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Retirement trip
  • Juliet Sanders
  • Juliet Sanders

Retirement trip

Travelling to Antalya, Istanbul, Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai. Read more
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  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Temples

    January 14 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    There are many temples within walking distance of where we are staying. We managed to visit quite a number in one outing. They are so beautiful and peaceful.

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Thai massage

    January 15 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    You really can’t come to Thailand without experiencing a massage. As someone who has occasional sports massages at home for back pain I was keen to try a Thai version. It involved various stretches and pressure points and for the princely sum of about £7 for an hour I came away relaxed and renewed. I sent Neil later on for a back massage and no doubt we will go back.Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Chiang Mai zoo

    January 16 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 26 °C

    I have mixed feelings about zoos but the lure of penguins won over. On reflection we should have take. The option of a golf cart or hop on hop off bus, but hindsight is a wonderful thing. The site was well spread out and hilly but we took it slowly and Neil did a great job of walking. In terms of animals, we saw relatively few. Some enclosures seemed empty, the pandas were not available, the aquarium had no shows on and charged more than the entrance fee. In all, it all looked a bit sad and tired but the penguins were awesome!Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Coffee culture

    January 17 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    I hadn’t realised how big coffee growing is here. In the local mountains are many coffee farms and this transfers to the many coffee shops in the town. We found a particularly nice specialist shop with a whole menu of delights, a bit like a wine list. Of course the fruit juices are equally available (and cheap) and we enjoy the variety of food courts at the night markets to round off the day.Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Sunday market

    January 18 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 27 °C

    A feature of Chiang Mai seems to be that every market comes with a food court and its own entertainment. This is variable but quite often 1980s ballads sung in dubious English. Today we were treated to some very loud and out of tune teenagers and then some exquisite traditional dance. We also bagged some good bargains at the market. Got to take the rough with the smooth!Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Karen Village

    January 20 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    A bit of a dilemma in this visit. Arguably staged for tourists but on the other hand offering an income, education for the children and therefore more choices. The long neck women of the Karen villages are beautiful and fascinating. The rings are incredibly heavy and I’m glad I was only trying them on. I also got to sift rice (badly).Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Mae Kampong

    January 20 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    We went up into the hills to this picturesque village, enjoyed some local food, the spectacular cafe that was almost a rainforest and picked up a few goodies to take home.

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Baan Kang Wat

    January 22 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    We visited a little craft village outside the old city. Really funky and packed. Lots to look at and a great cup of coffee too. Oh and we found an Eritrean Swede who was part of the Toon Army!

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Tattoos

    January 23 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    I got a really bad out of sight tattoo over 20 years ago and only recently got the urge to go again. Over the past few months I’ve sat on an idea but on a whim decided to get it done. In it I added a lotus, symbol of new beginnings. Neil also got on board with his first - a phoenix, signifying riding from the ashes. Again, a rebirth. I lived it so much so went back for another the next day. Might come back with a whole sleeve!Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Versailles!

    January 24 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 26 °C

    Two countries for the price of one it seems! There is a gorgeous coffee shop on the corner of the old city called Versailles de Flore. No idea how it came about but it has stunning gardens and a spectacular hall. Perfect place for chilling.Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Hongkhao Village

    January 25 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

    After two weeks we have moved hotel today to Hongkhao Village. This is to the south, outside the walled city but still part of Chiang Mai. It’s a different vibe, being more isolated but a short taxi ride takes us into the city for a couple of pounds if we want to do that, we have a couple of trips planned this week so watch this space!Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Oh dear!

    January 26 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Well the hotel yesterday looked idyllic however when we were shown to the room it was very disappointing. I’d paid extra for an upgrade and there was a long list of things included but a significant number were missing. When I queried this I found that because I’d also requested a ground floor room for Neil they had in fact downgraded the room. So basically I had paid top price for a basic room and they could no longer offer the room I’d paid for. Furthermore we found there were no places to eat within easy walking distance so basically it didn’t work for us. As a temporary measure I booked a night further into town ( which actually turned out ok) while coming up with plan B. Considering our accommodation had been booked for almost a year I then discovered to find somewhere nice at a decent price wasn’t so easy. However by splitting the dates I’ve managed to come up with some nice options so we’ll be moving to the first one today.Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Elephant Nature Park

    January 27 in Thailand ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    I visited here 20 years ago when it was tiny and much has changed, you can no longer ride or bath the elephants, which is understandable ethically but you can still get up close and personal. They are magnificent creatures. The rescue now has over 120 elephants and 5000 animals in total.Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Chilling

    January 28 in Thailand ⋅ 🌙 25 °C

    There are so many food options in Thailand. Every corner seems to have street food and there are a glut of restaurants. Where we are staying now, we did what we normally do and tried the closest place and we’ve never looked back.

