Tuesday. More markets.

Tuesday in Chiang Mai.

It is another day to explore the city. After breakfast we head toward the street markets. They are everywhere. Sometimes they remind of Mexico, stall after stall of people pedalling their wares. Everything from clothing to jewellery, arts and crafts, handmade this and that. Anything you want or need. And bartering with the merchants just like Mexico.  

 We pass shop after shop of fabrics. Beautiful silks and cottons. Alli would love this.

  

 

The market we go to first is like a big Bazaar. It is 2 stories high with hundreds of vendors. This one has food on the lower part and clothes, shoes, fabrics, and more on the top.  Honestly, this market is nothing special, lacking the local charm and character.

 
Many of the items in this market are made in factories in China and India. It is like a giant Dollar Store!
 

There is an area like a food court where the dishes are local rices, curries, and other Thai staples.

 

From here we walk a little further, past more fruit and vegetable stands. The colors here are brilliant. The fruits and vegetables are inviting. There are new ones I am not familiar with like Dragon Fruit and apple pears and kaffur limes. And always the vendors are friendly and patient as we take our photos.

We end at the Flower Market. This is beautiful with shop after shop of beautiful flowers, every colour and type imaginable. The smell of the Lotus blossoms fills the air. Marigolds are strung in chains, they will adorn the little floats released in the river for the festival this week.

 Pink lotus blossoms.

  Merchants creating arrangements.

White peonies.












 

Pink lotus buds getting ready to bloom.

After lunch we pile into tuktuks and head back to the hotel.

The traffic is heavy as this is the week of their big festival, Loy Krathong and each day more people descend on the city. The mood is happy, jovial, celebratory. Chiang Mai is a generous host opening its doors to visitors.

The afternoon is free time. I choose to visit a little spa across the street from the hotel for a pedicure.  It is nothing fancy. Mostly Thai massages which are 1 or 2 hours of very deep tissue, where you lie on a mat on the floor and they dig into all your stiff and sore spots with the hands, even their elbows. They pull and contort you like a pretzel . I haven’t done this yet but it is on my list. Gene would love this place. 250 Baht for an hour massage (that’s about $9)!

 I settle for just a pedicure. My girl, Pon, is sweet. She thinks it is hilarious that I have my toes painted the same color as my flip flops (orange of course!)  She calls all the other girls around to see and they giggle.

 

 

Overall a pretty layback day but a good day still as I see more of the present day side of the city.