Thailand - Final Thoughts and Wrap Up (November, 28th 2015)

As an opening to this post we had an amazing trip to Thailand. It far exceeded our hopes and expectations in so, so many ways!

This was our first experience with Gate-1 travel. We were very impressed with them from the very first contact we made. 

Andra and I decided that now that I am retired and we have more flexibility, that we wanted to go into Thailand a few days early, before the tour actually was to start. This would give us a little extra time to acclimate to the 14-hour time change as well as we wanted some time to further explore Bangkok on our own. 

Initially I started to book these extra days online, but quickly decided that maybe a call to Gate-1 was the best way to approach it. I was so glad I did this as I quickly reached Leslie at Gate-1 after going through their automated voice response system. I explained to her that we wanted to go in anywhere from two to four days early and what tour dates worked best for us. What I told Leslie I cared about most was what was the best deal in terms of air and hotel rates (i.e. Cheapest combination!). Leslie took my information and said she would do some research and would call me back shortly, which she did. The upshot here is that we ended up going in three days (two nights) early and the incremental cost when you net out the reduced airfare and increase for the hotels was less than $125 for the both of us. We stayed at the same hotel that the tour used. It also included the wonderful complimentary breakfast that was offered during our tour. We really loved going in early and exploring so many things on our own.

We booked many of the optional excursions that were offered as a part of our package, although the base package was already very full of activities so the optional activities weren’t really necessary. We thought the optional activities were priced very fair, unlike what we have experienced with cruise lines and the prices they charge, which we work hard to avoid by doing our own thing! We also liked some of the special things that Gate 1 did such as having the separate truck and trailer with our luggage. This way our luggage went ahead of us and when we got to our next destination our luggage was waiting for us in our room. We also thought that the hotels that were used were really first class and were located in some really convenient locations for further exploring at night.

Both Andra and I feel that the price Gate-1 charged for the trip was definitely, definitely worth it. A very first class experience!

We flew over on China Southern. When we first heard that this was going to be our airline both Andra and I were a little apprehensive, so as I usually do I did some research and learned that they get very positive customer reviews and had a good safety rating. Well, our experience here was nothing short of amazing, especially given the price (we saw the rate in the Gate-1 detailed invoice we were provided). 

Honestly, they were much better than the US based airlines that we have taken overseas on prior trips. Their planes were fairly new, very clean and well maintained inside, comfortable seats and decent leg room (even in Economy class), good food and fabulous service from the flight crew. We try and drink lots of water when we fly to help with jetlag. Our flight attendant that was helping us learned this as I asked for fairly frequently for water and she then just continued to bring it to us every so often. Just great service all around! We heard from many of the other people on our tour that they flew over on Cathay Pacific, which they were also impressed with and would happily use them again in the future.

Mike, our tour director, was absolutely fabulous, we mean fabulous! He worked so, so hard to make sure our experience was top shelf. He is a real professional and it shows in every aspect of what he does. We had several special requests throughout the trip…he did everyone of them just as we had asked. Andra and I have had some experience leading travel groups in the past and know how hard what Mike was doing actually is. This ran very smoothly throughout the entire tour and we know this only happens with lots and lots of hard work by the tour company and especially the on the ground guide. Mike was nothing short of amazing……we so much appreciated all his hard work, caring and special guidance he provided. His “surprises” truly made the trip for us. We hope we have a new friend for life!

Thailand….we loved the people, the food and the weather so much. We never felt unsafe in any of our exploration. Getting through and across Bangkok traffic was a challenge but once you learned the ropes a bit it wasn’t bad. We did learn that, as a walker, you need to be very observant around roads, as unlike the US the cars and scooters really have the right of way. Pedestrians have to take responsibility for their own safely! We aren’t going to make a judgment on whether this is good or bad, but rather it is just different, which is part of why we like traveling and discovery.

The people, even though communication was a big issue, were very warm and caring. As we struggled to communicate they tried hard to help, and found humor rather than anger in the situation, which we appreciated. We have traveled to many other parts of the world where this has not been the case. A smile to a random Thai person on the street got a return smile at least 90% of the time. This is something Andra and I like to do and we generally do not get this type of reaction, especially in the United States. The food was outstanding. We really loved the ability to get quick healthy food. We used the food courts a lot and never had any issues. We wish this type of “fast food” would be available in the US, especially for the price!

