Chiang Mai - Day 1

We'd been warned before leaving Australia that the air might be quite smoky in Thailand, but it hadn't really been noticeable in Bangkok. If anything, it helped create amazing sunset photos from our riverside vantage point. The smoke haze was hard to miss in Chiang Mai!

As our plane flew further north the visibility dropped, and by the time we landed it was only about 5km. It wasn't like bushfire smoke that stings your eyes, but it did make us revaluate our plans for while we were in town. Off the list went went trekking (just in case we were crazy enough to brave the scorching 38 degree heat), to be replaced with more amazing food, some relaxing massages, and beers by the pool in our awesome hotel. We'd cope!

The centre of Chiang Mai is still surrounded by the remains of an ancient moat (mostly) and defensive wall (partially). It would have been an amazing sight in its prime (13th to 16th Century), and these structures create a distinctive square outline when you view the downtown area on a map. We'd also been fortunate enough to arrive on a Sunday, which sees the city centre shut down and turned into a massive night market. There were people everywhere, with stalls selling everything imaginable. It was great, and dinner that night reminded us how cheap food can be in this part of the world (for westerners).

As we entered the market I realised that I'd left our wallet back in the room. All I had was 300 baht in my pocket, which is about $13 AUD. This would barely have bought us a single Big Mac meal in Australia. I offered to double-back and fetch more, but Mel suggested we try our luck. As we entered one of the many food stall areas we realised that her faith was well placed. We sampled local delicacies from several different street vendors and washed them down with fresh juices. After we'd filled ourselves to the brim, we reassessed our finances and still had 100 baht to spare.

Downtown Chiang Mai had a very touristy feel, which made me surprisingly happy. Usually I'd be resenting the tourist hordes, but I was happy for the locals. Walking past all the cafes, restaurants, tour operators and street vendors you can only imagine how badly the covid restrictions must have hurt locals in places like this. It was good to see full restaurants, tour groups and occupied tuk-tuks buzzing about. Mind you, judging by the number of dark windows in the hotels each night, even these "hordes" might not have had Chiang Mai back to full capacity.

Another thing that was different for me, but wasn't taking any getting used to, was travelling in your 40's with a bit more money behind you. We were now staying in some hotels that only had 4 rooms, whereas my youth had me staying in dorms with at least 4 beds in each room. Can't say I was missing that...Read more