Weeks 1 & 2 - A tale of two cities...

Chiang Mai (Sunday 03/10 to Monday 11/10)

The train journey alone took 17 hours, three more than the 14 it was supposed to! Reasonably comfortable beds made more so after a couple of large Singha beers. Noise and movement of the train made it difficult to get any decent sleep - an experience (probably) worth repeating though.

Chiang Mai in the north of the country is one of the largest cities outside Bangkok but it is worlds away, not just in distance (about 700 km). It sprawls amongst northern Thailand's deep green jungle and boasts the biggest collection of vegetarian restaurants that Shel has ever seen. The air is cleaner although still filled with fumes but the atmosphere is far more relaxed, there is less hassle even when browsing market stalls you are often left in peace, unheard of in Bangkok!

We spent just over a week here, split almost half half relaxing and seeing the sights. There are nearly 300 temples in Chiang Mai and whilst we certainly didn't see them all, we've probably seen enough Thai temples to last the remainder of the trip. A special mention, however, must go to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep which nestles in the lush jungle that covers the side of Doi Suthep one of the most sacred peaks that surround Chiang Mai. Similar in design to most other Wats we've seen, it seems to be held in greater esteem than the other temples here - the Freshers at the local Chiang Mai University even march up to it during their first few weeks. The view from the temple over Chiang Mai is very impressive and worth the trip there alone.

Highlight of the trip so far must go to the Elephant Nature Park, a sanctuary for abused and mistreated elephants in Thailand and nearby Burma, that was set up to save elephants from the poor treatment that is endemic in here. Despite being a revered creature they are subjected to brutal training regimes and are often severely damaged as punishment - one elephant was blinded by her owner and was bought by the ENP in order to protect her. We spent a great day feeding the elephants with huge baskets full of fruit and bathing them in the river. They are truly amazing creatures, they move with such grace and majesty that we found ourselves just watching them without realising how long for. The way they interact with humans is particularly impressive, whether with their mahouts (trainers/friend) or with tour groups they've never seen before. One very friendly five year old spent half an hour kissing the tour group with her trunk. If you're ever in Thailand, give this place a visit, well worth the ₤50 we each spent.

Something we did manage to see twice in Chiang Mai was the 'Sunday Walking Market'. Every Sunday evening one of the main roads through the Old City is shut off to allow street vendors selling food, clothes, jewelery and other souvenirs. It creates a very vibrant but relaxed atmosphere, an amazing range of colours and a good opportunity to sit in one of the many corner bars with a beer, just watch the world go by.

A lot of time in here was spent in vegetarian only restaurants which was great for Shel and actually pretty tasty. From the more upmarket 200-300B (₤5-7) air con places to tiny street vendors at 40B (just under a ₤1) for the entire meal, there was a huge range of place to eat. Another food attraction was the nightly market where I managed to get my fill of seafood for ridiculously low prices. Most dinners were followed by a drink or more at in one of Chiang Mai's bars; cheap beer and free pool means it's difficult to go wrong. Some evenings we managed to get an early night, others we lived to regret in the morning!

The fact that we spent eight days in Chiang Mai tell it's own story - we meant to spend half that. It is a great antidote to bustling Bangkok and gave us a chance to catch our breath after three days there and a few busy weeks back home working and getting ready for the trip. On Monday evening we boarded our late night flight down to Phuket airport for some island hoping, looking forward to plenty of time of the beach!