Those of you who know Andra and I well know that we try to look for the good in things and in life, but be assured the positives we express in this post go well, well beyond just our attempted positive thinking. Our entire experience was truly incredible, and we mean incredible from cradle to grave, especially given the price!

In closing, we will definitely be using Gate-1 for some of our future travels. We thought that their price for what was offered was truly amazing. We really felt that the entire experience was first rate. Check out their offerings at www.gate1travel.com and you will see what I am saying!  We also fully expect to return to the amazing country of Thailand on our own and do some further exploration of this wonderful country!

Thailand - Flight from Bangkok to Los Angeles (Saturday, November 16th, 2015)

We had a chance to sleep in this morning for the first time in almost three weeks.  Oh my did that feel good!  

We finally got up and enjoyed our breakfast in Bangkok at the Century Park Hotel where this whole adventure began. Many of the people from our tour were in the dining room so we had one final chance to say goodbye before returning to our room for showers and packing.  

As we looked out our hotel window, we noticed some construction on the roof of the temple below us.  They were re-roofing it, using the same bamboo scaffolding we have seen so many times before, only this time, it was set up on a slanting roof.

Nothing scary about this right?!!

Crazy!

All of the hotels we have stayed in for the last three weeks have had the blowdryers hidden away in drawers, so we would go on an adventure each morning to find the blow dryer.  So this morning when I got out of the shower, I started going through drawers looking for the blowdryer.  Steve started the search as well but was also unsuccessful.  So Steve went on the search for our housekeeper.  He found her in the hall not far from our room, and started doing sign language for the blowdryer.  She immediately pulled out a toilet plunger (that must be the most common issue she runs into), but thankfully that wasn't our issue, so next she pulled out a spare bottle of water, but that didn't help either.  Steve finally got her to understand that it was the blow dryer, so she followed him back to the room, thinking that ours was broke.  She walked into the bathroom, pulled the blow dryer off the wall in the bathroom, where it had been conspicuously stored the entire time, and turned it on.  It worked like a charm.  

At this point, we realized how tired we must really be, and were so embarrassed that we didn't see it there, so we quickly gave her a nice tip and sent her on her way.  We both laughed so hard after she left that we didn't see it right there on the wall!  

While I finished getting ready Steve ran out and picked up our final iced mocha of the trip from 7-11 just down the street from our hotel.  We bought coffee in every city we visited, and some of them were quite expensive, but none of them even came close to being as good as the double shot mochas we got in Bangkok at the 7-11.  Amazingly enough, they have a true espresso machine that they use to make them.  And the only 7-11 where we could find coffee was in Bangkok.  None of the 7-11's in the other towns we visited had the machines.....darn!  And the best part was that they cost us 30 baht each, less than $1.00.  Oh are we going to miss these!!

Once we were packed up, we made our way down to the lobby, checked out of our room, and waited for our airport transport.

Hotel checkout was at 12:00 and so we waited in the lobby for our our shuttle to arrive at the hotel at 12:30.  In true Gate-1 fashion our driver showed up about 15 minutes early and came into the lobby looking for us.  Once he found us, he pulled up the van and we got in, so it was such an easy morning.  We were on our way to Suvarnabhumi International Airport.

The Bangkok International Departure terminal is very big but very easy to navigate.  We walked in and looked for the departure screen.  It lists departure time, followed by flight number and then check-in counter.  We proceeded to our check-in counter for our boarding pass and to check our luggage.  They were also able to check our seat assignments  and luggage all the way through to Los Angeles.  As we worked our way through the airport, we had to show our boarding passes and passports four different times, so we learned to just keep them handy.

The Bangkok International Departures Terminal is very big

As we entered the international departure terminal, we were greeted by signs to help us find our way.

The departure screen

Our flight is the third one down, flight CZ3082.  We were directed to isle "U" for our check-in counter

The bright yellow signs mark the check-in rows

Once we found our check-in row, we just looked for the China Southern Check-in windows

The international departure terminal is beautiful!

Looking for our gate.  Not a bad view!

