February 4, 2010 to February 6, 2010
Feb. 4 - Feb. 6, Chiangmai: Nice to be back
We're having a pleasant time here in Chiangmai and our bikes haven't left the hotel store room. It would be fun to ride our bikes around town but tuk-tuks are very offordable and we prefer not to worry about the bikes being stolen while we're in a shop or temple, museum or zoo. Also, things are close enough together in the old part of Chiangmai that it's often more convenient to walk than to get out our bikes.
This time in Chiangmai there isn't the excitement of discovery for us. It's not that we've seen everything, but the city is familiar and we aren't as motivated to race around as on our last visit. We're enjoying relaxed days of just being here.
Since our visit to the Bangkok zoo was somewhat disappointing, or in spite of the fact, we decide to have a look at the Chiangmai zoo. Another reason is that the zoo offers plenty of opportunities to try out the potential of my new camera. I am now using a Panasonic Lumix FZ28 which is more demanding than my old point-and-shoot camera and the animals are very patient and rewarding subjects when I want to experiment with different settings.
The entrance to the zoo is seething with school classes, all dressed in their brightly colored school uniforms. We are apprehensive about so many children milling around with us. School classes can be hard to take, but not here in Thailand. The children all seem to be very well behaved and sweet and the thousands of children soon disperse on the large zoo grounds.
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Admittedly, the zoo doesn't have much to do with our bicycle tour and we could probably find the same animals in the Munich zoo. Nevertheless, here are a few portraits of interesting inhabitants we encounter here.
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We get a tuk-tuk back to our hotel, or at least part of the way. Its motor gets overheated in the hot streets at noon and no amount of water or fiddling can make it run. Our driver calls a friend who picks us up and takes us the rest of the way.
And now it's time for lunch. Chiangmai offers a great choice of food, both western and Thai. You can get good curries, made to western or Thai taste, either hot or mild. Tropical fruits - mango, pineapple, papaya, watermelon - are plentiful and cheap and all available as shakes. Rice soups and noodle soups are an appetising way to rehydrate and are available at numerous little stands along the curbs of the road.
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