Summary

Summary
Chiang Mai is great and affordable place to go on vacation.  There is a wide variety of activities, foods, and attractions to experience.  From sight-seeing to relaxing at awesome resorts, Chiang Mai has something appealing for everybody! Chiang Mai presents a complex culture with towering temples, gigantic mountains, and  livley city. This vacation will cost a fraction of the amount of any typical vacation in the United States. You will experience a different way of living, and it may open your eyes to new vacation oppurtunities!

Siam Rice Thai Cookery School

       

          If you are not much of a out doors person Chiang Mai also offers many Thai cookery schools. One of the more popular and tourist attracting schools in Chiang Mai is the Siam Rice Thai Cookery School. 

          Here you will learn how cook real traditional Thai dishes in traditional Thai style. You will learn about the all the different ingredients for cooking. A tour will also be given at the Fresh Market where you will go and pick up what-ever ingredients you will need to cook with.

          The class size ranges from one to nine classmates to ensure that the instructor has plenty of time with you. Courses are available every-day from 9:00am to 3:30pm and at 4:30pm to 8:30pm. Learning how to cook traditional Thai food would be a great gift to take back with from a vacation in Chiang Mai or for just people who love to cook.

Chiang Dao Elephant Camp

         

          In Chiang Mai there are many activities to do.  One very popular activity to do that I would recommend is the Chiang Dao Elephant Camp.

          This would be one of the most interesting places to visit on your trip in Chiang Mai. The Joy Ride Program offered at the elephant camp is among one of the most popular tourist attraction.

          The Joy Ride Program consists of the basic caring and understanding of the elephants.  You will also get the chance to learn how to get on, get off and ride the elephant through wonderful trails in Chiang Mai.

          You will also learn how bath, feed and paint pictures with the elephant.  The Joy Ride Program is available at 8:00am and at 2:00pm.  The program costs about $260 for one or two visitors.

Chiang Mai Rock Climbing Adventure

          If you are more of a thrill seeker than I would suggest planning a trip to the CMRCA also known as the Chiang Mai Rock Climbing Adventures, which would be a great place for fans of rock climbing.



          At the CMRCA you will learn to be a safer and stronger climber.  The CMRCA offers a course about safety and how to use first-aid in the wilderness for beginners, as well as learning the fundamentals of rock climbing.  If you are an experienced climber and would like a challenge climbing at the Crazy Horse Buttress would be one experience for you.

          The Crazy Horse Buttress rock tends towards vertically and slight overhangs with a few wildly steep routes thrown in which makes it a difficult course and pushes your body to the max.  If you’ve had your fun with rock climbing and want to do more exploring the CMRCA also offers caving in the Crazy Horse Buttress exploring is most beautiful and mysterious caves.

          The prerequisite of course is that you must be an experienced climber to do so.  The costs of both activities ranges from $100 to $250 to climb you would have to call and schedule an appointment but it would be worth the experience.

Affordable, luxurious hotels in Chiang Mai!

Secret Garden Hotel


The Secret Garden was declared the number one hotel in Chiang Mai in the year of 2011 (tripadvisor.com). It’s located in a very rural place that is tranquil and peaceful away from the busy, hectic streets on Chiang Mai. It is not a voyage to Chiang Mai from the hotel but it is just fair away enough to enjoy the quiet peaceful scenery.

The hotel provided many services! They have bikes and scooters to rent out for a small cost, this way you don’t have to deal with the traffic that is as slow as malaises during the congested hours of the day. There is a pool, hot tub, and a sauna all in the backyard for those who need a day off. The hotel also includes free shuttles into the city. The hotel is $55 a night for a four person room and customers can upgrade to a suite for a whopping $5!


Rated 3/5 stars (http://www.tripadvisor.com/)



Poolside veiw of the Secret Garden Hotel

The Legend Chiang Rai

The Legend Hotel is a little more expensive then most hotels you will find in Chiang Mai, however it lives up to its name. The resort is located in Chiang Rai, close to King Meng Rai the great monuments Wat Phra Kaew, and Wat pra Singh.

The hotel features a river resort, spa features, a resturante and a bar/lounge. Room service is avalible at all hours of the day. Recreational activities include an outdoor pool, a health club, and a sauna. The bathrooms includes personal robes for those who enjoy trolling around in the early morning.

The cost is $75 with all paid expenses, meaning everything is included. All you can eat, drink, and free room service!


Night veiw of the front entrance


Overhead veiw of The Legend Hotel.

Rated 4/5 stars (http://www.tripadvisor.com/)

Dash! Restaurant, and Bar Chiang Mai Thailand!

Dash Teak House is located off Moon Muang at the thapae gate. It’s inside the moat of the city. It caught my attention because of the structure of the building; it is a very modern crafted building.

                                  

When I walked in the door it was a refreshing smell of steamed veggies and other dishes. The patio on the roof provided a decent view of the buildings and arc texture below us.

I browsed through the menu for about a half hour, they had several appealing dishes. The shishkabobs included smoked peppers, shrimp, steak, and chicken all on the same stick! The whole meal was ten dollars, considering the portion size it is a bargain!

The bartender preformed bizarre stunts while making our drinks. Hurling the bottles through the air and lighting them on fire, then finally pouring them into a glass. The cheap drink specials allowed us to stay longer and we make friends.

Fried shrimp mixed with chicken curry


Thai tofu mixed with green beans, nuts, tomatoes, and a banana leaf.