Our China Southern plane left Bangkok at 3:35 pm and landed in Guangzhou, China at 7:20 pm (on-time). We had a two-hour layover in Guangzhou, and were supposed to take off again at 9:30 pm, but we had a medical issue on our flight after one of the passengers got hit in the head by a bag.  

We spent about an hour at the gate as the doctors examined the passenger and finally gave her clearance to fly.  The flight crew took good care of us as we sat waiting for our takeoff.  The plane was air conditioned the entire time, and the flight crew provided drinks if we wanted them.  Our pilot made up much of the lost time in flight, still allowing us to arrive on time in Los Angeles, California at about 6:30 pm on November 16th (the same day we left Bangkok).

Our flight home was interesting, in that we remained on Asia time for most of the flight.  When we boarded the flight, it was about 9:20pm.  After we got in the air, they fed us a nice meal, and then at about midnight, we settled ourselves for sleep.  So we ended up sleeping for most of the flight, then when we awoke, they fed us a nice breakfast, we flew awhile longer, and then landed in Los Angeles at about 6:30 pm. 

We collected our luggage without issue at the carousel: 

One of our bags that held all our worldly possessions for the last three weeks!

We called the hotel shuttle as we made our way through the airport, so he was waiting for us when we exited the airport.  Again, we will stay a night at the Holiday Inn Express in Los Angeles before heading home on Southwest Airlines tomorrow morning. 

We received a text from our oldest daughter (she is trying to fly out of Denver International Airport today to go see her husband for Thanksgiving), and she said that they aren't allowing many flights into the airport due to the weather.  They are trying to get as many flights out as possible, so she is hoping to get out okay.

Our daughter will drive out and leave the car at The Parking Spot (an offsite parking lot for airport travelers).  We will then fly in tomorrow and pick it up.  We all get nice trips, and only have to pay for a day of parking.  Not bad!  She just sends us a picture of where the car is parked, and we let the shuttle driver know.

Although we slept through most of the flight, when we got to the hotel, it was time to sleep again.  And believe it or not, we were ready for more sleep.  But even more importantly at this point, we were both really hungry.  

Unfortunately there are no restaurants very close to our hotel, except for McDonald's, which is right across the street, so for the first time in probably 15+ years, I was treated to a McDonald's cheeseburger and fries.  Since I am kind of a health food nut, I struggled with this concept a little bit, but hunger won out.  It was such a big day in our lives that we even sent a picture to our girls, who thought the world must be coming to an end with mom eating McDonald's!!!!

This sure isn't Thai fast food!

We got a good laugh out of our dinner and headed back to the hotel.  We're very tired, but mostly just mixed up on our time.  I'm sure it will take a little time to get back to normal, but for now we'll try and get a good night's sleep.

Thailand - Returning to Bangkok (Saturday, November 15th, 2015)

Unfortunately our amazing trip to Thailand is quickly coming to an end. This morning we had our usual drill for travel days... morning wake up call at 5:45, bags outside the room at 6:45, meet in the hotel lobby at 7:45. In true Gate-1 fashion, Mike, our Tour Director, met all of us in the hotel lobby, made sure that we were all checked out of our rooms and ready to go. We got on our beautiful coach bus for the last time and headed to the airport. 

The morning sun is a little bright shining in the windows

As we were all seated, Mike made his usual announce for one final time.... "OK, folks; touch your passport".  And of course, a few of us responded with our silly unmentionable reply (Yes Helen, I'm talking about us).  

Every time we moved from one city to another, Mike always made us touch our passport, to make sure that everyone had them. It got to be funny by the end of the trip, but needless to say, we all appreciated it greatly. He has taken such good care of us for these 2+ weeks. 

The bus pulled out of the hotel, and we headed to the Chiang Mai airport. Today's flight is just a domestic flight from Chiang Mai to Bangkok, so there will be no customs to go through. We arrived at the airport and Mike herded all of us through the airport and helped us get to our check-in counter. 

Steve and I did not have our seats for this flight prearranged, but the Bangkok Airways representative had no problem getting us seats together. We even got the emergency exit row with lots of leg room. 

