The first half of our Thailand visit has went by ridiculously fast. Our few days in Bangkok passed like a blur of delicious cake and curry; we had a few days in Kanchanaburi and a day trip over the famous death rail to visit Nam Tok, where we rode a train for over three hours to see a waterfall that had completely dried up for the season, but it feels like all of that passed in just one night. Not even the lengthy train journeys could make the time feel more stretched out, but at least the scenery was consistently beautiful and I was able to make friends on the train. I guess it’s all a good excuse to go back again.
Now, somehow, at the time of writing we are half way through our stay in Chiang Mai, and I have no idea where the time has gone. I was ridiculously excited about getting to Chiang Mai, probably more so than any other place on the trip. I was unsure entirely of what to expect, but I heard a lot of how it was quiet, friendly, pretty, and that there would be good food. And, of course, while there we would be visiting Elephant Nature Park. What’s not to get excited about? Just a few minutes upon arrival and it was clear to see that things were different here from the south. There is very obviously a slower pace of action than in somewhere like Bangkok. Not to say it’s slow: it’s only relatively quieter than Bangkok. Chiang Mai is still a major city, but what’s interesting about it is that it’s divided into the old and new city. We didn’t realise the divide was so clear until we were walking directly down the divide separating both aspects of the city with a canal. We’ve spent most of our time in Old City, and, while there are certainly merits on both sides, I would definitely suggest doing the same. There are bustling cities all round the world, it isn’t in many other cities you can find a beautiful old temple just about anywhere you look.
Something I was struck by on the way to our hostel was the number of vegan and vegan/vegetarian restaurants we passed. It seemed every few minutes I was pointing out another, and that we were not going to go short of food options in Chiang Mai. We got to our hostel with no idea what to expect. It was another last minute booking of what seemed reasonably priced. We were surprised to find that we were in what quickly became my favourite area of Chiang Mai. We were staying in BlueBird Eco Village, a small cluster of tiny bungalows in what is one of the most peaceful areas of the whole city. It is less than a minutes walk from some beautiful temple gardens, where we would come to relax. It was really impossible to feel anything less than content in the serenity of the gardens. And more excitingly it was a shorter walk still to Bodhi Tree Cafe, our immediate haunt. Like many places in Chiang Mai there is so much focus on good, healthy food from this place. Everything is made from scratch using ingredients grown straight from the garden out back, or locally sourced when that isn’t an option. We’ve ended up coming here every day for breakfast, just to start the day off with a long, healthy meal in a beautiful environment. That and the cafe was so close we could still connect to our hostel’s wi-fi with full signal from there.
Food is always a very exciting thing for me. Ellie took this into consideration with the fact that my birthday is coming up in a few days and booked me a session in a Thai cooking class. So, after a day of walking around and looking at temples we parted way and I made my way to the New City to May Kaidee’s, a vegan/vegetarian restaurant. This was an incredible amount of fun! While there we were split into groups of who did and did not like spicy food, we were then assigned a cooking partner and culinary friendship ensues! Every other person attending happened to be from New York (though they weren’t all travelling together and that was just blind chance), so I got to excitedly talk about our time there and share enthusiasm for all the wonderful places we ate. Our supposed two hour class went on for just over three, teaching us how to make a large number of things, from Thai classics like Pad Thai and Tom Yam, to traditional desserts like Mango Sticky Rice. We started the class by making chili paste, which we would come back to use again and again throughout the lesson. We learnt to make six dishes from scratch, not including the chili paste. The classes are a lot of fun and I would absolutely suggest this if you are interested in food and cooking! Only thing to watch out for is that it isn’t a 100% vegan class. There is use of egg in the pad thai, but the staff ask if anyone is vegan before beginning and show you how to do it a kinder way.
