I landed in Vietnam during Tet, the Vietnamese Lunar New Year. It is the most important and widely celebrated holiday in Vietnam. It marks the beginning of the lunar calendar year and is a time for family reunions, honoring ancestors, and welcoming the coming year. It’s often the only time that people living in major […]
First impressions of Hanoi Read More »
And…it was a very long travel day from Chiang Mai to Hanoi. Both cities are in the northern part of their countries so figured it would be a short flight. Oh no…the shortest flight was from Chiang Mai (north) to Bangkok (south) then back up to Hanoi (north). Oh well, spending time on airplanes, trains,
Vietnam kicks my butt! Read More »
The last couple of days in Chiang Mai were spent in town navigating the night markets and the non-existent sidewalks. The days are cooler but the air is getting worse. In the Thailand countryside, farmers burn their crops every year, typically at the end of February. Not sure why it’s started earlier this year, but
Chiang Mai-final days Read More »
One of the things on my bucket list, while in Chiang Mai, was to see an elephant sanctuary. So, I booked a tour about an hour out of town to go into the Doi Inthanon National Park where the sanctuary is located. We started off by stopping at the Maewang River and hopping on a
Doi Inthanon National Park Read More »
The Black House, also known as Baan Dam Museum, is a unique art museum in Chiang Rai, Thailand, created by artist Thawan Duchanee, a former student of the artist who built the white Temple. It features over 40 buildings made primarily of black wood, showcasing a mix of traditional and contemporary architecture, along with various
Black House – Baan Dam Museum Read More »
I spent 7am to 7:30pm on a tour from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai to see some of the items on my list. The ride was about 3 1/2 hours each way so it was a very long day, and a bus ride down the curving highways that would leave anyone with motion sickness in
Long Neck Village, White Temple & Blue Temple Read More »
Because I wanted to create experiences in my travel, I decided that rather than flying to Chiang Mai (northern Thailand), I would take the overnight train. It would take about 11 hours, but I knew I would be able to see the countryside and really enjoy riding on trains, or so I thought! My first
Bangkok to Chiang Mai….over-nite train fun Read More »
I leave on an overnight train to Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand, later this afternoon. The last few days have been wonderful. So much to see…so little time, especially when the hot weather does a number on me and I have to slow down my roll at bit. I visited the Jim Thompson house. He
Last few days in Bangkok Read More »
So, back at it again after getting some much needed rest. This time I booked a boat tour on the canal. Wasn’t interested in repeating yesterday’s debacle at the floating market. This would get me on a boat AND to the floating market. The canal ride was about 2 hours. The Chao Phraya River feeds
Long-tail boat ride on the canal and other fun stuff Read More »
Day 4 started out great. I decided to go to the floating market, maybe do a canal boat ride. I ended up getting lost in the maze of streets that went from the main road to the canal. A very helpful young construction worker helped me find where I needed to be (The Thai people
And, I hit the wall! Read More »