Chocolates Frappes, Long Island Iced Teas And Half A Spoon of Fish Sauce... The Perfect Chiang Mai Recipe

oh dear god... this is solely being posted to please the parents so they can see we are indeed alive and kicking.

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The journey to Chiang Mai was somewhat uncomfortable; the promise of reclining seats and functioning a/c was a complete myth. We were also going to be dropped off at a guesthouse affilated to the bus company so all did not bode well - i became so paranoid that we were going to be severely ripped off that i was even suspicious of the genuinely free tea and coffee on arrival! Luckily we were able to walk away without any obligation and our wallets fairly intact and we headed towards the centre of the town, inside the city walls. Chiang Mai is a bustling town with people always going places in something of a hurry; just crossing the road was a nightmare. Our stay here was to be the longest one to date, and by the end, we were quite glad to move on. However, we did manage to do a one day Thai cooking course which was great fun and enabled our Thai instructor to have a good laugh at the expense of incompetant westerners. We also couldn't resist the urge to return to childhood with a trip to the zoo; lions, hippos, elephants - all were just as exciting as when we were still in short trousers. Oh, and also to take a pedaloe out on the local reservoir - this is what happens when two supposedly mature 19 years olds are left to their own devices. Let's hope Chiang Rai is a slightly more cultural experience.