Doi Suthep

Another day, and a pattern has emerged of hit the breakfast buffet, video chat with kids back home, and head out the door for a day trip. This time around, Riam is taking us up to the temple on Doi Suthep. This is one of the most revered temples in northern Thailand, and provides a great view over all of Chiang Mai.

Riam explains all of the various rituals taking place to us, and we take our turn at a few. There is one where you shake a cup full of plastic sticks until one falls out, and then using the number of the stick, find a paper with your fortune on it. Knowing what we know now about Nick’s fortune, kissing a crocodile might not have been the best call.

Nick seems a little nervous (and I’m not that comfortable standing too close to him), but after a quick blessing by the temple monks, Nick shakes the sticks again and his luck has much improved.

From the temple, we head down to another jade factory. Angela has the shopping bug, and after spending the whole day yesterday doing fun things, it looks like the bill is coming due for Nick and I. It will be three stops and several hours of wandering aimlessly through different stores before we finally make our way back to the hotel. Massages are again in order, and despite the cajoling of many of the ladies working there, Nick is still not sold on the idea. If he only knew….