Once we were checked in, we gave Mike our final hugs and headed through security. We were flying Bangkok Airways, so Mike let us know about the lounge they had in the terminal.  Mike likes Bangkok Airways as they generally are on-time and are very professional.  

Thank you Mike for your friendship and all of your surprises these last two weeks. We loved your surprises!!!  Your morning wake up calls were very early, but because of them we didn't miss a thing! You taught us so much about Thailand that we never could have learned on our own!  We hope we can keep in touch and return the favor some day!  We're sure your beautiful new daughter would love to see the U.S.

After getting through security, we all headed to the lounge, where they had free food, drinks and wifi for us to enjoy until our boarding time. We all took advantage of this and took time to talk and relax. 

At 9:20, we all moved from the lounge to our gate for our 10:00 flight and then onto the plane. Steve and I were thrilled with our seats since we had so much extra legroom. We were seated next to a man from Ireland who was doing missionary work in Thailand off and on for the past 20-years. We chatted with him for the whole flight. He was very nice and interesting. 

After our one hour flight we landed back in Bangkok where we had started this amazing adventure. We were on a small plane, so we didn't get a tarmac.  We disembarked and rode buses back to the terminal.

Once we retrieved our bags, we were greeted by Pete, one of Mikes colleagues from Gate-1, who helped us find our bus and traveled back to the hotel with us. As always, our room keys were waiting for us in the lobby, which made getting settled back in very easy. 

We heard Bangkok Air has a good frequent fliers program

We had the remainder of the day on our own to once again enjoy the beautiful city of Bangkok. Steve and I took an afternoon stroll through the park and again stopped at our favorite little massage place. We each had another Thai massage. We asked for mine to be a little more gentle, and of course, my wishes were granted. It was the most amazing massage ever!  Again, they are 200 baht for an hour or ~$5.75 US.  Of course we also like to provide a nice tip also. We both came out of the there feeling so relaxed!!! 

We walked a few feet further up the street and grabbed our usual iced mochas at 7-11 and then headed back toward our hotel. On our way back, we ran into a few of the women from our tour who were interested in the massages, so we showed them how to get there.

As we looked around the beautiful city of Bangkok, we remembered a few more interesting facts that Mike taught us throughout our adventure, so I will share the with you here:

As we walk or drive through the streets of Bangkok, there are shops on the main floor of all the buildings.  Mike explained that these are called; Shop houses.  Many people in Bangkok live in Shop houses. They are small in area, but when you purchase one, you purchase every floor above your shop.  The first floor is always the shop and/or store, with a garage door that can be opened up during the day for business.  The second floor is usually the office to run the shop, the third floor is the living area, the next floor is the sleeping area and the top floor is the kitchen.  Shop houses are all hooked together in one long building, but are all individually maintained by their owners.  As we walk around, we notice that one section of the building will be well maintained, but others will not.  

Notice of the individual units are maintained differently.

A few more interesting facts about Bangkok

• Water pressure is very low in Bangkok, so most  of the houses and business have water tanks on the roof.  The water is slowly filled in these tanks throughout the day, and then when someone needs are shower or something, the gravity fed water has enough pressure to make a good shower.

• The very wealthy of Bangkok live in condominiums, and some live in apartments.  The poorest are called water people and live on the canals in makeshift houses.  Their babies learn to swim before they learn to walk.  

A few more pictures from our hotel window before we leave this wonderful city.  We will truly miss it!

We saw this little guy on our walk through the park after a brief rain storm.  He was a good two inches long.

For dinner, our friends Jess and Gina wanted to try the noodle bowls that we had eaten on our prior visit, so they along with Helen and Chris and us decided to meet at 5:00 in our room and then we all headed out to find our dinner. 

Jess and Gina had not been to the park yet, so we took the long route through the park, and by the massage place, and finally ended up at Center-one Shopping Center. We entered through the basement where the locals eat, and headed up all of the escalators to the 4th floor. We were able to find a table for six, and enjoyed bowl after bowl of mystery noodles (since we never really know what we were ordering). They were all good, so who really cares!

Locals doing a Zumba class in the park

Our fast food dinner in the food court at the mall.

So many bowls!  Each bowl was 12 baht or about $.35!

