Chiang Mai

Chiang Mai is a city in northern Thailand that should definitely not be missed on a trip to Thailand in my opinion. Unfortunately, the destinations of most tourists are limited to package holidays in the south, on the islands of Thailand.

Chiang Mai has an incredibly beautiful atmosphere and is located in the middle of the jungle.

We enjoyed the great atmosphere every evening at the beautiful night market. The market was filled with lots of pastel-colored umbrellas, which looked so nice that we couldn't get enough of it and took many pictures. In addition, different bands played every evening and it was just wonderful to sit comfortably with a drink and listen to the music. You can also eat very well and shop for souvenirs at the night market.

Our wish was to get a henna tattoo somewhere and we found it at the night market. So, we did it. The girls were super sweet and implemented our wishes very nicely. We couldn't get enough of our hennas after that.

In addition to the great evenings at the night market, we rented a scooter to zoom through the jungle and explore the area. At first, Kristina was a bit hesitant because of the traffic and the road conditions, but as she always said so nicely: 'Kristina, don't think about it, just do it' :) At that moment in Chiang Mai, she didn't know yet that the roads on Koh Tao would get even worse;).

If Kristina's mom is reading this now ... the roads weren't that bad, I was used to the traffic and I always took good care of your daughter:))).

It was great to drive through the surroundings of Chiang Mai and we had great views and after a long climb, we visited a beautiful pagoda.

Then the time had finally come, our highlight in Chiang Mai. The visit to an elephant sanctuary. Here I say it again: Please inform yourselves very carefully before booking such a trip. Consult locals and make sure that the animals are doing great where they are and that there is absolutely nothing to doubt about the project. We did that and could hardly wait to see the elephants up close. We were picked up early in the morning with a van and the first stop was a local market to buy fruit for the elephants. It was already super interesting to observe the market hustle and bustle there. Then we continued on a 2-hour drive deep into the jungle. The elephants live here freely in the jungle as well.

When we arrived, we were briefly briefed on the daily schedule and how to interact with the animals. Fortunately, there was only one older couple in the group beside us, so we could enjoy the whole day as a group of four.

Then the time had finally come... between the green of the densely overgrown jungle, we could finally see the first elephant. Always such a beautiful experience. As more and more elephants approached, we started feeding them with bananas and getting them used to us. After a short lunch break, we went for a mud bath. The motto here was: Right in the middle instead of just watching. The elephants enjoyed the mud so much and rolled around like crazy. They also enjoyed it immensely when we rubbed them with mud. And yes, we were covered in mud from head to toe:).

After that, we went on a short walk through the jungle to a water hole. There, we went in together with the elephants and washed ourselves and the elephants off the mud and played around with them in the water. It was such an awesome feeling to be so close to the animals and see how much fun they had. After that, the elephants went back into the jungle and for us, we went on a short hike to a waterfall before, totally exhausted but with incredible experiences and memories in our heads, we returned to our hostel.

What an incredibly great time we had in Chiang Mai. I would come back anytime. But now it was time for sun, beach, and sea. So goodbye Chiang Mai and off to the south of Thailand.