Visit Night Market

Chiang Mai Night Market


The last place that I would like people to visit in Chiang Mai is Night Market. I recommend everyone to visit this market before they are going to leave Chiang Mai. This is my most interesting place to shop around side walk night market.

In this market you can find many things that you want such as foods, toys, shoes, clothing, jewelry and bags; in addition, you would see a crowd walking back and forth in the market and finding their interesting things. Next, a fun part that I like the most at market was walked around and tried different kinds of food.

There are many kinds of Thai food that you would like to eat such as Khao man kai (Chicken rice), Khao na pet (Red roast duck on rice), Khao soi ( Northern Thai curry noodles) and kuai tiao nam ( Wide rice noodle soup). The price of the food is cheaper than United States. For one plate is about 40 baths a little bite higher than 1 dollar, but it still cheap if you compare to U.S.A.

           

 

Love at First Bite! A Chiang Mai Cafe!

"Love at First Bite!"

The name "Love at First Bite" was very catchy so we decided to try this place out. When we arrived it was truly astonishing! The garden setting is tranquil and inviting, staff was prompt to greeting us.

There are so many cheesecakes, pies, ice cream, and any other dessert you could ever dream of! I began looking around I saw apple pie, banana cream pie, coconut cream pie, quiches, cookies, and cheesecake; that's when I knew this place was going to be nothing but a good memory.

As I bit into the warm and moist chocolate lava cake I was awe struck. It looked great, and it tasted even better. The cake was a good size portion, but only left me wanting more. I decided to try the coconut cream pie. It could not match the chocolate lava cake but it was very tasty also.

I paid a total of seven Thai dollars for both of these, it was extremely well priced for the satisfaction I got. I would HIGHLY recommend this to anyone looking for a place to snack or grab some dessert. With the prices and overwhelming variety you cannot go wrong!
Patio view


Lemon cheesecake with sliced lime and whipped cream.

Crunchy hazelnut pie.
	be explored. The bakery's refrigerators are full with them, tempting you to indulge, to plunge in and enjoy.

The Gallery, A Chiang Mai Resturant!

 The Gallery

The restaurant is located along the riverside with a huge patio, scenic view, and lovely gardens! The Gallery has a beautiful entrance and vibe to it. The location is perfect, right next to the river and the decoration and portraits are very warm and welcoming.
 We went there on a Friday night and there was a live band playing. They had a great sense of humor, and let people participate in their show. I was called up on stage and attempted to sing karaoke, however I could not read the lyrics because they were in Thai. My performance was short lived but it was a great time!

The food was well-prepared and very tasty. There was a wide variety of food, and I had a hard time choosing but the waiter suggested their specialty, the Thai curry so I decided on that. It was very good, came out within a half hour steaming hot and ready. After inhaling my meal I ordered a fried ice cream dessert, which was the cherry on top to a fantastic meal!

My night at The Gallery was a great experience. The price paid for the meal was very reasonable, and the employees were courteous and provided service with a smile. I have been craving the curry chicken since I left and I hope to make it back one day!


Patara

The zaola bamboo shoots.

Visit Thai Elephant Home

Next place that I would recommend people to go to see is Thai Elephant Home. It is located in Maesa Village. It is one of the most friendly elephant home and absolutely magical place for people to visit. The reason that I want to share with other people because there is you would learn about the elephants with theirs artistic works and their natural environment. In addition, all the staffs there are very friendly to tour you around the hill tribe with the elephants. If you get there, you would experience about elephants are live side by side with their caretaker as a family.

Visit Wat Chedi Luang

Wat Chedi Luang

Another place that I would recommend is Wat  Chedi Luang. I would also really like to visit this temple when I live in Thailand because it is an old temple in Chiang Mai that was built in 14^th century.  It is also an historical temple that has old shop and old city wall that remains from the past century. Next, in the middle of the temple ground, there are many statues of elephant built all the way around it. If you want to know more about the story of this temple, there is a program that you can sit and informal conversation with monks. The place there is open to all the public to visit.  

Visit Wat Prathat Doi Suthep

Wat Prathat Doi Suthep

 The first place that I would recommend you to visit is Wat Prathat Doi Suthep. It is one of the popular temples in Chiang Mia that most people often visit once a year. To get to Doi Suthep, you have to hire the taxi or ride on the tour bus. It would take about half an hour from downtown Chiang Mia to Wat Prathat Doi Suthep. It is a temple that I like to visit every time when I go to Ching Mai. This temple is built up high on the mountain. To walk up to the temple, there are 300 or more steps to climb up, but if you don’t want to walk up, there are lifts that could help you up to the top. The temple has big golden Buddha’s statues and a lot of bell that you can ring to send your prayer to heaven. When you get to the top, there is a beautiful view of Chiang Mai city that make you attract in it. This is the place that I love to take a long hour to relax.

Thailand Vacation- Great places to visit

Whether you plan to visit just one place or several, I would like to point out some of my favorite places for you to visit. Before making your decision to go on your vacation, you shall consider choosing a few popular places that most interesting to you, so when you get  there, you don’t have to worry about where are the places you will visit. I am from Thailand and I know pretty much about the interesting places that great on vacation. Thailand is a beautiful and fascinating country that has many interesting places to visit such as Chiang Mai. Places that I would recommend other people to visit in Chiang Mai are Wat Prathat Doi Suthep, Wat Chedi Luang,  Thai Elephant Home and Night Market.