We were supposed to be leaving Chiang Mai the following day. We were planning to head to Pai. But we kind of love it here, so we were dragging our heels about it. We were hearing the horror stories about the bus trip to Pai, about how we would certainly be sick the whole way, and decided it would justify our stay in Chiang Mai. We were feeling a bit under the weather for a few days and it was certainly more appealing to do that in the tranquillity of a beautiful, quiet bungalow. It has since passed and we are counting down the days until we get to Elephant Nature Park, for what is going to be, I imagine, the most fulfilling element of our entire trip.
Additional Thailand Vegan Travel Blogs:
Being a vegan in Thailand is hard. Animal products, especially meat, just sit there glistening in all their sad deceased glory everywhere you look. Every food stall, restaurant, practically every dish seems like it has meat in it. And if […]
An Unexpected Treasure Find… Nestled in a forest on the outskirts of Lampang, Northern Thailand, is Vegan Town. A brand new eco farming community with the mission to promote healthy living to all of Thailand. Stumbling across this hidden paradise, […]
We went to Bangkok with very little knowledge of their vegan food scene and found some of the best food we’ve had while travelling. We only had a few days at the beginning and end of our trip in the […]
My First Trip to Bangkok, Thailand Recently, I had a beautiful opportunity to travel to the capital of Thailand, Bangkok, which is well-known for its elephant sanctuaries. Unfortunately, this was not exactly a vacation – but rather an important […]
Have you ever found yourself worn out with life, even though everything is going right? Me (Craig) and my girlfriend Ellen both hail from Newcastle Upon Tyne, a gem of a city that we feel is the best in the […]
Like in many other big cities across the planet,eating vegan in Bangkok is pretty easy nowadays. Bangkok has become those last years a surprising vegan destination. Not only the thai cooking is perfectly suitable to veganism, but many 100 % vegan restaurants […]
Doi Suthep: Wat Phrathat and Wat Pha Lat Unbeknownst to us, we saved the best of Chiang Mai for last. Carved into the mountainside to the west of the city, Doi Suthep is spread over different levels and houses various […]
Users who liked this:
As a traveller, I found Chiang Mai a bit disappointing. Perhaps it was all the hype. All that talk of Chiang Mai being a vegan paradise/oasis (pick your metaphor). It’s not that it isn’t, but rather that coming from Berlin, […]
A lot of people decide to visit Thailand for its astonishing beaches or secluded villages in the north, but if you are planning your trip to Thailand I really think you shouldn’t miss a visit to Bangkok, it will totally […]
Thailand is one of the best places to eat vegan and cheap food, and Bangkok offers a huge variety of choices for every taste; this is my personal guide of the best vegan food in the city. Chamlong restaurant, just […]
Thailand is known for being a heaven on earth for vegans, but there are areas that are far more vegan-friendly than others. Phuket, Thailand is one of the areas of Thailand that I realized was not very vegan-friendly, but yet […]
There are so many reasons why we chose to visit Thailand this year. Besides the fact that Thailand has been one of the top places in our list to visit, one of the main reasons was the recent airfare price […]
Sa wadee ka! Jessie here- formally known as teacher Jessie here in Thailand. I’ve embarked on the journey of a lifetime, teaching English- and other subjects. With absolutely no experience back home and a short 3 week course in Hua […]
I feel like there are a few things that we should chat about if you’re thinking about going to Phuket to get the Thailand experience. I don’t want you to book an expensive ticket around the world thinking Phuket is […]
Bangkok has so much to offer in terms of vegan cuisine that it’s no wonder it’s been consistently named as one of the most vegan-friendly cities in the world by several travel websites. It wasn’t hard at all to find […]
After 5 and a half months of an amazing journey around the world with Vegan Travel, Cody and I made our way back to Thailand where we were graced with the awesome presence of my cousins Aaron and Isaac, and […]
Koh Phangan had the potential to be such a beautiful island for us, but unfortunately our week there was spent indoors due to our bad timing with the weather. We spent most nights powerless in our bungalow and most days […]
It’s much easier to get to the islands of Thailand from inland than I thought, and cheaper than I was expecting! We knew we wanted to either go to Ko Samui or Koh Phangan and luckily they both take the […]