 As we headed back to the hotel, Jess and Gina called it a night since they had a very early flight in the morning, and Chris and Helen came back to the room for a few more minutes of chatting before we all called it a night. What a great way to end a fantastic trip!

We all enjoyed the view one last time before we called it a night

Thank you Helen and Chris for all of the laughs, we truly enjoyed your adventurous spirits and all of your worldly knowledge. We hope to see you in San Francisco soon!   Good luck with the remodel and the shoulder!

Thank you Gina and Jess for your laughter and keeping us all grounded when we got a little wild. We're so glad we got to share a lantern with you.  I'm not sure we'll see you in Cincinnati since Southwest doesn't fly there, but we'll make plans to meet somewhere else!

Thank you Brian and Humana for your friendship! We missed you so much tonight at dinner but know that you had fun at MK Mall. We hope to see you in Florida sometime!

Thank you to all of our new Gate-1 friends for the memories that we will cherish forever!

Thailand - Chiang Mai City and Dinner at a Private Home (Friday, November 14th, 2015)

Chiang Mai is 1750 square kilometers, where Bangkok is on 1500 square kilometers.  But Chiang Mai's population is much smaller, being at 2 million people.  The inner city of Chiang Mai is separated from the rest of the city by a moat, and city wall. 

High rise buildings can not be built in the inner city to maintain the historical integrity of this area.  The inner city of Chiang Mai is one square mile.  There are several festivals that happen in this region of Chiang Mai that cause it to be very crowded at certain times of the year.  

The first is the floating basket ceremony on November 25th and 26th each year.  I think that Mike was very relieved that we missed this ceremony since today's journey took us through this very area. 

There is another festival in April, where people take water from the moat and splash it on the elderly and people that they respect to give them good wishes.  It eventually turns into a free for all with everyone being splashed and blessed and having a good time.  They then throw talcum powder on everything and everyone, and everything turns white.

One of the things that Mike mentioned today is how proud he is of the medical care in Thailand.  They have state of the art technology and schools but much cheaper than more developed countries.

Our first temple tour today is also the burial ground for some of Thailand's royalty, so our bus discussion was focused on cremations and burials.  When someone dies in Thailand, they have two caskets.  The inner casket is plain wood, and the out casket is quite elaborate (often with air conditioning in it), which is rented from the temple.  Thai people are cremated in the inner casket only. What a great idea!  It is so much less wasteful that our burial practices here.

We enjoyed a morning tour of the most interesting temples in Chiang Mai. We started at Wat Suan Dok, where the remains of the Chiang Mai Royal family are enshrined. This was a very beautiful place, and we were able to walk around and look at all of the pagodas.  All over Thailand, we have noticed that all of the white buildings and temples often appear dirty.  Mike said that this is from the acid rain caused by the pollution in the large cities.  They have to be constantly repainted to maintain their beautiful white color. 

These pagodas have obviously been recently painted

This one is in need of a fresh coat of paint.

I didn't think to ask Mike how often things have to be repainted, but it is evident on many of the houses as well, that it must be pretty often.  

There is a white string that encircled the entire burial ground, this is thought to keep out bad spirits or omens.  

You can see the white string encircling the burial ground

I have no idea what this says, but the writing is so beautiful!

There was also a huge set of bells by the pagodas.  They sounded beautiful!

We all took turns ringing the bells.  Look at my sweet husband carrying my backpack and my note pad.  He's a keeper!

The inside of the temple was very ornate and beautiful!

Once we went inside the temple, there were two distinct types of Buddhas, the plain ones are built in Thai style and the very ornate ones are built in Burmese style.

The plain gold Buddhas are Thai style, the ornate Buddha's on the outsides are the Burmese Buddhas.

These were the most beautiful love flowers.  Most of them were orchids.

We then continued to Wat Phrathad Doi Suthep, northern Thailand’s most sacred temple, containing a holy relic of their Lord Buddha.  

According to the Thai people, these two temples are related, as is told in the following story.  A Syrlankan monk presented a relic to the king at the first temple.  The king put the relic in a box, but when they reopened the box, the relic was broken in two, so they assumed that the relic wanted to be in two places.  They left one piece at the first temple and put the other piece on the back of an elephant.  Where the elephant stopped is where they felt the other piece of the relic wanted to be, so they built the second temple at that location, high in the mountains of northern Thailand.

