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Phra Tamnak Siri Song Bhubing
A great environment
our tour guide explainin the story behind the girl
KAOVARUKARAM Temple along the Wang river
Has anyone taken the train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai during the day? Is the scenery worth it or should I just take the night train?
I would also take the night train. Unless you go first class the day train is crowded and smells terrible. The windows tend to be really badly tinted too so viewing the scenery is not really viable.
Two years ago we took the day train, this was a big mistake. We expected some sort of comfortable express but it turned out to be a small sprinter type which stopped at every station, seats were uncomfortable and the trip seemed to last for ever. This is not a scenic trip until you get within say 100 Km of Chiang Mai and by that time it will be dark.
The return night train to Bangkok was much better. Our private compartment was clean and functional, the food was at best OK. We arrived in Bangkok refreshed and ready to continue our holiday.
Austin
Most of the trip is more or less boring scenery.
Better take the night train.
Or, for about USD $50.00 you can hop over in Bangkokair and be there in 45 mins. Clean, fast, you get food and juice and you have all day to do that much more in Chinag Mai.
You should always take off your shoes when entering the temple or the prayer rooms that are in the temple. Sit down if you want to pray or take photographs when in the prayer rooms. Shorts and bermudas above the knees are not allowed if you want to enter the temple. Neither are skimpy clothing worn on the upper part of your body for example, sleeveless tops, spaghetti straps, tubes etc.
A patch work of tiny shops that stretches several blocks. You can't miss the night market. It's several city blocks long and like a patch work of various shops selling anything from Thai silk pillow cases to Chinese herbal medicine. You can find just about any handicraft unique to Thailand here in the night market. Wood work seems to be popular among the tourists and Thai silk is also highly sought after. Bargain, and have fun with it!
Hiring a tuk-tuk for a day is an ideal way to see the Old Chiang Mai. You may either request your guesthouse/hotel frontdesk clerk to call one for you...most of them can refer you to a reputable driver. Or, you may choose the fun way and do it yourself! Go out the main road road and hail any tuk tuk that pass your way.
The tricky part is haggling for the price. There's no rule for this except try to start at 50% the asking price and work your way up from there...the price will depend on your itinerary. Have your map ready and point to the attractions that catch your fancy. The driver will bring you to any temples, shops and places where you want to go. And sometimes suggest some good place to visit and try local stuff.
This will free you from haggling the whole day for tuktuk fare and make you enjoy your whole Chiang Mai experience better.
You can't leave Thailand without trying mango sticky rice. The Thai dessert is so heavenly! You take half a Thai mango. Then they put a handful of sticky or glutinous rice. The rice has been cooked in some coconut milk and sugar. Once it has started to cool a little they add hmong beans, which add a nice crunch to the dish. This is fantastic.
They have good tours at decent prices and you can arrange them online before arriving (which was a bonus for us as we didn't have that much time in Chiang Mai and didn't want to waste any of it).
We took the Elephant ride & rafting with Lisu Hill Tribe Village tour. It cost 1800 TBT for two people and was from 8am to 4:30pm.
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