Chiang Mai

 

After some rest, we took advantage of the famous Thai massages and got one on this relaxing stop. What better place to do it in? We walked around the Old Town center trying to decide on one out of the numerous ones to choose from. There was this one that seemed so inviting from the outside and contrary to the others didn’t have someone outside the shop trying to sell you a massage, which I always prefer. People standing outside trying to lure you inside their shop always has the exact opposite effect on me of what they want: it makes me want to run past. Hence we made an appointment for later that afternoon.

This made think about the peaceful Thai people and culture. They seem to never get angry or nervous – instead they smile and laugh things off. Even our taxi driver stuck in traffic in Bangkok just laughed timidly rather than getting upset. It makes sense because these are things out of our control and does us no good to get stressed out and restless, as we would do in our modern western world.

Northern Thailand was a delightful deviation and stop on our itinerary considering the elephants and the Thai massage that I didn’t want to end. However, all good things must come to an end and so did our time in Chiang Mai. I would definitely like to go back to the far north one day and spend more time there to be able to explore all the picturesque nature and parks of the area, something I had hoped we’d do but didn’t get to at all. I’m also aware that Chiang Mai in particular is famed for its temples, hence next time I would set aside some temple-visiting time there.