For our next Thailand adventure, we left Bangkok and flew to Chiang Mai. It was a magical place with many handsome dragons―nāga, นาค (Bob’s favorite) and gorgeous elephants―Chang Thai, ช้างไทย (Amber’s favorite)! In addition, Thailand’s national mythological animal is the nāga and the national animal is the Chang Thai… serendipity!!

In Chiang Mai, we were delighted to meet more cats and our first was assisting at the Vegan Meals restaurant. We also passed a number of temples in our initial Chiang Mai walks including Wat Lok Moli (วัดโลกโมฬี) and Wat Umong Mahathera Chan (วัดอุโมงค์มหาเถรจันทร์). Our first explorations also took us by the beautiful Buak Hat Park (สวน สธารณะ หนอง บวก หาด).

We loved the food in Chiang Mai (it was inexpensive too)! Our favorite breakfast was the delicious food and coffee at Cafe’de Maross By Mantra (have you ever seen a prettier fruit plate?!). The murals around town are stunning (the prettiest flowerfly). We enjoyed another coffee and fruit breakfast at Bloomin’ Moon with the coolest coffee stencil! Our Thai food experience was enhanced by a cooking class at the Asia Scenic Thai Cooking School. Sue (our chef instructor) was amazing and we ensure all our Thai food is cooked with emotion!! We particularly liked the Som Tum papaya salad (ส้มตำ) and the beautiful color and flavor of the green curry paste (red curry recipe here―for green substitute fresh chilies).

Chiang Mai is a city filled with temples! We visited Wat Phra Singh Woramahaviharn (วัดพระสิงห์วรมหาวิหาร) with the famous Phra Buddha Sihing (though two others also claim to be the Phra Buddha Sihing). The complex includes the golden Chedi Ku Lai, beautiful temple bells, and gorgeous sacred lotus blossoms.

We continued to explore and found Nes Cafe very close to our apartment with the nicest couple making beautiful coffee art! At home, we successfully made hot basil stir fry with eggs from market fresh ingredients and the recipe from our cooking class! It was easy and delicious!! We also enjoyed street food during the Tha Phae Walking Street night market. One favorite discovery (just before this photo!) was the sweet Khanom Bueang (Thai crepes).

Our daily walks allowed further adventures and we found a beautiful elephant mural outside Wat Lam Chang (วัดล่ามช้าง) and the coolest monkey by the delicious Crusty Loaf Bakery. We also discovered the stunning entry statues at Wat Muen Tum (วัดหมื่นตูม). We headed to the Cat Brother Cafe for a drink, and also enjoyed our time with some very cute cats! We were officially greeted, shown all the names via bulletin board, Bob told the best stories, and the kittens were so cute (and feisty)!

We decided to combine our enjoyment of the temples with a hike and headed west of the city for the Wat Pha Lat (วัดผาลาด) Monk’s trail hike. It was steep with beautiful banners marking the trail. The falls made the nicest background sound to the beautiful meditation point. Just beyond is the temple where we rested, snacked, visited, and enjoyed the beautiful nāga (นาค) stairs. We then continued up the trail (and road) to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep (วัดพระธาตุดอยสุเทพราชวรวิหาร). Doi Suthep is the glorious location of the Legend of the White Elephant. There is a carved wooden pavilion with an amazing overlook of Chiang Mai. The temple complex is stunning with a beautiful gold stupa with Loy Krathong lanterns. Inside, we received a blessing from a Buddhist monk in honor of our 20th wedding anniversary. We shared the experience with another couple from Italy and Spain and the monk repeated the blessing in English, Spanish, and Italian. It was special and wonderful!

We continued our 20th anniversary celebration back in Chiang Mai by designing and getting new rings from the stunning Nova Collection Jewelry. We “officially” celebrated at the local Crusty Loaf Bakery with bread and coffees!!

We were very excited to visit the Elephant Jungle Sanctuary (after researching and reviewing elephant rescues in Thailand). They limit the number of the visitors to each site and require an orientation for interacting with them. You get to make snacks (with vitamins!) for the elephants, feed them bananas, take a river walk with them, enjoy mudding with them, and splash with them in the river. We were lucky enough to visit a baby elephant too (babies are very rare)!! All of the elephants have been rescued to give them a better life. It was delightful and they are such sweet animals!

Our final time in Chiang Mai entailed visiting more of the glorious temples. We visited the Silver Temple, Wat Sri Suphan (วัดศรีสุพรรณ). It is located in the the silversmith area of the city where workshops continue to operate. The ordination hall (silver temple) is operational and only men can enter the interior. More on women in Buddhism here, if you want to dive in. We also visited Wat Chiang Man (วัดเชียงมั่น) built as the first temple of Chiang Mai. The nagas are particularly beautiful, especially over the water to the first temple.

We had the most delightful time in Chiang Mai! The food was amazing, the temples stunning, and the people are so so lovely!! Thanks for making it to the end, here are some more Chang Thai for you… How cute is the baby elephant on the hike!!! 🙂