Bus Ride - Headed For Laos

Time to leave Thailand. But not to worry. We'll be back... not once, but twice (anyone who visits Thailand comes back). 

We took a 7 hour bus ride from Chiang Mai to the Thai border town of Chiang Khong. It wouldn't have been so bad if the seats weren't so tiny and so plastic. There was a group of 8 big athletic Australian dudes on the bus with us, and the poor guys were squeezed into the tiny seats like sardines. And there was no AC. They were entertaining to watch/listen to, but even better was the golden sunset out the window. 

We had to spend one night in Chiang Khong before crossing the Mekong River into Laos the next morning. We thought it'd be a chore to stay a night in some tiny city, but after we saw the place, we realized that we wanted to stay longer than one night! The hotel on the river was pretty spectacular. Those photos next.

Except for the first shot, the rest were taken out the bus window.

- Julia

Seating for monks at the bus station (not sure why they're separate).

Chiang Mai Night Market

The Chiang Mai night market was an amazing experience. We hopped on our scooter and headed over there before the sun set, and I'm so glad we did. We got to watch the area transform into a bustling market... in record time. As soon as the sun dipped below the horizon, scooter after scooter pulled up and unloaded merchandise and produce. Some of these scooters had so much stuff on them you could hardly see the driver. While some were selling clothes and other goods, there was one street packed with nothing but street food. Walking down this street was fun, seeing all the different foods being prepared and cooked/grilled/fried. A little scary too. We either weren't hungry or didn't have the guts to try anything (except some fruit). There were rows of tables stuffed with locals eating, drinking, chatting, laughing-- it looked like a great way to finish off the day. 

We didn't see many (if any) tourists while we were here. Highly recommend checking it out when you're in Chiang Mai.

-Yuriy

Around Chiang Mai II

Some more general photos from around Chiang Mai, Thailand. 

We have one more post planned from Chiang Mai's night market, and then we'll move onto our adventures in the next country over, Laos (involving a 2 day travel by boat down the Mekong River). 

- Julia

Bikes and scooters are golden when the traffic is bad in Thailand.

This woman is tough driving two kids on a scooter! We saw kids and babies on scooters often. Sometimes a family of four (mom, dad, two kids)!

Girls in skirts and heals sit sideways in the back of a scooter. I don't know how they don't fall off. 

The uniforms on school kids are darling.

Fish spas are popular all over Thailand. You put your feet in the tank and the fish nibble on the dead skin of your feet. Gross but cool! I would have tried it, but every time I opted for a full-body massage instead.