Chiang Mai - The Restaurants

 Hi! I took a 4 day trip up north to Chiang Mai and had a wonderful time! There are several aspects to this trip which were rewarding. One of which was - the food!

Thailand is known for its street food. You can find it everywhere! But also, I am experiencing the restaurants and tasting new foods.

There were 4 or 5 new food experiences that I had up in Chiang Mai. This first one was close to where I stayed - in Old Town. 

The first restaurant was called “The House”. and “Ginger Shop” This is a Michelin star restaurant so I wanted to try it. 

This gives you a little taste of the ambiance of this place. French style. Very charming!

And as you can see from the photo, I ordered a sampler so that I could try several local specialties. The long skinny things are spring roll wrapped shrimp with a dipping sauce. The green stick things are a type of branch from a bush. So fresh, green, crunchy and deep fried. Also with a dipping sauce. The little pouches had crab meat in them. The square stacked things consisted of a little meat and I think nuts, placed on top of a piece of pineapple. The little bit of red on top was a chili. The little bowls had a flower leaf with nuts and green onions. It was all delicious! I also had a drink with fresh apple, ginger and I think mint. The soup was lotus and pork and onions in a meat broth. Wonderful!

This restaurant is called “Arum - A Vegetarian Restaurant”. It is really on a back street. My taxi driver  couldn’t get all the way down this alley to the front door! But the food was very good!

They called this “crispy herbs” and it was a deep fried leaf that you ate with dipping sauce. 

Here is a little of the ambiance of this gun vegan restaurant.

We had this platter of leaves with nuts, onions and noodles (I think) and also had stir fried veggies and a coconut curry vegetarian soup. We were very full and satisfied. Everything was wonderful.

The Rabbit was the name of this vegetarian restaurant I found out walking one night. 

I had eggplant parmigiana with a bearnaise sauce and a fabulous salad! And some non- dairy coconut ice cream 

I would highly suggest venturing out and enjoying the local cuisine there in Chiang Mai! 

Christmas in Bangkok

 So it’s December 23rd and Bangkok is gearing up for Christmas. Tons of shoppers, Christmas decorations and music. A very fun environment - for me. I love the spirit of Christmas, of kindhearted gestures, giving gifts, having fun. So, here is a selection of some of the scenes here in Bangkok during the holidays. Enjoy!

   Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Night!

Pattaya City and Beach

 Last week I took a couple of trips outside the city of Bangkok. My first trip was to Pattaya City and Beach. I hired a tour guide, his nickname is Tiger, to show us around. Our first stop was the beautiful Buddha laser carved into the mountain. 

Isn’t that incredible! Some hikers have climbed up to the top. The King had this monument erected and the actual cutting was done rather fast because it was laser cut. 

Sometimes I like to take photos of the description so that I get it right. So here is that description.

Next we went to a Buddhist temple in Pattaya. 

This is a giant turtle god (I believe) and you walk under him for good luck. For a donation you can get some gold leaf to put on his tummy for good luck.

Also, these are dragon gods. One for each day of the week but 2 for Wednesday.  I was born on a Thursday, which is the color orange and, again, there is a dragon god for those born on Thursdays. 

This is a standing Buddha at this same location. 

There are many more beautiful statues at this Buddhist temple. Lots to see, appreciate and venerate. 

And we are just getting started!

Here we are on top of a mountain top looking out over Pattaya bay. 

Tiger, my tour guide, and I got a little snack. I love Thai tea and he got a beverage consisting of blended watermelon. No sugar. Nothing added. Refreshing! We also got some white toast topped with sliced bananas and like a sugar syrup. Quite good!

This is a locals beach - not where the tourists go. We rented a couple of lounge chairs and relaxed. You can purchase food, get a Thai massage, rent beach equipment and they have public restrooms. What a nice relaxing way to spend the afternoon. Then a 1 1/2 drive and we’re home! 

Chatachak Market and Park

 I heard about Chatachak Market from a friend who is also living here then guess what? She happened to call me one day right as I was entering the marketplace. Chatachak Marketplace is purportedly the world’s largest outdoor market. The marketplace is the size of 26 football fields! 

Today is the 2nd day that I have gone out to explore this marketplace. Today I am looking for more twinkle lights for my condo. When I lived in Paris the big thing was tennis ball sized lighted balls that look like they have colored string on them. Now, the new thing, is colored lights that have a sheer fabric kind of leaf around the twinkle light. I bought 2 more strands. 

Tomorrow I leave for Chiang Mai and a nice carryon bag would be nice. The statewide flights only allow 15 pounds of carryon so I’m looking for a really lightweight bag. And, I found it! It’s black, has many pockets, is water proof and only costs (drum roll) $13!! 

And it’s big enough to carry what I need for a 4 day trip to the countryside. And has a special zipper compartment on the bottom. 

Another day I bought some mango sticky rice (very popular here!) WITH COCONUT ICE CREAM! 

Yum!

Fortunately, the marketplace is well marked and laid out so that you can go right to the section you’d like to see. As you can see, it has - about everything!! And it’s really fun to people watch!

(Sorry! My video was too large to load)

And along the front of the market are various vendors and entertainers. Here’s one I recorded.

Fun, right?

Then after the hustle and bustle of the marketplace I walked over, next door, to the beautiful Chatachak Park. Lots of people here today! Beautiful landscaping, trees, a lake, park benches and gazebos. 

I hope you have enjoyed our day

at Chatachak Marketplace and Park. 

Tomorrow we’re going to 

CHIANG MAI.