My last morning of cooking school was bittersweet. It was my last full day in Chiang Mai and I had just gotten used to the routine. I felt like I was finally feeling enmeshed in the local life and its rhythms. I was looking forward to heading to the market and getting my daily sai oua from the petite Thai lady and possibly getting a bag of the coconut custard treats I had for the first time yesterday so my husband could also sample them. Alas, we were only at market for a pickup. I considered jumping out and heading to the vendors but I didn’t want to disrupt the flow. Luckily, Pon knew I would miss my daily routine and brought back a bag of sai oua for me to eat on the ride to the school.
When we arrived, our first task was to carve some vegetables.
Then we proceeded with the day’s menu:
Tom Jued – Clear soup with minced pork
Paw Pla Tord – Spring rolls
Gai Hor Bai Toey – Chicken in pandamus leaves
Gaeng Phed Ped Young – Red curry with roast duck
Gai Phad King – Chicken with ginger
Khao Neow Mamuang – Mango with sticky rice
My companions for my last day of class hailed from Paris, my favorite city. Throughout the day, we chatted about various subjects but at no point until the end of class when we were heading back did we actually exchange names. It’s interesting how much we collaborated, helped each other and exchanged information without needing to know specifics. We just had a friendly trusting symbiosis despite hailing from different parts of the world. I had studied French and they had studied English. Before parting ways, we exchanged contact information as my husband and I are planning on heading to Paris next summer and we wanted to get together during our time in town.
Cooking school was an amazing experience for me. I can’t cook everything I learned but I will definitely incorporate some of the techniques and will be recreating some of my favorite recipes when I get back.
I have zero hesitation recommending this particular cooking school but equally important, I thoroughly enjoyed spending time and getting to know each of my classmates and meeting people from all walks of life, from different parts of the U.S. and the world. What we all had in common is that we were looking to take ourselves out of our comfort zone and expand our horizons despite the challenges. Thank you to my classmates and to Ning but mostly to Pon who watched over my every move and with his special sense of humor and subtle sarcasm, helped me find my way.
Thai Cookery School
I had 3 other cooking schoolmates with me on the 4th day so we started our day at the market. After the introduction to some of the herbs and ingredients our class was going to be using, we ventured off in different directions.
I had tried the sai ua the day prior but I had a hankering for it again today. I first learned about it on Mark Wiens’ episode in Chiang Mai and how relatives in Bangkok considered it rude and disrespectful not to return with the sausage as a gift from the visit up north. Sai ua has a bit of hit with a subtle lemongrass aftertaste. If I lived in Chiang Mai, it would definitely be a daily breakfast treat with eggs and rice.
Another treat caught my eye on this visit to the market. My curiosity was piqued by several YouTube episodes in Chiang Mai. There’s a dessert that has a coconut custardy base with either green onion, cheese or pumpkin. I tried the first and latter at the market, courtesy of our instructor Pon who is friends with the owner of the stand.
He also had us sample what I will call a coconut burrito which was basically a gooey pancake exterior with coconut inside.
After our market visit, we were whisked off to the school where we prepared the following:
Phad Siewe – Fried Big Noodles with Sweet Soy Sauce
Hope Neung Plaa – Steamed Fish in Banana Leaves
Gaeng Gari Gai – Yellow Curry with Chicken
Gai Phad Med Mamuang – Chicken with Cashew Nuts
Plan Goong – Spicy Prawn Salad North Eastern Style
Kluay Buad Chee – Bananas in Coconut Milk
Pon gave the class a few pointers. To loosen up the thick noodles, pour a few tablespoons of oyster sauce with the noodles and manually separate them. With the oil in the wok cooking at high heat, there are only certain types of oils which should be used for Thai cooking. Vegetable, sunflower and peanut oil would suffice.
Also, because of the hot oil, unlike in Italian or even in Chinese cooking where the garlic is the first ingredient in the pan, the meat, be it pork, chicken, beef, shrimp or fish is first dropped into the wok and the garlic placed in shortly thereafter to prevent the burning of the garlic.
I can’t believe that tomorrow will be my last day but this week has definitely been enlightening and enriching. Looking forward to a strong finish!!