    Chillin’ is just great food and for £2-5 you can get a main course. Last night I went for pork loin in a mushroom sauce which was one of the best meals I’ve had for a very long time.

    Just about to dive into Malibu chicken and sweet and sour pork.    Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Silver Temple

    January 30 in Thailand ⋅ ⛅ 28 °C

    We’ve been to numerous temples while here. Each one is spectacular, but we had missed out on the famous Silver Temple until today. Unfortunately it’s one that only men can enter so I felt a bit shortchanged on my 50bht entrance fee. It was very nice from the outside though.Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Coffee disappointment

    January 31 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 19 °C

    It sounded great!

    A Day in a Coffee Village🍃

    A Day in a Coffee Village invites you to spend a full morning and afternoon
    in a small coffee-growing community in northern Thailand.

    This one-day experience offers a gentle introduction to village life
    from seasonal coffee harvesting and walking through the coffee farms,
    to sharing a local home-style lunch prepared by the community.

    Participants will learn about coffee through hands-on activities,
    listen to stories from local farmers,
    and enjoy coffee tasting in a simple, unhurried setting.

    Designed for small groups, the day moves at a relaxed pace
    no rush, no staging
    allowing time to understand where coffee truly begins: with people and everyday life.

    I signed us up and was so looking forward to it. I had discussions about Neil’s mobility- no problem, they said, we can accommodate.

    However their solution was a motorbike over rough terrain. No mention of insurance, I had fears of a Gofundme for hospital costs and repatriation, Instead, we sat for over 2 hours on the van looking at this.

    The guide returned. Would we like lunch in the village? Well it was only 11am, but whatever. We’ll go for it. Except we were on a dirt track that was really muddy, which was strange as we’ve not seen a drop of rain. There was wooden shack that was barely standing and a rug was rolled out on the floor. An old man was hunched cooking something dubious in a wok. Now I’m all for authentic but there was no way Neil was getting down on that rug or he wouldn’t be getting up again.

    Next thing, we are whisked back to town like naughty children and told we would only get a token refund because we refused to join in. We had done nothing. It’s it on the van - none of the promised activities.

    Thus began a standoff and we held the van hostage. After some negotiations and my request to call the police, we reached an agreement and gave up possession.

    Traumatised by coffee!    Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    A new hotel

    Jan 31–Feb 8 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    We have moved to our last hotel in Chiang Mai. A little south of the city, we have got a jacuzzi suite which is spacious and feels a notch up from previous ones.

    I’m hoping to spend some time in the pool, enjoy the jacuzzi and see another area of the city. A highlight is an all day snack table!Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Church Thai style

    February 1 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 31 °C

    We decided to go across town for church today at Chiang Mai Community Church. It was very international and we got to stand up and introduce ourselves. Funny to then find one of the congregation is married to someone from Spennymoor!Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Date night

    February 3 in Thailand ⋅ 🌙 26 °C

    We have eaten very well but quite frugally, most meals have only been £1-2 each. Tonight we pushed the boat out a little at one of the best restaurants on Trip adviser (Rosemary Brasserie).

    The food was delicious and the company was great, as usual,Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Vision board

    February 6 in Thailand ⋅ 🌙 23 °C

    We weren’t exactly sure what we were going to but actually had a thought provoking time creating vision boards for the coming year in a group setting. Lots to think about and build on.

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Tattoos 2

    February 6 in Thailand ⋅ 🌙 22 °C

    So we’ve really embraced tattooing and gone back for another session.

    Neil has had Maktoub (meant to be) in Arabic and music clefs. I’ve had a life story (adoption, music, faith, family, theatre, survivor, dogs, work and travel).

    What next?    Read more

  • Juliet SandersRetirement tripJuliet Sanders

    Jing Jai Market

    February 7 in Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 24 °C

    We’ve done a number of markets but this was definitely the high end. Lots of handcrafted things as well as a farmer’s market. A lovely last day in Chiang Mai.