In Thailand, a bpai tiao is a trip of any length. I’ve written about some of my more significant bpai tiaos to tourist destinations here, to be used as travel ideas and tips.
After beaching out with my parents for a couple of days on Koh Ngai, I figured they would be up for a little bit of culture and a completely different part of the country. So we packed up our bags, chartered a boat off the island and got on a plane heading north. We had our sights set on Chiang Mai and an elephant adventure, plus a visit to a handful of the city’s wats.
Temple Tour in Chiang Mai
We arrived after dark and so got some diner and settled in for the evening, because the next day was going to be a full one. We did our own walking tour to hit the main temples of the city – the same walking tour I did with my co-teacher back in January.
Our hotel was right around the corner from the first stop: Wat Phra Singh. This was my parents’ first experience at a Buddhist temple in Thailand, so I explained as much as I could about the buildings and the images that were there.
Next we went to Wat Chedi Luang, which has the partially rebuilt remains of a chedi or stupa that once hid the Emerald Buddha.
We stopped to check out Wat Phan Tao, made out of gorgeous teak wood and was once the royal residence. And then spent some time at Wat Chiang Man, the oldest wat in the city, where I was able to give a condensed version of the Buddha’s life based on the murals that were on the walls of one of the wihans. We got some lunch, stopped by the Three Kings Monument and then checked out the Chiang Mai City Arts and Cultural Center, which gave a very thorough history of the city and region.
It was quite the day, and so we had a relaxing evening.
Elephant Adventure in Chiang Mai
The next day was a big one. Not only was it my mom’s birthday, but we did the Elephant Owner for a Day program with Patara Elephant Farm.
In the morning, we got an introduction to the farm’s philosophy and founding and got to interact briefly with a small group of elephants, before we were assigned an elephant to take care of for the day.
We were instructed on how to check their health and well-being, fed them and then rode them bareback for about an hour to a waterfall where we scrubbed and bathed them. Afterwards, we went to their nursery area where the recently born baby elephants and their moms stay. It was an amazing day to say the least.
All the traveling was starting to catch up with us, so we took a day to ourselves in the hotel before returning to Bangkok the next day.
Day Trips from and Sightseeing Bangkok
We changed our plans from going to my village to instead stay in Bangkok and see the sights there and do a day trip to the old capital, Ayutthaya, to bike around the ruins.
Overall, it was an excellent trip and I was very glad that my parents came to check out my little corner of the world over here. I don’t think they would have ever visited Thailand had I not served in the Peace Corps here and so it was definitely a fun way to do some Goal Three work (“Educating Americans about the culture of the country of service.”)
Tami October 31, 2014
Sounds like you guys had a great time.! From: It’s Not About Me To: bedenis@yahoo.com Sent: Friday, October 31, 2014 4:52 AM Subject: [New post] Bpai Tiao: Parents’ Visit Chiang Mai and Bangkok Edition #yiv5956173019 a:hover {color:red;}#yiv5956173019 a {text-decoration:none;color:#0088cc;}#yiv5956173019 a.yiv5956173019primaryactionlink:link, #yiv5956173019 a.yiv5956173019primaryactionlink:visited {background-color:#2585B2;color:#fff;}#yiv5956173019 a.yiv5956173019primaryactionlink:hover, #yiv5956173019 a.yiv5956173019primaryactionlink:active {background-color:#11729E;color:#fff;}#yiv5956173019 WordPress.com | Christine posted: “After beaching out with my parents for a couple of days on Koh Ngai, I figured they would be up for a little bit of culture and a completely different part of the country. So we packed up our bags, chartered a boat off the island and got on a plane headin” | |