Thai Cookery School
I first heard about Khum Khantoke from Samantha Brown’s Asia series on the Travel Channel in 2010. I bought the series on Amazon and rewatched the Thailand episode again was inspired to go where she went for an evening of eats and entertainment. I thought an immersive cultural experience would be a fun midweek break during our week of classes so I booked a reservation online.
From our Airbnb, the Grab took about 15 minutes to get to the location which is northeast from city center.
On arrival, we marveled out how exotic and beautiful the the grounds were.
Once we entered the pavilion, you could see that the dining areas to the sides also served as seats for the performance. There was a stage and an entrance so the perimeter was essentially a square.
Our reservation was at 6:30 p.m and though we were a few minutes late, we were immediately served with coconut juice
and what would be round 1 of food which arrived in a circular rattan tray or “Toke” with two tiers of food.
Chiang Mai Style Banana Fritter
Clear Soup
Chiang Mai Style Pork Curry with Ginger & Tamarind Sauce
Deep Fried Chicken
Grilled Young Chili Paste With Steamed Vegetables
Minced Pork in Tomato Sauce
Crispy Pork Skin
Stir-Fried Mixed Vegetables
Crispy Rice Noodle
Sticky Rice or Steamed Rice
Seasonal Fresh Fruit
My husband complained that the food was cold but was pleasantly surprised that we were offered another round of everything which arrived much hotter and fresher than the first serving.
Because we ordered the premium Khantoke, we also received a side of what I believe was a fried cod dish.
For dessert, we also were served something I made in cooking class on Monday, water chestnuts with sugar syrup and coconut milk which is so incredibly easy to make and is ridiculously delicious. I was happy that I recognized it and could appreciate its flavor and simplicity.
At exactly 7:30, the show began.
The performance commenced with a parade, a welcome dance previously used to greet guests.
The next dance hailed from the Mae Hong Song province and was an interpretation about the animal legends of the region.
This was followed by a war dance with drummers.
Then next performance was a tribute to the princess for her cultural influence and for being such a strong role model to the Lanna culture.
The Khone performance was a reenactment of a section from a book by Ramakian which is renowned as the greatest literary work in Thailand.
Then there was a sword dance/demonstration which was followed by a segment about Thai fighting.
The evening ended with a dance performance by a group of women using coconut shells and the finale was a large group of dancers performing a simple dance which hailed from the central part of Thailand prior to WWII.
They brought in members from the audience to join them in the finale which was a nice touch.
The Khum Khantoke cultural center provided a beautiful ornate setting for an immersion in Lanna culture through its delicious and simple food, stunningly exotic setting and strikingly visual performance dedicated to its history.
This is definitely on my top recommend for anybody visiting Chiang Mai. It’s expensive compared to Thai standards but for dinner and a show, by American standards, it’s a bargain.
Khum Khantoke
http://www.khumkhantoke.com
We had walked by Hard Rock Cafe on one of our many jaunts to and from the night markets in the area. They seemed to have amazing bands playing so we finally decided to dine there on Monday night. It’s your typical themed restaurant. Living in Los Angeles, we’re quite familiar with the chain but are not frequent diners as it’s more of a novelty and not quite a foodie feast.
Much like Day 1, Day 3 started with a market tour. This time it was with Ning. She took us to the stalls that sold some of the ingredients we would later use in class. After our brief visit, we headed to the school and started on our dishes.
Our menu was as follows:
Tom Kha Gai – chicken in coconut milk soup
Raad Nah Muu – fried big noodles with thick sauce and pork
Gaeng Phed Play – red curry with fish
Phad Hed Ruam Khao Pod Om – fried mixed mushrooms with baby corn
Som Tam – papaya salad
Khanom Kluay – steamed banana cake
Ning taught us to taste and either add sugar or soy sauce to moderate the saltiness or heat of each dish. The best technique that I learned from her was to cook the wide flat noodles in a cold wok with the oil and flatten/fry them like a pancake to give them a smoky texture. Though everything was delicious as always, of today’s menu, I give a two thumbs up to the steamed banana cake. Not being much of a desert person, I appreciated that this was not overly sweet and beautifully presented.
After lunch, we walked around the property which I somehow had not yet done in the past few days.
