chiang mai

hello blog fans

all is well in thailand. we flew from bangkok to chiang mai in the north of thailand yesterday with air asia for only 12 pounds each. the flight was little over an hour and for a few extra pounds it saved us an overnight train.

i'm glad to be out of bangkok. it's pretty nuts, polluted and full on. we are now really starting to get into travel mode.

at chiang mai airport i spot a guy in a retro scotland football top and a kilt and go over to say hello and offer my gordon strachan book that i have just finished reading. two books down already, although gazza and strachans books are pretty light reading!

anyway.........it turns out that this guy is called john robins and he played with strachan at dundee in the 80's. i have yet to find him on google but he knew all the facts. what a small world! he took the book and looked forward to reading about strachan's recollections of his dundee days.

we jump in a cab for 160 baht to our guest house by the river. it's nice but a little bit far out so we decide to only stay one night. after a wander and getting a bit lost we jump in a tuk tutk (one of mens greatest inventions) and head to the night bazzar. a huge market with rows and roaws and roads and roads of stalls selling beautiful flowers, jewellery, clothes, food and just about anything you could ever need.

we go to a fresh fish stall and have one of the best meals we have ever had sitting outside listening to some guy playing old 60's songs on an acoustic guitar, something that happens regularly in thailand. lynn has crab, i have grilled seabass and we also have a plate of huge and deeeeeeeeeeelicious oysters. yummy!

after that we wander around and sit down for a beer outside a pub with jenga. an older couple come to join us and it turns out that they are both well travelled and qualified diving instructors - graham and jackie. they give us loads of useful information and we intend to meet them for another beer or two tonight.

it is 12.30 on saturday afternoon and it is hot, hot, hot. we've just booked up a day trip for monday to the elephant nature park. check out www.elephantnaturefoundation.org

rather than book one of the usual trekking tours with elephants, where they perform tricks and do things they really shouldn't be doing, this day trip is eco-tourism at it's best. elephants are encouraged to lead as natural a life as possible - only eat, sleep and play. we get to watch, observe and learn. i can't wait. i bet lynn adopts an elephant. needless to say his name will be eric!

we're going to go a wander and get our bearings in the daylight. we've now checked into a new hostel/gust house in town called the north star guest house. it's only 350 baht a room per night with air con, 150 baht without. in this weather you need it!

we may book in for a thai cooking class tomorrow if we can find a decent deal.

i hope all is well back in the uk and around the world wherever you are reading this.

lots of love
murray and lynn
xxxx