakfast so Rebecca is dispatched to gather a chocolate Roti but the streets are deserted. She resorts to the trusty 7-11 & returns bearing cornflakes & UHT milk. It turns out that shops generally open at midday & close after midnight.
The following nights are a blur of night bazaars & haggling sessions. By perfecting the slow walk away method, you can negotiate rock bottom deals.
With more daytime hours to spare, Rebecca enrolls us into the Siam cookery school.
Class starts with a tour of the local market & a lesson in Thai ingredients. Our tutor decides to buy some fresh (still swimming) Snapper & we witness a horrific execution by the fishmonger. Thank goodness we hadn't eaten that morning...
Nancy, our voluptuous Thai chef teaches us seven dishes of our choice, including: spring rolls, spicy soup, curries & sticky rice. The school has a lovely outdoor area where you can lay about in the sun & groan with satisfaction. Geoff can vouch for it.
Chiang Mai is also home to the best zoo in Thailand.
It even has a 7-11 shop right by the White tiger enclosure, where you can buy a noodle cup & they have a boiling water kiosk too. Discover amazing Thailand!
The big cats are spectacular & seem to eye Geoff up for lunch, baring their teeth & pacing to & fro. A black jaguar reminds us of our mog. Aw we miss him vewy much.
There is a mono-rail to help you cover two hundred acres of tropical forest, but we opted to walk & came across three young Manhoots cleaning a pair of elephants. Against our instincts for animal welfare, we take the chance to go for a trek on the elephants back. After all, the ride was only fifteen minutes & no-one else was around. The giant beast took a fancy to Bec & they had an intimate moment staring into one-another's eyes, sharing deep thoughts. Bec is currently looking into elephant adoption.
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| Unhygienix |
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| Fowl |
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| Underbite much |
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| 911 what is your emergency? |
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| Elephants going nana for bananas |
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| Best friends 4EVA |
Wah, it looks like so much fun; especially the flaming woks! I can see from the onlookers' envious expressions that... well, I am wearing a similar expression. What food did you make? Are some of these photos the fruits of your efforts?
ReplyDeleteHaha, Nancy calls it 'adventure cooking' "OK turn your gas on full & wait for oil to smoke, then add chicken & lean back". All of the dishes take nanoseconds to fry, making chili paste with pestle & mortar is another story. We kept asking if it was ready & she would look & say "hmm still needs a leetle bit more". After 30 minutes all the chili, garlic & lime juice turns into creamy delicousness. We made Pad Thai, red & yellow curry, spring rolls, papaya & spicy salad, sweet & sour stir fry, fried chicken with cashew nut, sticky rice with mango & banana in coconut milk. It was the mother of banquets.
ReplyDelete