Read More">“The highlight of our Chiang Mai trip however was the Maesa Elephant show. We may have seen elephants playing football and polo in the past but the elephants here actually paint fabulous and colourful paintings. It’s an amazing sight! The cutest part is when the elephant takes a bow once his painting is complete andRead More
"The highlight of our Chiang Mai trip however was the Maesa Elephant show. We may have seen elephants playing football and polo in the past but the elephants here actually paint fabulous and colourful paintings. It's an amazing sight! The cutest part is when the elephant takes a bow once his painting is complete and with his trunk lifts his paint pot and walks off. The paintings actually sell for between 3000 to 30000 baht. Apart from that, the elephants have such a brilliant sense of humour and even cheat while playing games. I was actually challenged to a game of darts. We had to burst balloons by throwing the darts from a distance and when I beat the elephant, he came, patted me on my head and then promptly burst all the balloons with his trunk. It was so cute!"
Thailand is now almost synonymous to Bollywood. With the number of films being shot there, it's like a second home to our industrywallas. But there is a whole different charm to this place, one that Sophie Choudry discovered and revealed right here in her travel diary.
"Every time I have been to Thailand, I have had a truly wonderful, enriching and fun experience. Last month however, I went to Chiang Mai for the very first time. With the riots rife in Bangkok, we were told that this part of Thailand was the most peaceful and the safest at the moment. A quaint little city up in the mountain area, Chiang Mai is incredibly different to Phuket, Bangkok and Koh Samui. It's rather quiet and ridden with history."
"We were there for two days during which time we visited a few of the temples. Chedi Luang which is over 600 years old was absolutely beautiful. There were huge, imposing antique Buddhas throughout the property, including a stunning jade one. Monks chanting and sweeping the grounds and seeing them all in their saffron robes, quietly going about their daily business was really lovely. We also visited the Royal temple Wat Phra Sing which was ironically less ostentatious but lovely nonetheless. There, like the locals, I offered candy, incense and a flower garland to Lord Buddha. There is a tremendous amount of peace in these Buddhist temples; no one hounds you for money, they are well maintained and a great place to meditate. Wat Phrathat Doi Suthep is perhaps the oldest temple and is in the mountain peak. It's an absolute must visit for its history and spectacular views over the city."
Of course when you go to Thailand you have to visit the night markets and conveniently just outside our hotel (Le Meridian) began the Kalare Night Bazaar. Vibrant, fun, it had everything to offer from the usual fake bags and t-shirts to beautiful beads, lanterns and wind chimes. Night bazaars are usually 'chindi' shopping for me but part of the fun is the hardcore bargaining. It's amazing how I am willing to spend 500 pounds on a pair of Louboutin shoes but in the markets I bargain over 50baht. The nightlife is really nothing to write home about so it's better to indulge in lots of fantastic Thai curry at the bazaar and enjoy the spa treatments.
Read More">I also went for an elephant ride and saw just how well maintained all the facilities are. The morning ended with me feeding the elephants kilos and kilos of bananas and getting a huge hug and kiss in return! There are many other shows such as the snake show but I adore elephants and seeingRead More
I also went for an elephant ride and saw just how well maintained all the facilities are. The morning ended with me feeding the elephants kilos and kilos of bananas and getting a huge hug and kiss in return!
There are many other shows such as the snake show but I adore elephants and seeing them so happy and playful made my day!