Chiang Mai - a beautiful place

I continued my journey from Krabi to Chiang Mai in northern Thailand by plane. The city is beautifully located amidst green mountains.

I had hoped that it would be cooler in the north, but it wasn't! So I sweated quite a bit while touring the old town with its temples. There are over 200 temples in Chiang Mai (which of course I didn't visit all of!).

On my second day, I took a cooking class. An American family and a German couple also participated. Each of us got to choose 5 Thai dishes that we wanted to cook. Before we started, we visited the market together and explored the cooking school's large garden. It was a great evening, thanks to the fun group. Cooking the dishes is not that difficult, and when I get back home, I will try as many as possible!

For two days, I rented a scooter. But with the heavy traffic, one had to be quite careful. After starting and driving for five minutes, those stupid cops stopped me! If my scooter (if the cop was right...) had more engine capacity than I am allowed to drive, I had to pay 500 Baht (about 13 euros). Not much, but still annoying, as they were specifically targeting tourists. It's also a good business... At least I got a note saying I can drive without a license for three days. Unthinkable in Germany! :-)

I rode the Samoeng Loop, a beautiful route of about 100 km in the countryside around Chiang Mai. You drive through the mountains for a while and have fantastic views. As everywhere else, there are many temples to admire here as well.

Along the way, I stopped in a village where various ethnic groups, known as hill tribes, live. Most of the tribes are refugees from neighboring Myanmar. It was interesting, but quite different from what I had expected. After paying the relatively expensive entrance fee of 13 euros, you get a map and can explore the village. The residents sit in front of their houses and try to sell scarves, jewelry, wooden figures, pictures, etc., a few children play in the street. Occasionally, you come across another tourist. The village is beautiful and the people are friendly. There is even a large restaurant. All in all, it felt more like walking through a zoo and the people there are 'exhibited' for tourists with their colorful costumes. Even though it was very interesting and I learned a lot about different cultures, I didn't feel good about it. Later, I found a good article on the Internet that describes the whole thing quite accurately. If you're interested, you can read it here: http://backpackbaby.de/im-dorf-der-langhalsfrauen

Chiang Mai also has its own Grand Canyon! :-) Probably not as impressive as the original, but great for swimming! You can also just float around on the water with a tire or an air mattress. Really relaxing!

The icing on the cake was that I also met Yvonne again in Chiang Mai, my roommate in Australia. We spent a few wonderful days together.