The grounds are quite expansive and we found out from Ning that some of the herbs and fruit we used are grown on-site.
I once again walked away with leftovers and am looking forward to continuing to learn more about the flavor pairings that make Thai cuisine as unique as it is.
Thai Cookery School
Day 2 brought an unexpected surprise when I arrived at the school.
I was the only student for the entire day which was a complete departure from my first day where there were 30 Australian tweens and teens in addition to our adult group of 6.
Since I was working one-on-one with Pon, I had the benefit of getting personal feedback on my culinary technique and flavoring and texture of each dish.
Our first course of the day was the Panaeng Muu which was red curry with pork.
It included the use of a mortal and pestle to pound down the spices and peppers into a puréed paste before adding the red curry and pork into the wok.
Next on the list was the Plaa Nin Laad Prik Bai Horapa or fried whole fish with chili and basil. The scariest part of this course wasn’t the whole raw fish sitting in the bowl. It was frying the whole thing in a wok full of oil.
Pon taught me to put salt at the bottom of the cooking oil in the wok rather than adding salt to the fish before frying it.
There we’re minimal ingredients to add to the top of the dish giving it just a bit more flavor.
The third course was the Gaeng Hanglay Gai or Chiang Mai chicken with curry. This was by far my favorite dish because the smell and flavor was reminiscent of chicken tikka masala and Thai curry combined.
He taught me the secret technique of placing the seasoned chicken in a cold wok pan and stirring around in the oil for a few minutes coating all sides before turning on the heat in order to prevent the oil from rising to the top and the dish becoming overly greasy.
For the fourth dish, Prad Prio Wan Phak aka sweet and sour stir fry vegetables, I got additional practice on my chopping and cutting skills and was taught how to make heart shaped carrots. Pon explained that the fruits and vegetables had to be cooked last in order for them to remain crisp.
The fifth dish, Yam Wun Sen or spicy glass noodle salad, hardly took any time at all to make. The noodles cook literally in 5 seconds and what takes the most time is cooking up the pork and cutting up the accoutrements.
The dessert dish was the easiest to prepare provided the rice has been previously cooked. The Khao Neow Dam Piak was a black sticky rice pudding which had 3 ingredients and was unbelievably simple and delicious.
We sped through the 6 courses, with me sitting down and finishing my plate of the panaeng curry with pork served with steamed rice. With the rest of the dishes, I had one or two sample bites and just powered through, saving all of the food for my to-go. No need to go out for dinner tonight as essentially Pon and I had prepared a meal for 3 people so I was quite beside myself at this fortuitous chain of events.
What I learned during the first two days is that cooking Thai food doesn’t have to be complicated or a lengthy ordeal. Some of my favorite dishes were so incredibly easy and quick to make.
Tomorrow will sadly not be a private but I’m looking forward to practicing and learning more culinary techniques and shortcuts that I can incorporate in my day-to-day cooking back home. Ready for Day 3!
Thai Cookery School
My first introduction to Thailand was through their food. I was a teen at the time and my dad was in a car accident with a waiter from Original Thai BBQ. I’m not quite sure what the specifics were but the waiter offered to comp our dinner if we visited him at the restaurant in Universal City. We both thought we had nothing to lose so we made the 30 minute trek from West Covina. To say that my mind was blown would be an understatement. The unique savory and sweet combination was utterly delightful. I was hooked!
To this day, my husband’s and my guilty pleasure is ordering delivery from Thai BBQ and enjoying their BBQ chicken, yellow curry with chicken and potatoes, phad woon sen with chicken, chicken sate appetizer and a side of their fried rice which is so addictive that I swear that crack is an ingredient.
I was not really surprised when 23andMe updated my profile which showed that 5.2% of my roots hail from the Thai, Indonesia, Khmer and Myanmar region. I clearly have a natural preference and affinity for their food. In planning our trip to Chiang Mai, I wanted to immerse myself in its very specific northern Thai cuisine.
As much as I love cooking, all of my experience has been self-taught with the help and guidance of Martha Stewart shows and cookbooks as well as similar chefs and recipes from Food Network and Cooking Channel. I have never actually attended a cooking class, let alone a cooking school.
