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andersinthailand · 5 years

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Arriving in Chiang Mai

We arrived in Chiang Mai after a long but uneventful journey. We luckily flew out of Toronto just as the blizzard was setting in. Despite some concern beforehand, our layover in Shanghai went smoothly.

Tired from our journey and arriving late, sleep was in order. We woke up early with jet lag and got to enjoy the bath overlooking the city and mountain from the 20th floor. Points from work travel have come in handy.

We headed out for a biking tour of the city and met Jeff and Lisa there. They took a different flight in and had already arrived and went to bed before we landed. Our guide, Puna, took us through the historic center of Chiang Mai. We’d bike for a kilometre or so at a time before stopping and learning about the history and culture of the city and region. One of the first stops was a section of the original wall. There are still 6 gates remaining today. Within the city live around 30,000 people but in total, Chiang Mai has 1.7M! It’s a very sprawling city with very little density but still lots of traffic. We managed the whole bike ride unscathed (even Laura).

We stopped at a local market to try some fresh fruits and juices. Puna show us a noodle soup that we were pretty sure she thought would scare us off, but we wanted it any way. In the photo you can see dark brown cubes, that’s chicken blood! They steam in and it coagulates into a solid. They then add it into a spicy stew with tomatoes and rice noodles. The blood has an interesting texture similar to tofu or jello. We think it would be a great option for anemic people. We tried two different kinds of tea, one sweetened with condensed milk and one with lime juice. Both delicious, the milk more dessert like and the lime more refreshing. We also tried a few desserts like these sweet potato timbit-like fritters and some coconut milk and flour bites. Interesting and rich flavours.

We stopped at several temples throughout the city. They were all unique and very beautiful with steep, pitched roofs adorned with golden statues depicting dragons, snakes and tigers. One entire pogoda was entirely gold! Inside we’re various statues depicting Buddha throughout stages of his life and learnings. I love the mosaic work - they often use glass and mirrors so the sun and the sky reflect off the buildings. We saw one temple that had been destroyed in an earthquake several hundred years ago. Despite government efforts to restore it, the public wanted to keep the damaged structure.

Outside one of the temples, we enjoyed an ice cream sandwich in the truest sense of the word. Unlike the treat at home, this was coconut ice cream between two pieces of plain white bread. It’s topped with peanuts and heavy cream.

We stoped for lunch and each enjoyed a local dish, Khao Soi. It’s a soupy noodle dish served with beef and egg noodles. Delicious stuff and pairs perfect with some ice cold Chang beer.

The temperature was slowly rising throughout the day and hit a high of around 34C. We needed some respite so enjoyed our hotel pool where the water was frigid but perfect in the sweltering afternoon soon. After a break by the pool, we headed for a cooking class that taught us 10 dishes!!

1. Spring rolls filled with tofu, bean sprouts and carrots - these took way less time to cook than we thought, like 7 seconds!

2. Papaya salad made with a fresh dressing of garlic, chilis, and fish sauce

3. Pumpkin cooked in coconut milk with cinnamon - more like a dessert but very delicious

4. Thai curries - we each selected a different kind: red, green, panang and massaman, they have different spice profiles and different vegetables; and for all we made the curry pastes from scratch in a mortar and pestle

5. Stir fries - Laura, Lisa and I made Pad Thai while Jeff made Cashew Chicken - we learned very different stir fry techniques like adding water to cook the rice noodles in the pan

6. Hot and sour prawn soup - made with coconut milk, lime and chilis

7. Akha soup - with wintermelon and lemongrass, this was very simple but refreshing

8. Akha salad - cucumber, tomato, lime and chili topped with peanuts

9. Sapi thong - a dipping sauce made of cooked tomato, garlic, chili and cilantro served with crudités

10. Mango sticky rice - sticky rice sweetened with coconut milk and served with mango, a simple and light dessert

Despite plans to stay out for the night market, our fatigue has set in and we’re calling it a night.

Chiang Mai is a vibrant, colourful city full of character and delicious food, so far it’s been just perfect.

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