Living in rose -Chiang Mai
Contributed by Jens Hoffmann
Chiang Mai is scenic and cultural–something that will be extremely apparent if you’re coming directly from Bangkok.
It’s still a big and bustling city, but much less so than Thailand’s capital city. It’s a great place to really dive into the culture of Thailand, and it’s the perfect base for exploring Northern Thailand’s gorgeous natural landscapes and lovely regional people.
A few things you can expect to encounter in Chiang Mai: Lush green mountains, rolling mist, phenomenal weather, winding rivers, waterfalls, trekking, elephants, ultra cheap prices, outdoor cafes, great coffee and tea, temples galore and lovely food.
Inside or near the Old City
However, a lot of the “must see” temples are within the Old City walls. It is my favourite area to walk around and explore. Chiang Mai attracts with a multitude of temples, each one of its own charm and charm.
Fun is the Wat Phra Singh is the religious and cultural center of the city. If you are not only interested in the temples and their stories, but also want to learn more about people and the religious life, you should simply take more time for meditation, yoga and spiritual reflection.
All monks are open and cheerful, the “talk with a monk” almost as self-assertive as a smartphone selfie.
A visit to the night market in Chiang Mai is a favorite standard program for tourists.
Here you can also find Thai snacks, clothes, handbags and many treats from the food stalls every evening but also birds.
A bit different are the day markets, where you can taste a fine Som Tam between fruit and vegetables, fresh fish, meat and many exotic dishes.
Just this makes the charm of traveling The Thais love to celebrate and especially on the weekends there is daily a more or less big festival very close
Together, these festivals mainly have the effect of being outdoors, providing unique impressions
My hotel tip: Le Meridien / Chiang Mai.
In the luxury area with a great location on the river, modern spacious rooms and a very pleasant ambience.
The garden with the pool and the attentive service offer the perfect balance after an eventful day in the turbulent city. We pulled up to a huge lobby bustling with activity. That also boasted a two story ceiling but was quiet and relaxing.
I checked at a nice an executive suite. This suite came with a great desk, table, couch (for when I got lazy), and Nespresso machine.
The bedroom was accessible through two sets of sliding doors and also had a great window seat, which gave me funky views of the mountain and temple in the distance.
I enjoyed the bathroom. A separate soaking tub with corner windows (and shades for privacy), a huge shower. Dual sinks, and a gigantic walk in closet.
The pool and fitness center is joyful with an amount of seating. The perfeSo if you have visions of sun bathing during your Chiang Mai vacation, this probably isn’t the best property for that.
The Spa offered a solid service and my therapist’s technique was some of the best I’ve experienced. Prices were a little cheaper than fancy hotels in Bangkok (around 2,500+ baht for an hour).
The lounge overlooked the downtown with the moutain in the distance. In the mornings there was a pretty full breakfast buffet including pastries, dim sum, fruit and more, as well as an ala carte menu.
The Location
I couldn’t have asked for a better location. It was a few blocks walk outside the city walls and immediately adjacent to the Night Market and only about 5-10 minutes to the highly recommended Warorot market. The only downside was it was not next to any of the really great restaurants, so I was less inclined after a long day to venture out.
Staying on the club floor really did feel removed from the rest of the hotel — the lobby bars and restaurants had felt busy and hectic so not sure if I would have had a different feeling about it in a normal guest room.
Sanuk.