Thai Kitchen Cookery is the first of all cooking schools founded in Chiang Mai and they offer a five day immersive cooking school experience. It was a no-brainer so as soon as our flight and lodgings were arranged, I booked my classes. This particular cooking school includes pickup and drop off so that made it even more particularly attractive.
On day one, I arrived at the lobby 5 minutes earlier than what was indicated on my reservation and was greeted by the driver who was surprisingly also the cooking instructor. He had to pick up another couple at Shangri-la next door but was not allowed to park and wait for them so he picked me up first which explained his early arrival. After he returned for them, we headed off to the market which was about 15-20 minutes from our location. We were joined by 3 other people for the market visit and class.
Having consumed 3 cups of tea, I was in need of facilities. Side note: it costs 3 baht to use them and one should bring your own seat covers and portable toilet paper which I luckily had in my possession.
inside the market was a true food lover and cook’s paradise! In Asia, the Pacific Islands and likely in other parts of the world essentially excluding America, the norm are indoor or outdoor markets like these where produce are stacked in piles alongside other produce and each section is owned and managed by different people.
Next to the produce section are the meat and seafood sections which cause all the scents to intermingle and waft throughout. If one is not used to the smell, it can be a jarring jolt to one’s olfactory system.
After the market, we finally headed off to school. It was northeast from the center of town, further than I expected. It seemed to take another 20 minutes to get there.
The school appeared to be a large sprawling white colonial estate located in a beautiful upscale gated residential area. We entered the school, were shown the facilities, the water, tea and coffee stations and were escorted to our cooking stations. After a 10 minute break, we headed into the classroom. It was wonderfully air conditioned and bright.
The classroom setup had 3 rows of pews with desks and the front of the class had the overhead mirror like at cooking demonstrations. On the table was cookware over one or both burners and small dishes to the side with previously measured and cut ingredients. There was also a cutting board and a chef’s knife.
Our instructor, Pon, was quite the ham and would crack jokes, making the experience much more lighthearted. He explained, however, that there’s a proper order in incorporating and/or pairing the ingredients and what the effects were if protocol wasn’t followed. Pon also shared some of the shortcuts in cutting the vegetables and preparing the ingredients. He allowed each of us to be his helper and demonstrate each dish we would eventually cook on our own so that we could have some practice preparing the dish and also to get a better understanding of technique. The structure of the cooking class was demonstrating one dish at a time, explaining how to prepare it with each student getting a taste and then heading to our cooking stations to prepare each dish on our own with his guidance and sometimes helpful hand in intervening before we omitted ingredients and/or burnt our dishes.
Our first dish was Tom Yam Goong, a hot and sour shrimp soup, which we typically order from Thai BBQ during cold and flu season so me learning how to make it is going to be immediately beneficial in our household. Pon explained how to minimize or enhance the spiciness of the soup by how the chili pepper is prepared.
That was followed by Tord Man Pla (fish cake),
Gaeng Kheo Wan Kai (green curry with chicken)
and Phad Thai with tofu. We ate the last two dishes as a group for lunch.
Laurie and Jeremy from Toronto, the couple we picked up from Shangri-la, left after lunch as they only scheduled a half day cooking class, but Jennifer, her husband from Chicago and Alex from France stayed to finish the rest of the class.
We proceeded to make Tab Tim Grob as a group, in the classroom. The water chestnuts with sugar syrup and coconut milk dessert was surprisingly delicious and easy to make provided you follow the directions exactly. It needs to be devoid of liquid before adding all the ingredients or it will not properly coat them onto the chestnuts.
Our last entree was the Nam Prik Gai or minced chicken northern style which was delicious and very simple.
Thai Kitchen Cookery School is an easy recommend. They provide roundtrip transportation, detailed instruction with helpful hints and techniques, an immaculate, air conditioned professional classroom setting, a clean, well equipped cooking station and varied menu options.
It is also vegan friendly as my classmate Jennifer happily discovered. The meat dishes were substituted with butternut squash which was purchased at the market and the instructor helped her prepare her dish when it came time to cook. As in most Asian countries, coconut milk and coconut cream are used in lieu of dairy so that was helpful for her as well.