The road up to the second temple was very steep and winding. Buses aren't allow on the road on weekends because it is very busy with cars and bicycles, so since today was Saturday, Mike arranged for us to all be picked up in three 15 passenger vans to drive up the mountain.  We were quite impressed by all of the bike riders who were making the ride up this very steep, windy road.

Our transportation up the mountain.  A bit more luxurious than some of our other transportation, but not nearly as fun.

These vans had all the comforts!

Arriving in town

It is nice and cool, but definitely not cold and we are literally in the clouds.

To get to the second temple, there were two options, as it is built high on a hill above the town.  We could take the mythological Naga (dragon-headed serpent) staircase, with 290 steps leading up to the temple grounds, or we could take a venicular to the top.  We chose to take the stairs, but then rode the venicular back down so I could get pictures of it.

You can see that the dragon handrail goes all the way to the top.

It is very ornate and beautiful!

Hill tribe girls stood on the stairway, and would allow you to take pictures of them for a donation

More hill tribe girls, all in different types of dress

Wow, the crowd clears for a quick photo opportunity!

In this second temple there is a chinese budha.  You can tell that it is chinese because it has a very fat stomach this is a trait of prosperity to the Chinese people.  

Chinese Buddha

There is also an Indian Buddha at the entrance to the temple

The ashes of commoners can be buried in the sacred temples, but the family must pay every year.  If the family doesn't pay, the ashes are removed

As we entered the temple, we were able to pour oil on candles for the day of the week we were born and it is thought to extend your life.  Since most Americans don't know what day of the week they were born, we were told to pour oil over all of the candles just to be safe.

So many Buddhas, so little time.  And we enjoyed seeing everyone of them!

Offerings of marigolds and lotus flowers

And offerings of money as well

The first temple had a white string around it to protect all inside from bad spirits or omens, so at this temple, each of us had a white string tied around our wrist to keep us safe from these same bad spirits.  Later you throw it away and the bad spirits are thrown away with it.

When we left the temple, Steve and I chose to ride the venicular back down, just so we could try one more form of transportation on this trip.

There were two veniculars side by side.  Here you can see the two sets of tracks

The tracks are completely enclosed in this tunnel

It's a pretty steep ascent up the hill, but hard to capture in a picture

The other vanicular next to us

I love the Thai writing.  It is so pretty

Steve and Chris enjoying their vanicular ride

After our descent down the hill, we were all going to meet at the jade factory, but we ran into Mike on our way, and he knows that Steve and I are adventurous eaters, so he took us on a little side trip

Why is this sign even written in English?  Are any English speaking people really going to try these?

The worms in the back are 200 baht.  That's about $6.00.  They must be a delicacy, but not for me!  Steve and I could both have a really yummy meal for way less than that!

And these guys are just too appetizing to mention

Okay, maybe were not as adventurous as we'd like to think

We then visited a local jade factory, followed by an afternoon on our own to enjoy beautiful Chiang Mai. 

Green coffee beans growing outside the jade factory

Some beautiful pieces for jade

A large jade Buddha, but not as big as the famous Emerald Buddha

There were some beautiful pieces at the jade factory

A jade carver

These rings showed all of the different colors of jade

A Lamborghini carved out of jade

Orchids outside of the jade factory

I'm not sure what this is, but it's really pretty

Red coffee beans outside of the jade factory

Steve and I took a little stroll while everyone was doing their shopping at the jade factory.  There was a little food stand with hot oil right on the sidewalk

Jack fruit on someone's porch

When we finished at the jade shop, we took our vans back down the hill to where our bus was waiting for us, and then headed back to the hotel.  We were on our own for lunch, so we, along with several of our friends walked back over to one of the more permanent restaurants in the night market.  We weren't sure if they would be open, but when we walked up, the owner was there so we asked if he was open for lunch, and he opened right up for us and made us all a delicious lunch.  He was the only one there, so he was the cook, waiter and host for us.  It was a great lunch!

We have not had time to see the hotel yet, so after lunch, we took a few minutes to look around.  

