Day 35 – Chiang Mai
Today we went on a hike along a path called The Monk’s Trail, so we got a Grab to the drop off point, which is close to Palaad Restaurant. From there it was a steep incline uphill. We ended up walking past the rear of the Chiang Mai zoo. Upon asking the staff at the zoo for places to eat they told us there was a good restaurant down a side road.
Unfortunately it was another 15-20 minute uphill climb to the restaurant. When we finally got there, it was semi worth the detour, as the restaurant was situated in front of a waterfall on one side and on the other side there was views of the city. The restaurant was empty except for one other table and the staff were having lunch, so getting service was difficult…I guess the staff were hungry.
After lunch we had to walk back down towards the zoo, before starting The Monk’s Trail. The Trail goes through steep inclines inside wood land. The path is shown using orange clothes tied to branches which gives a very cool effect.
Once we reached the temple Wat Pha Lat on the top, we were met with nice views and a small water fall. We were also drenched in sweat from the midday hike through the humid climate. While walking around, J met a Buddhist Monk who started having a conversation with us. Upon asking about meditation retreats, the Monk called one of her friend’s who told us of a meditation retreat at the temple that the Monk was from, and we were offered a lift there. We accepted.
The Lady drove us down the hill we had just climbed with all our strength via the curved roads of Chiang Mai. Once on the bottom she told us where to get a Songthaew to Doi Suthep Temple, which was near the front end of the Chiang Mai Zoo. She arrived at Wat Ram Poeng, which is a secluded temple where foreigners are allowed to do meditation. We were dropped of at the office, where a super friendly monk welcomed us and told us about the program, which was only 300 Baht / $12.50 AUD for 10 days which included food, accommodation and even a set of clothing. If we had more time, there was potential that we would try it, though I have no idea how I would cope going vegetarian and losing all technology (which were referred to as distractions) for 10 days.
After that we walked back to the main road, after walking around the temple grounds. From there we caught a Grab back to the Songthaews. The driver was actually fluent in English and we talked all the way there. It was a bit awkward when he said the biggest problem in Chiang Mai is tourists. We just nervously laughed. What else can you do!
The Red Cabs / Songthaews wait until they are full (10 people) before taking people up to the top at Doi Suthep. We waited around 1 hour and only had 7 people, so the Songthaew driver asked us to go up for extra Bahts with less people, and everyone agreed.
Large Statue at base of Temple Naga Staircase Inside the temple grounds Inside the temple grounds Golden Stupa Inside the temple grounds Views of the city from the temple This lady was there forever and didn’t look like she would move so just took the photo with her Inside the temple grounds Views from the temple.
The drive to the Doi Suthep was winding and I was starting to feel sick as we held on for lives as the driver didn’t really use the brakes, and we didn’t have seat belts. After checking our the temple which has a golden stupa and excellent views of the city, we went back to our hostel on the Songthaews. The one that takes you up actually waits for you and takes you back down. Once on the bottom, it reverts to the normal rate of 30 Baht / $1.25 AUD per person, to anywhere around town so we used it back to our hostel.
We decided to extend our stay at X-Kingdom for another two nights and went back into the old town explore near the Northern Gate where we saw food stalls and to book a tour for the following day. We had dinner in Old Town before walking back home after an exhausting and long day.