At the end of class they send you off with a cookbook of the recipes you’ve prepared and a well-earned apron as a souvenir of your time at their school. I’m happily returning to school 4 more days so more to report and share soon!
Thai Cookery School
We started off our day heading out for breakfast for the first time since we arrived. We were low on milk and had not yet gone to the store so instead we headed to Choei Cafe and Bistro less than 5 minutes away. It had been on my list of previously vetted restaurants. The food and service had been rated to be superior and on our first night when we did nothing but go to dinner and get groceries, we had passed by it and noticed that nobody was dining there for dinner. Still, we weren’t dissuaded from trying it for breakfast.
We arrived a few minutes before opening time but the Open sign was already displayed. We took a few minutes to look at the menu as the breakfast options had both Western and Asian options but ultimately we decided to get a bit off of each menu.
The first to arrive was the chicken and rice porridge which was very similar to something I used to eat in the Philippines as a child. It had the look of oatmeal or grits as it had soft rice in it but had a savoriness that is common in soup and enhanced by the chunks of chicken. My husband was impressed with the flavor and ate it effusively.
He also ordered a veggie, chicken ham and cheese omelette as well as an Asian fusion pancake dish. The omelette tasted no different than one from home but the syrup for the pancake was not as dark as maple syrup. It tasted like a sugary corn syrup.
I ordered scrambled eggs which came with both thin slices of chicken ham and chicken sausage, three crispy hash brown triangles and a side of baked beans.
We also ordered citrus juice which tasted freshly squeezed and chilled. Choei Cafe is definitely more expensive than the standard street stall vendor but less expensive than American standards. For all of that delicious and filling food as well as a minute macchiato, it cost $25 for the two of us.
After breakfast, we were picked up by the Mae Ping River Cruise. I had shared with friends that my husband was “watted” out from Friday’s outing. Lo and behold, the river cruise parking lot was behind a massive wat. We didn’t opt to explore but I took a few photos while waiting for the boat to depart.
We joined a small group of Asian tourists and a German couple on the boat.
We stopped off at an organic farm were allowed to wander around. We saw two women preparing their entrees for the cooking school on-site. To the left was the open-aired restaurant engulfed in the trees, rice paddy and gardens. There were signs and explanations in front of certain plants providing Information on their healing and medicinal uses. We were escorted to tables overlooking the river. A large Australian group of mostly teenagers and a few adult escorts arrived and they all had a very early lunch of traditional Thai cuisine.
We were served with sliced pineapple and watermelon and glasses of tamarind, ginger, lemongrass and lychee flavored juice before heading back.
Shockingly and sadly, we came across a dead floating body in the river. It gave the rest of the trip back a more somber feel. He looked to be in between his 50’s and 60’s and had a white plastic back floating above his chest with some items in it. It was a reminder that we weren’t living in a bubble despite being on vacation. People lived and died in Chiang Mai every day. We needed to be mindful, respectful and grateful not to be in his shoes.
After the cruise, we headed to Vieng Joom On Teahouse. I had read on other blogs and city guides how beautiful and quaint it was inside. On the outside, it stood out with its Pepto Bismol paint but on the inside, it had a very different feel. There was still a great deal of pink accents interspersed throughout but it had a more exotic feeling with all the teas and accessories. On entering, you walked into the tea shop with bags of different types of tea, teapots and cups available for purchase and desserts in display cases beckoning you to sample them. The dining room opened up to the light as it was also riverside. The decor had a bit of an opulent Moorish vibe, with arched nooks carved into the walls and Moroccan inspired upholstery on the chairs and pillows
I had previously purchased the tea and dessert portion of the meal on Klook but we needed a more substantial lunch so we ordered a few other items off of the vegetarian menu. We started off with pot of a combination of black and green tea accented with Jasmine. It was quite smooth and fragrant.
Then our main dishes arrived. The pesto sauce on the pasta was very rich and dense in flavor. It was definitely not doused in olive oil like in Italian restaurants. The mushroom roti, which was basically a quesadilla, was quite tangy and gooey and had a thousand island inspired sauce to dip it in or to top it off. Lastly the fresh crispy veggie spring rolls had a thin layer of scrambled egg as its outer shell giving it a unique spin making it more like a sushi roll rather than a tradition egg roll. Everything was quite delicious and though it had a similar and familiar foundation, the tea house built and enhanced the look and quality adding a different layer of taste and flavor to each dish.
