Siam Diary: Part V
May 16, 2004
Chiang Mai
In a post-Full Moon haze we stumbled onto the morning flight to Chiang Mai, traveling a thousand miles north to Thailand's second city. Once an independent kingdom, Chiang Mai still retains a distinct sense of place, culturally closer to its Burmese and Laotian cousins than to the Bangkok nation.The Buddhist lineage runs strong here, with more monks, wats and prayer flags per square mile than anywhere else in Thailand. Here we met Tibetans, hill tribe people, and that particular breed of Westerner who heads for the jungle seeking release from the usual tourist samsara.
We put ourselves up at Gap's house, a family-run guest house in the Old City, with antique Teak furniture and vegetarian breakfasts served up in a peaceful inner courtyard.
Like most visitors to Chiang Mai, we used our guest house as base camp for an overnight trek into the jungle: a journey to parts unknown that would prove the pinnacle of our trip.
>> more Chiang Mai photos
next: Trekking
File under: Travels
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