Part 1: Bangkok to Chiang Mai
This summer (July) I decided to do some things differently
For the past 20-odd years the wonderful month of July has been my holiday month. As an international school teacher, I have been in the fortunate position of having a mid-year break of 6-7 weeks from mid-late June. This time has usually been eaten up by pretty hectic times of travel and family commitments. The time has usually flown by and the perennial plan of being productive and doing some work during this time has never quite eventuated.
The recent ‘Covid years’ forced me into 6 quarantines during this period and last year was spent in Australia doing the usual family and friends stuff while also preparing to move to Thailand.
This year though, I decided to stay put. Well, kind of ….
I decided that of all the places in the world to spend this time of the year Thailand was well up the list and that I would slow down and enjoy where I’m currently living. I also decided that I wanted to use this great opportunity to be more productive, work on my blog and prepare well for the next school year.
My new motto was ‘ Hey friends, I’m staying at home this year. It’s time for you to come visit me instead.’ One of my best friends, Al, from Australia, decided to take me up on the offer.
Hence the travel bug made yet another visit.
This is what we got up to……..
A Simple Plan
We decided on a simple two-week itinerary starting in Bangkok, heading north to Chiang Mai and then crossing the Laos border and travelling to Luang Prabang where we would spend the majority of our time before flying back to Bangkok.
Though I had travelled this route before, I embraced my role as a local guide and sought to see things through fresh eyes. I was looking for new things, new experiences and new understandings of the region of the world that has been so close to my heart for so long.
Al had two simple requests:
1. We needed to do some hiking. I’d missed my regular hikes in Hong Kong, so I was quite happy about this goal
2. We needed to find a way to watch the cricket. Yes, I know that for many of you, this would not be important on an overseas trip. But for an Aussie cricket fan during an Ashes series (test cricket between Australia and England) this is just non-negotiable.
After two days of taking in the sights of Bangkok including a small taste of Bangkok nightlife, the beautiful parks (Lumphini and Benjakitti) as well as the vibrant Chatuchak market, it was time to get the show on the road. Or more precisely ‘on-track’. The train track that is.
A Great Overnighter
We decided to travel to Chiang Mai on the No. 9 sleeper train. This train departs daily at 6.40 pm and arrives at around 7 am the next morning. For around 1200 Baht each (USD 35) we were able to get a First-class cabin which has two bunks and just a little more space and privacy than the 2nd class option where you share your space with other travellers.
A tip: for the First class tickets you need to buy them early and you need to do this in person at Hua Lamphong station. Other tickets can easily be purchased online.
Embracing slow travel can allow you to see things differently. Travel doesn’t need to be about getting to your destination as quickly as possible. I’ve always appreciated the idea that half the fun is getting there. This trip wasn’t going to be exactly the planes trains and automobiles of the famous John Candy/Steve Martin movie. It would be trains, tuk-tuks, vans, jeeps, boats and bikes. And lots of fun getting there.
Chiang Mai
After a pretty smooth train ride and a decent night’s sleep, it was time to find our hotel which was situated in the Old Town area. The taxi from the station to the city was actually the back of a jeep shared with other passengers.
Chiang Mai is a great destination in its own right. I was recently there for Songkran (Thai New Year). I could easily have spent a week here. It’s a great place for hiking and other outdoor activities like tubing and kayaking and of course temples. And it’s a great place for northern Thai food. But for this trip, it was more of the starting point of our trip to Laos.
Hiking Chiang Mai with a Guide Named Pat
We knew that the trip from Chiang Mai to Luang Prabang was going to take three days of solid travel. This limited our time in Chiang Mai a little. But we did manage to get in a really nice hike with a local guide named Pat.
The great thing about this option of getting your own guide is the flexibility. We could name our pick-up time and we could end and head home when we wished.
As it turned out, Pat’s itinerary was perfect. In fact, Pat’s hike was almost a kind of ‘meet my family’ experience. The driver was his cousin and as we trekked through stunning countryside, including rice fields and waterfalls we were frequently running into Pat’s friends and family who were working in the fields adjacent to Pat’s village.
We were greeted by two of Pat’s family members who offered us some kind of rice whiskey which we drank from bamboo cups before heading to our next rest point which was actually Pat’s house where we met his mother, father and grandmother. The trip also included a great lunch at the top of a mountain where we mixed with other travellers who had joined similar hikes.
As hikes go it was pretty good but nothing spectacular. As a fun interesting and educational experience it was something just a little special. Pat taught us about his village, about rice farming and about almost every type of fruit and tree that we saw along the way.
We even talked about Thai politics from the rural perspective where Pat talked of the disconnect between Bangkok and the northern provinces. He also let us meet his family and get a feel for what it’s like to live in this mountainous area where agriculture still rules. We learnt that the rice farmers were just waiting for the wet season to begin so that planting could begin.
And of course, we experienced typical Thai hospitality and friendliness. Just being in these places helps develop an appreciation for the simple things and the realisation that life is more about connections, people and the natural things that we have provided for us rather than material possessions.
Our brief Chiang Mai visit was a nice start to our trip. Great food, a nice hike and yes we did find a couple of places to watch the cricket with some other Aussie and British travellers and Chiang Mai residents. Next stop …. Laos
The Journey Begins
Had we left Thailand from Chiang Rai as I had previously done, the journey to Luang Prabang would have been possible in two days. From Chiang Mai, we were told that it was impossible to make the required connections to do the same.
So we embarked on a 5-hour van ride to the Thai-Laos border with four other travellers from England, Scotland and Canada. A surprising highlight was a lunch break stop right beside the famous White Temple in Chiang Rai. This region is full of the most amazing temples that you can ever see. The White Temple is my favourite.
Part 2 of this blog will continue the journey across the border into Laos. I hope you join me there.
Part 2: Life Lessons From Laos