Step Over Chicken Noodle

After talking to a couple people about bus tickets to Chiang Rai (including a really nice man who drew us a map of northern Thailand) we found out that the easiest and cheapest way to book seats was to head to the station the day we were leaving. Buses leave Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai every half hour and for a VIP a/c bus it only cost about 6 bucks each.

The bus ride was very smooth and went through gorgeous forested areas on a windy, hilly road. We arrived in Chiang Rai and since we booked our tickets that morning we were not able to arrange pick up with our hotel. No worries though, we had the phone number written down and our tuk tuk driver called and got directions.

The hotel is a little ways out of town but very close to the Chiang Rai beach on the banks of the Kok river. Our hosts at the Baan Nattawadee resort are charming and wonderful. As soon as we got out of the tuk tuk they offered us a welcome coffee and some dried bananas (which were very yummy). They showed us to our room which is spectacular and the grounds of the entire hotel are lush and full of flowers.

After getting settled in and relaxing for a little while we hopped on the bikes that are provided to us by the hotel and headed out to find a store which the hotel owner told us was about 2km away. We found it no problem and grabbed some snacks before heading back to have dinner.

Our first dinner at the hotel was an amazing experience. We weren't sure what to expect because there are no menus however we were in for a treat. Ryan went to ask how we go about ordering food and he was then invited into the kitchen. He came out to grab me to go in too and then we watched and learned how to make our own dinner. Ryan was given the job to chop up the chicken. He started chopping but apparently it was not quite right because the owner (who was cooking) grabbed the knife from Ryan and said "Farang chop (shakes his head), I chop". The entire time we were in the kitchen helping the staff would pop their heads in and giggle at us. The food was amazing and it wouldn't be the first time at this hotel that we will be amazed at the food.

The next morning we got up late and went out to see if there was any breakfast still available. There was coffee and toast so we figured that would do. As we snacked on our toast the staff came to our table with some tasty little cakes. We thought that was quite a bonus and a wonderful addition to our toast and coffee. Little did we know that they were preparing an entire Thai breakfast for us that arrived shortly after the cakes. We ate until we were totally stuffed and then there came - mango! Well, as we've said there is always room for mango so we finished that off as well.

The owner of the hotel supplied us with a map of the area and pointed out some sights to see. We hopped on the bikes and headed into town to get some errands done before going to the Rai Mae Fah Luang Art and Cultural Park. We rode up to the gates and paid our admission. The lady at the counter told us that we could take our bikes around the whole park. We rode around for a couple hours looking at all the amazing flowers and picturesque scenery. The museum that is on site was a definite highlight. It was a large teak building filled with items that had been collected from temples around northern Thailand. It was wonderful and we pretty much had the entire place to ourselves.

We pedaled back to the hotel and were treated to another amazing dinner experience. The soup that they served was way too spicy for me. It was very tasty but it was making my eyes water, nose run and eventually I had to give up on it. Lucky for Ryan though, he can handle spicy way better that I can but it still packed a punch for him too. The owner told us that Thai people have this soup when they are stuffed up or have a cold because it really clears out the sinuses. Step over chicken noodle soup!

More photos of Chiang Rai...