Woke up early to do a bit of a tour of the city of Chiang Mai by motorbike. My guide Tay and I rode around a bit checking out some of the tourist spots. I'm not really into temples and there are so many of them in Chiang Mai but I do admire the architecture.
 |
| The old city of Chiang Mai is surrounded by the ancient walls and there were 5 gates that look like this |
Then we headed back to the hotel to meet the rest of my family. We set out for Doi Inthanon which is the highest mountain in Thailand. At the top, we went for a short walk and took photos with the highest point in Thailand.
 |
| One of the pretty walks at Doi Inthanon |
After that we visited the King and Queen's pagoda. The weather was quite overcast so visibility wasn't great. I managed to get a few photos of the grounds and the pagodas. It's a pity because I could imagine that on a clear day, it would look very pretty. The grounds have many seats and places where you can stand and take photos with the pagodas in the background. The gardens are beautifully sculptured.
 |
| Queen's pagoda |
 |
| King's pagoda |
After the pagodas, we headed to a local farm for a late lunch. It was nice driving through the hill countryside. It was a lot cooler and the air was nice and fresh. We saw quite a few plantations and I was reading some information about the King's project. The King has gifted the people of the hill tribes seeds and the means by which they can grow a crop that they can take to the markets and sell. I really like that idea... instead of giving welfare handouts, he's given the people a way for them to make the money and grow their own economies. After selling their crops and handicrafts, they can buy other things they want.
 |
| Chrysanthemum plantations in the countryside |
 |
| Roadside stalls where hill people sell the produce |
 |
| Thai wine - 3 bottles for 100 baht (about AUD$4) |
 |
| yummm fresh raspberries and elderberries |
 |
| lots of packets of dried fruit |
After lunch we visited the Wachirathan waterfall before driving back to the city.
After such a long day, we decided not to go out at night but just to have dinner at the hotel/apartment. We had an early night...
After the pagodas, we headed to a local farm for a late lunch. It was nice driving through the hill countryside. It was a lot cooler and the air was nice and fresh. We saw quite a few plantations and I was reading some information about the King's project. The King has gifted the people of the hill tribes seeds and the means by which they can grow a crop that they can take to the markets and sell. I really like that idea... instead of giving welfare handouts, he's given the people a way for them to make the money and grow their own economies. After selling their crops and handicrafts, they can buy other things they want.
No comments:
Post a Comment