We finished off our experience with the three tiers of sweets.
On the top tier was a tradition buttermilk scone and a not-so-traditional strawberry scone with a bit of butter and jam to accompany them.
On the middle tier was a blueberry cheesecake with little chocolate butterflies on top of the small sections of cream.
On the bottom layer were chunks of papaya, mango, Apple and cantaloupe. It was about a $50 meal so definitely not Thai prices but the setting and relaxed vibe had a heightened luxury so it definitely set it apart from our standard day-to-day fare.
After a brief workout back at the Airbnb, we were picked up by The Home Massage & Spa. We scheduled a 2 hour deep tissue oil massage.
On arrival, we were greeted with a cold compress and cold tea. Our feet were washed and we are given slippers to walk into our massage room. Inside, the room had its own bathroom complete with a shower to go with the two beds. Just like at Lila, we were given black plastic underwear and I was given a very thin shower cap. My massage was far improved from Friday’s experience. Though she did start stretches on the feet and calves, it was just a way to start warming up the body. She did pressure points on the back first which is the type of massage we were used to. What made it uncomfortable was my arms were in a touchdown position for most of the time. Also, there were a few instances when she was using her elbow to rub up and I felt it was too close to my spine. Similar to the therapist of Lila, she worked on my chest but I was properly covered up with a thin layer of material and she worked on the periphery and she also worked on my belly but with a bit more finesse.
After the massage, we were given a hot tea and peanut butter cookies.
With tip, it cost $65 which was more than double what we paid for our hour and a half massage at Lila, and it’s still a fraction of what we would normally pay and the setting was more private and a bit more upscale. However, we felt that the massage was still lacking. We were both hoping for it to be less expensive, for the massage therapists to incorporate more hip and flute work during the treatment, for the massage bed to not be so stiff and for elbow usage used less frequently. Though the technique and bedside manner were significantly better than our experience at Lila, it still didn’t warrant a return visit or a solid recommendation.
Hunger pangs were knocking so we had the spa’s driver drop us off at Sunday’s Night Market. After spending an excessive amount of money by Thai standards for the majority of the day, I wanted to have a more traditional frugal dinner experience so we made a beeline into the alley for Lert Ros which is a seafood restaurant quite well known in those parts. Upon seeing the exterior and the display of exposed fish, my husband asked “is it safe to eat here?” To assuage his apprehension, I showed him that TripAdvisor had over 800 4 1/2 star reviews for the restaurant though I honestly could not blame him. It was definitely rustic and looked to be a large hole in the wall. The “kitchen” looked to be all outside, with the grills covered with large pieces of fish. It was surrounded with a mishmash of both food and kitchen supplies. I proceeded to seat us inside, at a table right underneath a fan.
We ordered a large red snapper, grilled shrimp and a coconut lemongrass chicken soup with some beer and sticky rice. Not surprisingly, the food was sensational and was a great value costing us 550 baht which is $18USD. Lert Ros just goes to prove that you can’t judge a book by its cover and also simultaneously and concurrently, how social media can help make or break a business. By the time we left, nearly every table was occupied mostly by Asian women and a few Asian men, some of whom were clearly of the upper echelon.
We ended our evening by walking at the Sunday Night Market for a bit. Having been to one nearly every night, the Sunday Night Market definitely had some unique items to purchase. I bought a painting on a canvas for 200 baht which is the equivalent of $6.51 USD. Being Asian myself I did negotiate him down from 250 to 200 but I wanted to be respectful since he was in the business of selling his artwork. I also bought some unique bookmarks: 6 for 10 baht or 3 cents.
As we could feel a few sprinkles and the sky was looking ominous with the street vendors adding their rain covering and the night market was getting more crowded with each passing minute, we decided to head back. We still needed to make a pit stop at the store to get more supplies for the week. Also, we needed to run a second load of laundry as the oppressive heat and humidity caused nonstop sweating throughout most of the day. More importantly, we wanted to be rested as Monday we both go back to school. On to the next phase of our vacation!
