There really aren't words for how awesome the past two weekends have been, but here goes nothing... I'll start with my Chiang Mai trip that I took the July 4th weekend. So, Chiang Mai is the second biggest city in Thailand, second only to Bangkok. Tricia(my roommate) and I left after school on Friday the 4th, and it's around a 5 and 1/2 hour bus ride from Nan to Chiang Mai. We got into Chiang Mai late, so naturally we headed straight to McDonalds. I figured if I couldn't be in the States to celebrate the 4th then I might as well do the most American thing I could do while in Thailand. It was totally worth it. Saturday we got a group together to go head out to the Mae Sa Waterfall and Wat Doi Suthep. Our group was comprised of 3 Americans, 2 Europeans, and 2 Thais, great dynamics to say the least. The first stop was the Mae Sa Waterfall which has been one of my favorite waterfalls I've been to since coming to Thailand. Despite the baby leeches that a few of the group members found on their legs, the waterfall was perfect. Next stop was Wat Doi Suthep. A quick sidebar to for a necessary explanation: Wat means temple in Thai, and Doi means mountain. Basically Wat Doi Suthep is a temple on a mountain. A pretty large mountain. The temple itself is magnificent, and it is situated perfectly so it has a breathtaking view of the city of Chiang Mai. We ended the day with some drinks and dancing at a well known local spot in downtown Chiang Mai with the group. I fell in love with Chiang Mai that weekend. I would consider it the "Atlanta" of Thailand. Even though it's a large city, people are still kind, and not too pushy, unlike Bangkok.
I can't wait to go back :)
Then there was Chiang Rai. This past weekend was a 4 day weekend because of the holiday of Buddhist Lent. So, we got a group of girls that all teach English in Nan together and got on the road for Chiang Rai Friday morning. The bus ride from Nan to Chiang Rai is about the same length as the Chiang Mai bus ride, but that is the only thing that is similar. The bus ride from Nan to Chiang Rai is straight through the mountains in northern Thailand. Let's just say it's not for the faint of heart. For the first night we planned ahead and booked a large room for our entire group to stay in at the Akha Hill House. The Akha Tribe is an old hilltribe that has lived in the northern region of Thailand for many generations. We stayed about an hour outside of the city in the Akha village. We slept in a room with 7 mattresses laid on the floor, so of course it pretty much became a giant sleep over. You know how girls work. When we woke up we had half of the day Saturday to explore the hills around the village before we headed back into town. As we were exploring we found another waterfall, and this one was big! It was impressive and gorgeous. After getting our share of nature in we headed back to the city for the remaining two nights. Saturday night we went to the walking street and night bizarre, which are large night markets where you can find anything from cheap food to beautiful Thai silk scarves to brand new tupperware sets. Sunday was by far my favorite day of the entire trip. Ever heard of an "open tour"? Well, they're awesome. Instead of being tied down to the structure of a typical tour with a tour guide spilling out facts left and right, we were driven to the desired destinations and given a limited amount of time to explore on our own. It really was awesome. Our tour destinations included: The Black House, a Monkey Temple, the Mae Sai border market/ the Northern most point in Thailand, The Golden Triangle, and the House of Opium museum. My personal favorite was the Golden Triangle. It is a spot where you are standing on Thai soil but you are able to see into Myanmar and Laos. It's 3 countries in one picture. It might just be my weird love of geography, but it was totally mind blowing. I'm still a little sad be back in Nan, but work calls. I had a wonderful time in both Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai, and I'm glad I have some pictures so I can share the moments with all of you. Until next time :) Good vibes y'all!
