It's been a little bit since my last update, for that I am sorry. My memory is already a little bit blurry with details from Chaing Mai but I will try to get it all in.
More then anything, Chiang Mai was a breath of fresh air and relaxing sigh of relief from the hustle and bustle of Bangkok. The town is much smaller and much easier to navigate. Loads of artist selling random pieces of jewlery and clothing, a wide verity of food both Thai and international, and a very chilled out atmosphere. Hawkers are fewer and more respecting and the entire city just seemed to have More character. It also helped that we were recommended a fantastic guest house to stay in for unbelievably cheap (6 dollars for a private BIG twin bed room) with a wonderfully nice family of Thai ladies.
There was a much broader variety of activities to get into in this town. There were some key temples that we saw. Doi Suthep which is atop the mountain directly behind the city was a big highlight. We happened to be up there on a Thai Buddhist holiday totally by accident. On this day Every Buddhist takes homage at a temple so you can imagine the place was packed. It was very interesting to see so many people there truly using the temple and not just sightseers checking it out. The smell of incense was overwhelming and there was a constant cacophony of ringing bells and gongs mixed in with chanting and music.
Another notable place we checked out was the center of Chiang Mai city called ____. This was probably my favorite Buddhist sight to date. everything was so clean and pristine. The main temple at the from of the compound gave way to a great courtyard. At the center was an old temple from the 6th century on it's way to crumbling but still holding four beautiful shimmering gold Buddha statues. I went back to this sight four times while I was in Chiang Mai, something about it was absolutely captivating.
The second part of Chiang Mai was more physical activities. Downhill mountain biking, Hiking and white water rafting. Finally an opportunity to really get my heart pumping. The mountain biking proved to be the hardest and also most memorable experience of the stay. The company we rented bikes from had listed this path as "easy" but it was far from it. extremely steep inclines and declines mixed with crumbling cement path, overhanging brush and a supper slick red mud made for an exhilarating experience. I hit the ground three times, two of which were full face plants and left with a huge smile on my face.
I left Chiang Mai feeling wonderfully refreshed and recharged. Ready for this massive journey to truly play out now and ready for the change that will come. I'll have a Hanoi report up soon!
Nice to see that smile.
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