Today was Thai cooking day and then the bus to Bangkok. We got a Tuk-Tuk to the market where one of the chefs took us round the different stalls showing us the multitude of fruits and herbs that were available. It was quite interesting but I will never be able to remember them all!! The Tuk-Tuk then took us to the kitchen where we would spend th...

Hello folks, I came back from Vientine for another Visa-run to stay on in Thailand, just a few days ago.I noted it is the season of rain. Dark grey clouds cover the sky and the temperature drops to 22-25C. Nice and comfortable. Often as comforatble as the cool-dry season(Nov-mid Feb). And moreover, it takes smogs off the sky. And the green of th...

We took the overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai. Second class on the way there. It was pretty comfortable overall, though the ventilation of the sleeping compartments hasn't been designed to cope with the effects of Thai curries. Our first night we wandered down to the Sunday walking market. A huge popular event with all sorts of goodies,...

Right. so for the past three days Ive been trekking in the mtns visiting local villages rafting down rivers on bamboo rafts and of course riding elephants. Ok so i only rode one elephant, and Charles and myself named him stampy. It was pretty amazing.. scratch that it was freaking fantastic. Our guide jumped off took some pictures and let me ta...

Well, John finally mastered how to get us back to our hotel via taxi "Satorn Soi Neung" and we are leaving for Chiang Mai. Ron and Bart arrived late friday night from their 3 day trip to Ko Chang and we headed off again. Arrived Chiang Mai - the "Rose of the North" Saturday and started to explore the ancient City. Our first evening was spent at ...

Today we attended a traditional Thai cooking class. The instructor and a driver picked us up at 9:30am and we proceeded to the biggest local fresh foods market in Chiang Mai. The instructor spent some time telling us how the coconut milk, fish sauce, and soy oil were made. We were also told a little about the important differences in the kinds o...

Hello again everyone! So we've really done some travelling, and now we're in Chiang Mai...arrived yesterday....I absolutely LOVE it here!!! It's so laid back - a little run down in some parts, but none the less it is extremely beautiful and rustic. The people are amazing, and incredibly friendly. You can walk down the street with a smile, an jus...

So we got to Chiang Mai at around 10.30 am on the train and headed to our hotel. We headed off to see the silk factory where we were shown how silk worm coccons are made into beautful bolts of silk. and what a time consuming process, no wonder real silk is expensive! the showroom was pretty nice, full of flashy silk bits. Next we headed for a bi...

We made it back to Bangkok after another spectacular flight with Qatar airlines. I can't recommend them enough. I do have to say though, that Qatar Airlines must have lost money on our tickets. We arrived in Doha at 10pm and didn't fly out until 9am so they put us up in a hotel. Well, not just any hotel, they were going to put us up at the Shera...

Bidding farewell to my fellow meditators, I decided that another round of Chiang Mai was in order. My previous trip here (in late September) was basically for trekking/thai cooking, I didn't get the chance to really discover the true magic of the North. So I boarded the night train from Surat Thani to Bangkok, spent the day in Bangkok (the heat ...