We opted to visit a sanctuary over trekking as we had heard about the cruel and inhumane treatment of elephants who are beaten into submission to carry people and perform tricks on command. I chose this particular sanctuary due to its transportation, proximity and itinerary which worked well with our schedule during our time in Chiang Mai.
We chose the single day visit with a pickup from our Airbnb between 8-8:30 in the morning with a return around 5. In addition to the transportation and visiting with and feeding the elephants, it included a vegetarian buffet.
The drive to the sanctuary took about an hour and a half. During the early part of the drive, we watched a video about how the sanctuary came to be, the woman who runs it and some of the atrocious crimes some of its residents had suffered prior to making the sanctuary their permanent home. The latter part of the drive was quiet and serene filled with picturesque scenery. We drove past verdant, rolling hills dotted with elephants and water buffaloes, some elephant trekking parks, a zip line park and other sanctuaries.
We arrived a bit before 10 a.m. During the first half of our visit, our guide Bee Bee talked about how each elephant we met came to live at the sanctuary, how one elephant was blinded by its owner, how another had been hurt logging but to make money off of her she was bound while forcing a much larger elephant to breed with her. There were other equally horrific and sad tales but what was important was these gentle giants now had a peaceful place to wander, eat freely and just be one with nature. We learned on the drive over and on-site that it’s always best to be in the elephant’s periphery, not to take flash photography, not to stand behind the elephant, not to tease the elephant with food and if the ears are flapping, that’s its happy.
The sanctuary serves not just a home for the elephants. It has volunteers who stay overnight, a week or sometimes two weeks to help with the elephants. On a more permanent basis, each elephant has a person assigned to him/her who sits by the elephant all day making sure he/she has anything it needs and that person lives on-site in the event the elephant needs anything overnight or runs off and enters the neighbor’s property, resulting in a steep fine. There are also 80 water buffaloes that live amongst the elephants as well as rescued dogs and cats.
We were taken to the kitchen for the elephants and saw just how much food the sanctuary stores to feed the 79 elephants it shelters. The oldest elephant in the herd has few teeth so they make her a special diet of rice with coconut and banana leaves.
By 11:40, it was time for lunch. It was a massive spread of food with two rows of options. We had free time until 12:50 and then we set off to walk the rest of the sanctuary’s grounds which was quite expansive. Bath time is private at this sanctuary compared to others in the area. They discontinued visitors washing the elephants because it was distressing to the animals and took the pleasure and joy from their experience. We did, however, see an elephant they had to convince daily to take her bath because she just did not care for water. On the video we captured, she was the one making sounds resembling a rooster as a way of complaining.
We witnessed bath time for the rest of the elephants followed by mud time which is a natural sunscreen for them and then they headed to the scratching posts. It was an extraordinarily hot and sunny day with a few mists of rain interspersed so as the elephants moved, we hid under the huts to shield us from the scorching hot sun.
We observed as a truck pulled up with more branches and saw the herd quickly make a beeline in its direction. It was lunchtime and it was interesting to watch how certain elephants would steal food from others despite having food right in front of them. We saw others take their helping and turn their backs to the others while eating. There was an elephant who was super picky which bananas were good enough to eat as it would feel the texture of the banana and decide whether it was good enough to eat it or overripe so it should be tossed out. We watched the oldest elephant who is 103 years old pick the leaves off the stem and put a trunk full of greens in her mouth. It was mesmerizing and almost hypnotizing to watch her strategically pluck the leaves.
All in all, it was a fantastic experience and is on my personal recommend for a Chiang Mai excursion. Our guide was sensational and knew all the elephants by name and their history. We loved getting up close to the elephants and watching them just live their lives, enjoying their lazy days and being sheltered from harm’s way.
Elephant Nature Park
After a day and a half of travel, we understandbly took a very leisurely approach to our first full day in Chiang Mai. I made breakfast at our Airbnb, we did a morning workout and then finally headed off to lunch at the well-renowned SP Chicken. I had first heard about it from Mark Wiens who I began to follow during my research of our Japan trip last August. Other foodies like myself have fallen head over heels in love with their food so we wanted to see and experience for ourselves.
