Wow! The last day of November already. Hard to believe but the calendar is telling me that tomorrow we will be into the month that will mean our return home. The time really has gone by quickly and now that we are settled into our accommodation in Pai (where we have a pool and deck chairs) we are feeling pretty spoiled. In fact, we have just added on one more night to our stay here so we will be here until the morning of the 4th when we’ll head for Chiang Mai. I’m sitting in the lobby area of our “resort” waiting for the girls to bring me some soup for my lunch and then I think I will head down to poolside for a little dip. Yep, life is rough! LOL....
But back to this soup that I’ll be enjoying in about 10 mins....it is called chicken in coconut milk and they make it fresh from scratch when you order it. I cannot describe how delicious it is and so today I asked if I could come into the kitchen to watch them make it so I could learn. Amazingly they agreed and so I’ve just returned from my lesson where I watched them sauté some tomato and some onion and some sliced lemon grass and some fresh kaffir lime leaves and some sliced fresh ginger and a chopped red chilli in a little oil. Then they added a little soy sauce and some water and a 1/2 a chicken bullion cube and a bunch of chicken. They let that cook (boil) a little and then added a little coconut milk and a little fresh milk and then simmered/boiled everything all together for about 10 mins. It was served with some more fresh red pepper on top along with a few chunks of fresh kaffir lime leaf and a 1/4 of a fresh lime. OMG! It was delicious!!! This is a flavour profile I will definitely do my best to recreate once home. They usually serve it with rice and honestly....I wish I would have had some rice to sop up the last of the liquid and to cut the heat just a little.
I haven’t even taken the time to blog about our trip to Pai from Chiang Rai. We’d hired a private car for 8,000 Baht (about $320 CAD) and had been told that the trip would take about 4 hours. The plan was that we’d travel cross country (on good roads) to cut the time of having to go all the way down to Chiang Mai and then back up again to Pai, which is almost at the Myanmar border. As well, we’d made arrangements to stop at the white temple (about 30 mins south of Chiang Rai) as we’d be passing right by it so that just made way more sense than making another separate trip there.
The white temple is actually amazing! Not sure if I totally loved it but it is amazing none the less. It was like being inside of a giant wedding cake. Everything is white and covered in mirror tiles and shimmering under the sun and the reflection off all the white almost hurts your eyes it is so bright. The grounds of the temple are actually huge and you don’t pay to go to any of that....just 50 baht to go into the actual temple where there are no photos allowed and where you have to take your shoes off to walk through. I’m so glad we were able to see it...it is one of those things that you kind of have to see to believe. Even though I’d seen plenty of photos of the place, nothing really prepared me for how big and how white it all is. The artist who has created it is continuing to build onto the space and so I’m sure that in a few more years it will be even that much more amazing! While the temple is an actual temple the place is definitely a piece of art. Some of it is beautiful and some of it isn’t really to my liking at all. There were sections where there are hundreds of hands reaching up from below and other sections where there are just heads and skulls....yes.........an artists interpretation of something I’m sure.
Back to the road again and as it turns out this supposed four hour trip took us almost 9 hours! Granted we spent almost an hour at the white temple and another almost hour at a cave but still....7 hours is a lot longer than 4! As well, the road we had to travel was so curvy that there were times when we actually slid from side to side in the vehicle! We were in a 9 passenger van so had lots of room which I am ever so grateful for. I cannot imagine how horrible it would have been to have been squished into a little mini van with a bunch of other people to make that trip as was the other option for us to consider. I would have paid the $320 myself if it was just me! In fact the thought of making that same trip back out when we leave here for Chiang Mai is so daunting that just today we booked seats on a small plane (12 seats I think it is) that flies from Pai to Chiang Mai most days. Those tickets are 2000 baht each (about $80 CAD) and will be worth every penny! The flight is only 25 minutes versus the 4 hours it would be on a bus!
But we are glad to have made the drive one way as it sure gave us a good look at the north of Thailand. We’d seen north/northeast to the golden triangle and now we were seeing the northwest too. As well, there was a surprise stop at about the 1/2 way mark that was actually wonderful! It was at Chiang Dao cave. This limestone cave that extends into the mountain for more than 12 km is full of stalagmites and stalactites that are breathtaking. We opted to go the route that it well lit vs the one where you need a guide and carry only a torch. The one we chose was plenty! In front of the cave there is a freshwater pool that is the colour only rock filtered water can be. That perfect blend of green and blue with lush vegetation all around. The cave has been used/visited for more than 1000 years and is home to many Buddhist artifacts. In the area surrounding the cave there are several “shops” that sell all natural remedies for everything from diarrhea to haemorrhoids and bloating to pleurisy.
When we did finally arrive at the PaiViengFai Resort we were so glad to be here that we hardly even noticed how beautiful the place is. But the next morning it was so nice to see that outside our little cottage there is an orchid growing from a tree and the grounds are beautifully kept and the pool is huge, clean, and refreshing. And today as I sit here in the lobby typing this Sarah Mclaughlin is playing on the speaker and there are water buffalo in the rice fields across the road. And there is a rooster crowing in the far distance and doves cooing in the near distance. Yes, it is a little piece of paradise and so I’m going to don my bathing suit and hit the pool.
Till next time,
LorLyn
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