Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai is a city located on northern part of Thailand. It has been regarded as the capital of north Thailand. It is also the home of one of our companion's relative. Her relative invited us to visit them, so from day 4 to day 6 of our trip we will spend time living with them and explore city of Chiang Mai. It has over 300 temples. The city, Chiang Mai's historical center is the walled city.Sections of the wall was restored and remained intact but of the rest only the moat remains. We will be renting bicycles to explore around Chiang Mai.

Elephant Trekking & Water Rafting

On the last day at Chiang Mai, we plan to do the elephant trekking that is unique for Chiang Mai. We will start the elephant jungle trek from the bank of Ping River. The trek goes upstream pass through jungles with bamboo trees, upward toward Lisu Hilltribe Village. We will have local lunch at the tribe. Then we will return by water rafting through Ping River. On the return to Chiang Mai we will stop by Orchid Farm at Mae Su. The day trip of trekking and water rafting will cost us about $77. ( link to the site where you can book such day trip : Here )

Here is a video clip of elephant trekking:

Damoen Floating Market

Thailand is known for its unique style of traditional market. Our first stop visit a floating market that is located at Damnoen Saduak canal. It is the largest floating market in Thailand. This traditional market is comprised of hundreds of small boats that shopkeepers sell their wares from. It is unique to Thailand and a big part of the local culture. Most of the produce offered at the market are fresh vegetables and fruits. We will be taking bus from Southern Bus Terminal at Bangkok to the market. Once we arrived at the market, we will hire a boat for about 300 Baht an hour to go around the market and experience what it feels like to purchase the produce there. You can go to the video section of the blog to view a video clip of the market.

Amazing Taste of Thailand

Thai cuisine is certainly popular around the world. A culture experience would not be quiet complete without trying out local food. So, when we travel around northern part of Thailand we will treat our self to some of the amazing food Thailand has to offer. The cost of a meal in Thailand is surprisingly inexpensive. A full meal of Thai food is usually somewhere around 200 Baht, which is about $5 to $6 US dollars. An interesting thing to note when dining in Thailand is that they usually do not require tips.

Here are some of the popular Thai dishes:

This dish is called 'laab pla ma' in Thai, which is also known as 'Spicy Minced Fish Salad'. The fish used for this dish is Pla Ma, which is a famous fish in Suphanburi village. That village will be the second major of our trip, so we will definitely order this popular dish once we are there. The dish is made of minced fish, lemon juice, fish sauce, ground chilli, roasted rice, sliced red onion and mint leaves.

Herbs are frequently used in a lot of Thai cuisine. This is a dish that is cooked with herbs. It is called 'Snake-Head Fish with Herbs' or "Pla Chon Samun Prai" in Thai. The herbs used in this dish are: sliced lemon grass, citrone leaves, ginger, galingale and white sesame seed.

This dish is 'shrimp stew' and called 'kung lon' in Thai. It is cooked with coconut milk.