Thai Style

Thailand has this traveling thing all figured out. The people are friendly, the food is grand, lodging is cheap and plentiful, and transportation is a snap. Culture, history, cuisine, beaches, mountains – Thailand has it all.

Although short on the beach quotient, Northern Thailand is strong in all other categories. We arrived in Chiang Mai, and immediately found that we were enjoying ourselves. Chiang Mai is a great city nestled up against the mountains, and dotted with ancient Wats. We spent a day at cooking school (I make a mean red curry now) and a day exploring the city, before heading up to Pai, a small town of incomparable beauty.

From Pai we did a two-day trek through the mountains to several small indigenous villages. The scenery was incredible, the flora and fauna amazing (especially the spiders) and our glimpse of traditional village life was fascinating. These hill tribes (the Lahu, Lisu, and Karen tribes) are traditional mountain tribes of Southeast Asia. Many have fled to Thailand to escape brutal oppression at the hands of the Burmese government. They have lived for centuries on nomadic agriculture of the slash and burn variety, and have never developed a written language. Their life is simple, they live in a paradise quite unlike the modern westernized world, and if you ask them, they are quite happy that way.



After our trek, we found a bungalow in Pai on the bank of a gorgeous river (complete with an incredible outdoor shower), and simply relaxed. The restaurant cantilevered out over the babbling water, and diners whiled away evenings eating amazing food, listening to cool music, and lounging on pillows looking at the fiery Thai sun set gently over the lush mountain peaks. Like I said – Thailand has this traveling thing nailed.

Enjoy the Northern Thailand Photo Gallery.

Enjoy the Northern Thailand movies:
Forest Floor Spiders.
Tree Spiders.
Handful of Spiders.
Spinning Leaf.
Village Life.