My First Night Staying in Chiang mai

After the four-hour bus ride back from the border town of Mae sai on the VIP bus, which is a very comfortable ride, though very long, I arrived back in Chiang mai at 7:30 PM. This was too late to catch a White Song Toa back to Mae Tang so I was expecting a ride back from the school. Having spent the whole day trying to beat the clock, I just wanted to lie down in my own bed to sleep. As the title of this entry suggests, none of that happened. I waited for ten minuets and decided it had been a long enough time, so I called the school to see if anyone was on their way. After hanging up the phone I came to the conclusion that I should find a place to stay in Chiang mai and go back the next morning on a White Song Toa. I was nowhere close to being prepared to spend the night; all I brought with me was my wallet, backpack, travel book and a map of Chiang mai. If you have ever had that feeling of just being dirty after spending all day at an amusement park, I was feeling just that. I looked through my travel book and found a guesthouse called the Supreme House. The only way I chose this place over any other guesthouse is that my book said the owner was very helpful. I called over and was able to reserve the last room in the place, so I felt my daylong bad luck was beginning to turn. I caught a motorcycle ride right to the front door for 40 baht ($1.00). As it was my first time checking into a guesthouse, I wasn’t sure what to expect but the owner, Remy, an Irishman complete with accent, showed me to my room. The room was fine and he gave me what seemed like a reasonable price of 150 baht ($3.75) for the night. My guide book, Let’s Go Guide to Thailand listed the price as 100 baht for a single ($2.50) but since the book is two years old, I decided not to try and bargain for a better price. I sat down in the waiting room and chatted with a few other people about what I was doing in Thailand and my day’s trip to the border when I discovered to my amazement that Remy, the guesthouse owner, had also spent his day going to the border and back for his visa renewal. I sort of expected I might then get a discount since we shared the same feelings of tiredness! Since I was in Chiang mai anyway, I decided to go to the Night Bizaar and see what all the fuss was about. The Night Bizaar is a crazy place with vehicles on the street zooming by every second, stands that sell everything from watches, pirated DVDs, and even lingerie for both men and women. The sidewalks are packed with people so you might have only a foot to squeeze by. I spent some time looking and found a few things I wanted to buy which I priced at different stands to come up with an average first asking price to begin the bargaining. Depending on the product, I was able to get at least 30-40% off the first asking price, which is a good deal in Thailand. It was getting late and I hadn’t eaten all day so I spent the next hour finding a place to eat as a lot of the food places were closing. Once I walked away from the Night Bizaar area, I was able to find noodle stands where I ordered my favorite Thai dish, fried rice and pork with one fried egg on top. Though the food was good, it didn’t beat the fried rice dish I can get in Mae Tang at my favorite restaurant. Since I planned to go back to the school early the next morning, I headed off to sleep. My evening in Chiang mai was interesting and full of new experiences but I prefer the Thai countryside and small villages like Mae Tang to the city life Chiang mai.