Escape to Chiang Mai

We like the Sunday walking market of all the markets in town. The police close the roads in the centre of the city at 4pm and all the stallholders set up. We park our bike just near the main square and the 3 Kings monument. This means we can make a swift getaway when we have had enough. In the main square itself was an astronomy exhibition with lots of big telescopes and displays and students from the local university. It was starting at sundown, after 6.

We eat from many of the food stalls on the market. Sumai and gyoza, fried chicken and a multitude of noodley rice dishes, very cheap and fresh. Thai’s eat all the time!! There is clothing, jewellery, leather goods and lots of things to buy. Paintings, carved soaps, musical instruments. You have to see it to believe it. If you can name it you can probably buy it.

I can only stand so much jostling, it gets very busy after 6 so we headed to the square and looked at the exhibition and listened to a local band who were playing. All the telescopes were looking at the Moon and Mars which was visible. There are always lots of free things to do in the city.

The next morning on our way out of our room, we keep our shoes outside in the hall, I picked up one of my flip flops and noticed a rather large spider hiding underneath.

I called Chris and he said ‘oh it’s a baby huntsman spider’. I was backing away at this point while Chris was having a closer look and taking a photo. It was very still but alive so I had a really close look. I have seen these spiders before and they move like greased lightning. I’m not scared of spiders unless they move quickly towards me then I’m off, shrieking…we saw one in a cave in Laos and it must have had an 8’’ leg span, way bigger than this one and this is the picture. Chris said put your hand near it so I can get some scale, you can imagine what my response was and it ended in OFF.

Chris captured the spider very carefully and took it outside to a suitable patch of vegetation and let it go. Even the housekeeper at the hotel kept her distance. I am sure if she would have found it she would have battered it with the flip flop. How it got to the 4th floor I will never know, not up the stairs I’m thinking. I move my shoes with caution now.

Bhuping Palace is high up on Doi Suthep and is where the Royal family stay when they are in CM.

We have been a couple of times before but once we were too late and the other time we were inappropriately dressed. This time we went early with long sleeves and long pants. Entrance was only 50 baht (£1.20) a bargain. It’s a bit like Tatton Park on the top of Snowdon.

The palace gardens are spectacular with many beautiful scented roses, and big upside down trumpet shaped flowers. Poinsettia plants just growing wild, I can barely make them last until xmas at home!!

There are fish ponds, a reservoir and giant bamboo, lots of pretty plants and displays. I also had the company of a dog all the way round, he wasn’t particularly friendly but just walked beside me for a couple of hours. There were some incredibly carved tree stumps, amazing. Because it’s 1500m high it’s much cooler to walk than down at city level it was a good day out.

The palace itself was not as glitzy as some but a very good looking house as you would imagine. The Thai royal family are incredibly wealthy, I was hoping we could go in but not so. Nice to look.

This is the view looking down on CM from the road after leaving the Palace

Today was our Zumba party at the gym. We had been asked by Melinda, an English girl and very good teacher, to bling it up for the party. I scoured the 20 baht shops for something suitable and found a blue bobbly thing for my head. At the gym were balloons and tinsel and lots of excited Thai ladies and a good handful of men ready to party. It was a lot of fun and a good workout as usual.

My new ‘Bestie’

We try to live normally here not like we are just on holiday. We are pleased to have found a good gym that we like, a very nice cinema, fantastic days out in the mountains and friends we can visit. We are staying in a friendly clean hotel who really want to look after you. Food is cheap as is accommodation and there are lots of places to visit. If you can you should try it……..