Part of the pool area

And more of the pool area

And more...It's a big pool

Then tonight we had a huge treat, joining a local Chiang Mai family for an authentic Thai dinner in their home. The woman who owns the house is named Kohn Porn Pun, and her youngest son is Kohn Ja.  

Our entire tour group (minus Mike, Pong and Yut, our wonderful Gate-1 team) in front of the house

Jess, Gina, Helen, Chris, Me and Steve ready for our big night out

Their yard was absolutely fabulous with flowers, and even kifir lime trees

Ja, the son, owns 3 restaurants in Chiang Mai, so he gave us a cooking demonstration, by making green curry paste from scratch.  If we could get all of the ingredients in the U.S., it would be really fun to try at home.   He then used the green curry paste in his green curry with chicken. 

He started out by going through all of the ingredients in green curry paste, some are common in the U.S. some are not.

Traditionally, a mortar and pestal is used to grind the ingredients for green curry, but some people use a food processor

Doesn't this look good?

We were then treated to an amazing dinner in the area beneath their house.  In a traditional Thai house, the area under the house is often open, with either a concrete or dirt floor.  This is the work area for the family during the day.  

The area under their house has been converted into a large dining room and kitchen, with restrooms for the guests.

This boat was set up for serving the meal.  Such a great idea!

The dining room

Preparing to serve the meal, and our gift bags off to the left of the table

Our appetizers, I can't remember what all was in them, but they were delicious!

Enjoying a wonderful dinner with friends

The serving station set up, with our wonderful chef and host overseeing

 We enjoyed a tour of the home, which was built in 1999 out of almost all teak wood.  Teak wood is expensive, but requires almost not maintenance.  It is the preferred building material in Thailand.  

Most Thai houses have a ladder that leads up to the house (which is on stilts) to a gated outdoor area.  At night the ladder will be pulled up and the gate will be locked for security purposes.  Our hosts house had a permanent staircase, but it did have a gate at the top that could be locked for security.  

We enjoyed conversation about life in Chiang Mai and savored the unique flavors of a home-cooked Thai meal with our amazing hosts.  

After dinner we were invited on a tour of the house.  We climbed the stairs to find ourselves on a big outdoor deck.  Surrounding the deck were a series of rooms.  The rooms in the upstairs are basically bedrooms, but attached to each bedroom is a sitting area or living room.  It is a very neat concept in that most of the upstairs space is outdoors.  

When you are on the upstairs deck, you can have your shoes on, but to enter any of the indoor rooms, your shoes must be removed.

The entry from the stairs on the front of the house.  There are rooms to the right and left, and behind me

The sitting room for one of the bedrooms

The bedroom

The view from the sitting room, back out onto the deck

The entry gate leading to the back stairs

An open railing overlooking the yard below

A view of most of the outdoor deck.  It is very big and spacious.  Notice the shoes outside the door

This is the Buddha room.  Every Buddhist household will have one for praying multiple times a day

Another sitting room for another bedroom.  Since the house is elevated it gets nice cool breezes, but a fan is still necessary

We were then invited outside where we all lit lanterns and released them together to release any bad things that we might have in our lives.  This was an amazing farewell dinner as we all said goodbye to each other since we will be leaving for Bangkok tomorrow.  

Pong (the bus driver) is back behind Steve to help us with our lantern.  

Steve, Pong, Gina and Jess getting our lantern ready

Pong lighting our lantern.  It immediately starts to lift as the warm air fills it

The first glow of our lantern

After our lantern was lit, Pong took the camera and I replaced him on the lantern

Hard to take a picture of, but the flame inside our lantern

Getting ready to release it

The lanterns slowly drift away with all of our cares and worries.  What an emotional way to end this incredible adventure!

On the way back to the hotel, Mike, our Tour Director, gave the most touching farewell talk to all of us.  He has been an incredible guide and friend throughout the last two weeks, and we will miss his wit and humor a lot.  

He covered all of our departure information for tomorrow and the next day, and made sure that we were all comfortable with the plan for the next two days.  Steve and I both teared up a little bit as we thought about leaving our wonderful Gate-1 team and our new friends behind.  This has been an incredible experience that we have throughly enjoyed!