As it was a very warm, humid sunny day, we opted to skip the 37 minute walk and ordered a Grab. It cost 80 baht and the driver’s car had the A/C going full blast. Plus our driver was super chatty and mentioned a bit about some of the history and recent conflict in the area. For that history lesson, I gave him a 70 baht tip.
When we arrived, we ordered a whole chicken to share, a plate of stir fried Chinese kale and a spicy lemongrass shrimp soup. The chicken was tender and moist and the other dishes we ordered were equally delicious. The greens was simply seasoned but the soup packed a bit of heat. We were surprised how quickly our orders came out and how rapidly we polished off the food.
After lunch, we headed to Wat Phra Singh which was around the corner. Though it was unmanned, there was a box at the entrance which said it cost 20 baht to enter.
Not having any change, we gave 50 baht. It was our first glimpse at just how opulent the Buddhist shrines are in Chiang Mai. All the gold glistened in the sun. There were several structures and statues within the complex. Not having a guide to explain everything we opted to move on after walking around for about 20 minutes.
We considered walking 13 minutes to the next wat, Chedi Luang, but my husband was getting sunburnt and the hot sun combined with the humidity was starting to drain our energy. We took a tuk tuk for 100 baht and were dropped off right by the front. This Wat had a ticket window and it was double the cost of the prior Wat with many more people visiting. Unlike the last Wat, there was a stand with people providing free sarongs for the women and men who weren’t properly dressed. We headed to the first structure and walked into the temple which had many large gold Buddhas at the back. The decor inside was quite beautiful and ornate. Perhaps it was the heat and humidity or the setup being very similar to a church but my husband was overcome with emotion and expressed his feelings of gratitude for how his life had evolved. We sat down to take a moment and also because the fans were best felt if we were beneath the air flow.
After a few minutes, we headed out to see what else the complex had to offer. Behind the first structure was a large pyramid of sorts, reminiscent of Chichen Itza in the Mayan region but not as massive. Apparently at one point, it was a much larger structure but due to an earthquake what stands now is only half of the original structure. It was still pretty majestic and definitely has a great deal of presence.
Curious about the city’s history, we walked to the Three Kings monument 5 minutes away and went to the City’s Cultural Arts museum to get a better understanding of how the city was founded, why its location was considered to be auspicious and got a bit of background on all those who helped shape the city into what it is today.
Experiencing enough sightseeing, history and culture, we ventured to one of the main things Thailand is known for: massage. I had read about Lila Thai as a business which helped provide a trade and a job for previously incarcerated women so that made it my first choice for massage. We each got an hour and a half oil massage coincidentally during the afternoon’s downpour which we could hear from the massage room on the third floor. My masseuse pummeled my calves which made walking a challenge afterwards.
Luckily, my husband wanted to head back to our Airbnb for a bit so we ordered a Grab and relaxed for about an hour before heading out for our final stop of the day: the Chiang Mai Night Bazaar. We headed straight through to Mho-O-Cha seafood restaurant based on its 4 star ratings on TripAdvisor. It reminded me of the delicious and super cheap seafood place, D’Talipapa, we visited in Boracay. Sadly, it did not compare to the quality and flavor as the Filipino version but it was decent and our total bill was 1300 baht.
We were also optimally seated by a bit of color.
After dinner, we strolled around the stalls and saw silk robes, scarves and ties as well as some interesting art and craftwork. We decided to stop at a fish spa as it had piqued our curiosity in Boracay but we didn’t partake. It cost 100 baht for 20 minutes so we each decided it was a good enough deal to try it. I literally screamed and laughed for the first few minutes because it felt weird and a bit ticklish. Eventually, we got used to it and began chatting it up with others who were equally curious or had tried it previously. An older Irish gentleman came over with his adopted Thai son. We discussed how 23andMe proved that my husband was in fact not Sicilian but was 39% British/Irish. The gentleman said that of course that was true as his coloring was similar to his biological son who apparently was sitting on a bench to my left enjoying his own fish spa experience.
To cap off the evening and the day, Troy ordered a mango sticky rice dessert which he had seen on our way in. I think the big grin on his face shows just how much he was looking forward to the decadent indulgence. And that was how we ended Day One.
Grace Gambin
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