Winter 2025-2026 Bangkok & Chiang Mai, Thailand
Thursday 12 February 2026 Traveling Home and Reflections on a 13th Winter in Chiang Mai The long journey home has begun. After dinner, I returned to See You Soon to get a shower, change clothes, and wait for the airport taxi. Poppy, the sister who manages 3-Sis, was going to take me to the airport, but she couldn’t. She delegated the airport ride to her sister Ice, and because of a miscommunication, Ice was also […]
Wednesday 11 February 2026 Last day of my 13th Winter in Chiang Mai My 13th winter in Chiang Mai has come to the last day. Late tonight I leave flying from Chiang Mai to Seoul/Incheon, then to Los Angeles. Last night I had dinner with John and Rose at Bella Madre Pizza across the Ping River from the old city of Chiang Mai. Bella Madre has excellent pizza with a delicious sourdough crust. Night Before […]
Thursday 5 February 2026 Wat Phalad and hiking down the Monks Trail It is a hot afternoon. Temperatures in Chiang Mai gradually increase through February and March, culminating in March and April being the hottest months. Because we would be going up Doi Suthep in the afternoon, and the temperature will be over 32 C (90 F), it was too hot to hike up the Monks Trail, and especially all the way to Wat Phra […]
Thursday 5 February 2026 Up the mountain to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep There is a very important temple, Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, on a mountain west of Chiang Mai. This temple is very important to the Thai people, and is a Royal Temple of the Second Class, of which there are only six in Thailand. Of the 40,000 active Buddhist temples in Thailand, less than 300 are listed as “Royal Temples” of the […]
Wednesday 4 February 2026 An excursion to Thailand’s highest mountain Doi Inthanon is the highest mountain in Thailand with the peak at 2,565 meters above sea level (8,415 feet). Located southwest of Chiang Mai, the drive to get there is about 2-1/2 hours, so going there, spending time at the mountain, and coming back would take up a whole day. For all of the winters I have been coming to Chiang Mai, people have asked […]
Monday 2 February 2026 Another visit to the so-called Silver Temple Much of my time in Chiang Mai is very solitary. I do talk to friends at the guest house where I stay, I talk to friends at Wild Rose Yoga, I talk to my trainer Ning at the gym, and occasionally share time at dinner with other friends. When I visit temples, hike up the Monks Trail, and walk around the city, I am […]
Friday 30 January 2026 Out and about in Chiang Mai, moving from The 3-Sis to See You Soon A few days ago, while walking down Tha Phae Road towards the Ping River, I saw this very nice display of lanterns or lamps or something above a massage spa. Very nice and colorful, so I took a photo. On that evening, I continued down Tha Phae Road, across the Ping River, and over to The Duke’s […]
Thursday 29 January 2026 Revisiting an old favorite temple in Hang Dong District During my first or possibly my second winter in Chiang Mai, I got to visit a unique temple. A Thai lady who is long-time friend-of-a-friend had retired and moved back to Mae Rim where she grew up. She and I connected during my visit and she showed me what she considered some special sights. Back then, I knew very little about Chiang […]
Tuesday 13 January 2026 Revisiting the closest temple to Tha Phae Gate Wat Dok Kham is a small temple very close to Tha Phae Gate, so many tourists who are in the area visit the temple. I can find almost no history on the internet about this temple. The temple grounds are small. And because the viharn door is so close to the sidewalk and the road, what would be the main entrance, on the […]
Saturday 10 January 2026 The “White Castle” temple in the Hang Dong District of Chiang Mai Thailand has 77 provinces. Chiang Mai Province in northern Thailand is relatively large, and includes 25 districts. The Hang Dong District of Chiang Mai province is a large, rural district south and west of Chiang Mai city (although there are other larger districts). Here is a map of the districts of Chiang Mai Province. Number 1, “Mueang” is the […]
Thursday 15 January 2026 Another Day in the Life A few photos I took while walking in Chiang Mai over a couple of fairly routine days. First, while walking back to The 3-Sis from the French boulangerie Chouquette I passed by Sri Phum Corner, the northeast corner of the old city wall. The first photo is looking north at Sri Phum Corner through some flowers growing along the side of the moat. The second photo […]
Wednesday 14 January 2026 Visiting an important but very quiet temple Walking back to The 3-Sis through the sois (a soi is a small road, smaller than a road, larger than an alley, perhaps a “lane”) after getting a haircut at Samlaan Barber (my favorite barber), I found myself on Ratchamanka Soi 6. And I came upon a temple that is something of an “old friend.” I have visited Wat Phra Chao Mengrai many times […]
James the Intrepid Pilgrim 