Vegan food, culture, and elephants are probably the top three reasons Marissa and I had Thailand at the top of our list for this trip. Our trip to Thailand wouldn’t have been complete without spending time with elephants, but if […]
Doi Suthep This Buddhist monastery in Chiang Mai is a must see. You can easily get a tuk tuk up the hill to see the beauty of this temple. There’s also a hike you can do where you’ll walk by […]
After sharing my advice and suggestions about what not to do in Thailand, I thought it only fair to also let everyone know about the abundance of incredible responsible travel activities there are to participate in without negatively affecting the […]
Chiang Mai is becoming quite the popular destination amongst vegans. It’s very easy to find online all the vegan restaurants in the area you are visiting, so I thought I would put together my list of places that I think […]
Responsible travel is something that we feel every traveller should participate in. This type of tourism lessens negative environmental, social, and economical impact, and enhances the well being of local people and animals. It also supports the principles of social […]
Chiang Mai is known for its beautiful Buddhist wats (temples). There are over 200 wats in Chiang Mai, some dating all the way back to 1296. All are beautifully preserved. We’ve visited Chiang Mai several times but never really explored […]
I know when I’m at home I end up making the same three meals and I cycle through them throughout the month. I can perfect those three things, but ask me to get creative by trying to make a new dish […]
Chiang Mai is a low rise city filled with ornate temples and canals. The pace of life is much slower than bustling Bangkok, but it has a charm all its own. In the last 20 years, tourism has transformed this […]
Bangkok, or Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahinthara Yuthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom Udomratchaniwet Mahasathan Amon Phiman Awatan Sathit Sakkathattiya Witsanukam Prasit (yes, that is the city’s full ceremonial name) is a sprawling metropolis that can be overwhelming if […]
In the East of Phuket, Thailand, you will find a temple named ‘Wat Pa Klok’. This is a special place because on the grounds is a dog sanctuary called Bodhi Animal Shelter & Clinic! We stumbled across this place due […]
Fancy helping a dog to travel to their forever home? Become a flight volunteer! At Elephant Nature Park Dogs – now Dog Sanctuary Thailand, there are over 450 dogs waiting to find love! There is usually always a dog waiting […]
KOH LIPE! Half a days travel from Krabi, we reached the little island of Koh Lipe, near the Thai/Malaysian border. White sand and turquoise sea, this island is paradise! You can get here a couple of different ways. We travelled […]
To be fair, it could have been any country, but it was Thailand. And I could have been volunteering with orangutans, or sloth bears. But elephants are one of my favorite animals, so I chose elephants to spend time with. […]
Hello fellow vegan travellers!! This is our first ever blog, so we thought what better way to start it off – Elephant Nature Park! This place is amazing for so many different reasons!! Our first time volunteering here, we were unaware […]
We have just come to an end of our time in Thailand, and what a way to end a visit! The night before we were about to leave Chiang Mai our plans went a little astray. We both very suddenly […]
Hey, Vegan Travellers! Could it be that it is already time for another round-up? Yes, yes it could. Could it be that I am once again agog and aghast at how quickly my time in a given country has gone […]
Hey Vegan Travellers! I just had the most incredible week at the Elephant Nature Park in Chiang Mai, Thailand. The whole week went by so ridiculously quickly that I almost don’t even know how to separate it out to find […]
Chiang Mai may very well be the happiest place on earth. Sorry not sorry, Disney. From the moment Ross and I arrived here, it has been a vegan dream. The cheapest place in town that had more positive reviews than […]
After spending quite a bit of time in Bangkok, seeing some really beautiful shrines, visiting massive malls, and getting to know the local people and culture, Ross and I decided that it was time for us to have ourselves a […]
The clock struck five on a cold, cold morning in South Korea. We groggily dragged ourselves out of our beds and dressed in the dark. This was the end of our time in South Korea, and we were headed for […]
Hey hey, Vegan Travellers! We are no longer in South Korea. By the time Ross and I found ourselves once more heading into the great unknown of another country via aeroplane, we were ready for the change. Don’t get me […]
