Location: Chiang Mai, Thailand

I mentioned yesterday that I’ve been struggling in Chiang Mai to find real addresses for anything, and now I have to wonder if it’s not my phone but is instead… me. Maybe I had some kind of navigational grace period for the first bit of this trip or something! We finally got a paper map from the hostel owner Lah after I failed three times in two days to bring us to the right place. Probably should have started with a paper map yesterday.

Lah suggested we grab some chicken and rice down the road at Michelin rated Khao Soi Lung Prakit Kad Kom. If this wooden shack was in Canada I would have walked right by with a swift ‘nope’, but this is par for the course in Thailand and you see these sorts of eatery’s everywhere. The rickety little tables with plastic covers, half open air walls right next to a dusty road and giant vats of unknown food are often indicators that something delicious is inside – and it was recommended by a local which is also a great sign. Lah was absolutely right and it was so good that I’m surprised there wasn’t a line-up down the road!

We dubbed this morning ‘The morning of Wats’ because we have more of them to see than time left! Wat Sri Suphan, the Silver Temple, was first on the list. My excitement diminished a little bit when we entered and found out that women aren’t allowed in many of the structures because “women’s menstruation humiliates and ruins the sanctity of the temple”. Alright ok I guess I’ll send a man in to get some pictures for me! I’m not judging (ok maybe a tiny bit), I just want to see and do all the things so it’s sucks that I can’t just because I’m a woman. I was pleased Garrett got to go in and report back though! The outside was an absolutely beautiful solid silver colour with interesting sharp designs, and stairs that looked like a tiered waterfall.

We went up the road to Wat Phra Singh, the Gold Temple, which had giant gold structures all around (surprise) and more places I wasn’t allowed in! Garrett came out to show me pictures again as I peered hard into the gloom to try and make out the details inside.

The last temple was my favourite of the day: Wat Chedi Luang. A large stone and brick structure rose out of the middle of the complex, matching the crumbling walls that surround the old city district. A few well preserved life sized elephant statues poked out of the sides and you could see spaces where many more would have been in eras past. It’s the kind of place that triggers a moment of ‘holy shit look where I am, I get to see this with my own eyes!’

The rain clouds rolled in quickly and harshly, as they tend to when you choose to travel in the rainy season. It’s like I should have known or something! We tuktuked (yep it’s a verb now) back to the hostel where we sat on the covered porch, visiting with people and listening to the rain. It eased up just long enough for us to walk over to our pickup spot for an evening Thai cooking class!

The instructor, Poppy, picked us up in a truck taxi, where we met a family of four lovely Dutch people who would make up the other part of our group. Poppy took us to the fresh market nearby where he explained a lot of the typical ingredients used in Thai food, what to look for, and what we might be able to substitute with back home (immediately easing my worry about the feasibility of recreating the dishes!) We drove north to Thai Cottage, a little residential plot of land with chickens running around, where they had a covered outdoor teaching setup with stations for over a dozen people! We got lucky with such a small group because the instructor was able to really support each of us closely. We all got to pick different dishes to try making and I was so surprised and how straight forward Thai food really is when they explain the cooking techniques and why you’re actually doing something. I’m hopeful I can recreate a few of the dishes we made back home and I’m sure my family won’t object to being test subjects for me!

I made coconut soup, chicken cashew stir-fry and Khao Soi Curry. Garrett chose all different dishes so we could collectively bring more recipes and knowledge back home, making hot and sour prawn soup, Pad Thai, and Green Curry. It was a fantastic class that I am so glad we signed up for. We were so engrossed that we both forgot to take any pictures!! Originally it was just a maybe on the to-do list but it turned out to be one of my favourite things we’ve done!

Big things tomorrow!

Sav