Tuesday, October 16, 2007

Chiang Mai- A Foodie's Vacation Part 2


Welcome! For this final installation to my Chiang Mai Vacation recount, I promise to deliver a lot more photos, photos which will show you where we’ve been, and what we ate, essentially, but you won’t see any elephant rides or monkey shows because, this is, after all, a foodie’s vacation. This is an EATING HOLIDAY in other words, and I make no apologies for this. This trip has proven to me what I had earlier suspected, that food served in grandeur is not necessarily the best tasting, and the humble food hawkers on a dusty Chiang Mai ‘Soi’ (side street) may be your true answer to food nirvana. I say ‘may be’ because I will never know for sure. Why? You ask. The answer is because I did not ATTEMPT to eat at a humble food hawker stall on a dusty Chiang Mai Soi. Why? You ask again. Because I cannot enjoy eating while stewing in my own sweat! There you have it. I don’t like hot humid weather, but for a lot of you out there who enjoy it, you should give these eating stalls a go, but have some ‘Poh Chai’ pills (diarrhoea ammo) with you just in case.

Four Seasons Resort Hotel


These photos are of some of the decor pieces used in the Four Seasons



Deemed one of the 20 most beautiful Boutique Resort Hotels in the world, the Four Seasons should be a priority on your ‘places to go’ list if you’re ever in Chiang Mai. We spent a breathtaking half-day there taking in all the beauty and wonder of this spectacular setting..


Me and the family (in the background) in the sculptured gardens of the Four Seasons


'The Three Posers' - Sheryl (my niece), Chloe and Paige. Look at that gorgeous backdrop of terraced rice paddy fields and the mountains in the beautiful Mae Rim Valley!


Chloe, standing outside one of the spacious Lanna-style pavilion resident suites. The family suites come with a live-in housekeeper and an exclusive plunge pool and will set you back from just under US$3,000 a night for a minimum of three nights.


Who says men don't like flowers?


Doesn't this arrangement make you feel happy?


The common pool where you can savour the sweeping vistas. Not too shabby, wouldn't you say?


More photos of blossoms and Paraphernalia at the Four Seasons


Care for a simmer in the Jaccuzzi, anyone?


It's time for dinner, don't you think? Let's go..


Inside the Sala Mae Rim Restaurant - A high teak wook ceiling compliments Northern Thai artifacts and sweeping views of the Mae Rim Valley


Ming, seated comfortably, waiting for his dinner


Sala Mae Rim - renowned for the unique flavors of it's sumptuous northern and vegetarian Thai specialities


The condiments..


Sen Lek Tom Yum Talay - Rice Noodles with Seafood and Lemongrass


Goong Mae Narm Pad Takrai - Wok Fried Prawns with Green Peppercorn


Kaow Pad Poo Prig Goong - Wok Fried Rice with crab meat, prawns and chilli


Ming, introducing his dinner. Let's have a closer look at it..


Ming's main course - Hors D'oeuvre Ruam - Pork Satay, Marinated chicken wrapped in Pandanus Leaf, Crab cakes and Vegetable spring rolls


Cake Bai Toey - Pandanus Coconut Cake with Chocolate-Lemongrass Bon-Bon


Kaow Niew Mamuang - Black and white sticky rice with mango


My happy little camper, Paige - as we take our last picture at Four Seasons.

The Foothills of the Doi Suthep Temple


A natural Waterfall near the Palaad Tawanron Restaurant at the foothills of the famous Doi Suthep Temple. Unfortunately, we accidently erased the photos taken at the restaurant. But wait, we have a peace offering to offer you for this blunder..


Urrhh.. Fried Bugs, anyone??

Food Court at the Airport Plaza


A delicious array of Thai hawker fare at the Airport Plaza


Condiments and Garnishes..


Yummy Desserts!


Paige, spoilt for choice, finally decides to have a mung bean jelly dessert


Ming decides that he will not pass on the opportunity to eat some fried maggots! After all, you can't get this anywhere in Perth! The Thais treat this delicacy the way we do Beer nuts. Ming says that the maggots taste similar to fried anchovies!

Suan Paak Restaurant


Paige, at the entrance of the Suan Paak Restaurant. This restaurant was recommended by Tim from the Kaohom Cooking School- it was the BEST meal we had in Chiang mai, not counting the food we cooked at Kaohom. Unfortunately, it was our last night at Chiang Mai.. oh, it's situated just outside the Airport Plaza which happens to be the Best Shopping Centre in Chiang Mai


This is the Best Tom Yum Goong I've ever tasted - It has a little coconut cream in it. YUM! Sorry, this is the only photo we have to show for our dinner at Suan Paak. The food was soooooooo good we inhaled it all before realizing we forgot to take anymore photos!

Overview

We completely enjoyed our Chiang Mai trip but our time spent with Tim at the Kaohom Cooking School was definitely the highlight of our holiday, surpassing even the breathtaking half day spent at the Four Seasons! We're definitely coming back !

25 comments:

Daniel Indradjaja said...

WOW!! That's all I can say. Nice pictures to go along with a nice story. I definitely need a break soon. Hahaha. Thanks for taking the time to share this Carol.

daphne said...

wow... *speechless* the 4 seasons look terrific. Glad you had a good break... =)

SIG said...

I would like to go Chiangmai one day... thanks to you. ;) Everything is so perfect and you've captured everything so well.

Ming the Merciless said...

OMG, the photos are amazing. THe food photos are awesome. I'm like...awwwwwwwwwwwwww....I'm so hungry.

The flower arrangements are simply breathtaking. Thank you so much for the visual tour of Chiang Mai. The next time I'm in Asia, I will have to go there.

Ming the Merciless said...

I came back for a second look at the food photos. What are some of the delicious condiments they have there? I see lots of onions and chilli sauces.

Ming the Merciless said...

I came back for a second look at the food photos. What are some of the delicious condiments they have there? I see lots of onions and chilli sauces.

Anonymous said...

Wow! Wow! Wow! Such a lovely holiday.

We always bring some Poh Chai pills with us when we go for trips. I reckon the fried bugs and Poh Chai pills are associated? LOL!

KellytheCulinarian said...

It all looks so beautiful. And the food! It looks like it was a lovely vacation.

Ashley said...

Hi Carol. I was just browsing blogs and was intrigued by your pictures, then couldn't stop reading the article!
I was unfortunate enough to try the bugs too. ICKY! I'll be posting those pictures on my travel blog shortly.
Beautiful family :)
Can't wait to read more!

Vida said...

What AMAZING photos, just perfect! They look like postcards, everyone of them!!! Vida x

wita said...

Its really amazing looking at your vacation pictures. I would love to try scorpion, what was taste like?
I have sent you email to ask about the fried corn recipe, thank you in advance. You gave me one more thing to put on my vacation wish list.

wita said...

Did you stay at $3000 a night room? WOW... how fortunate you and your family are.

Sylvia said...

Wonderful trip Carol,and I agree with you Four Season is unique in all parts of the planet that they had a resort. I spent my honeymoon in Carmelo´s (Uruguay) Four season.I don´t know if a can eats does fried bugs ,but who tasted like your husband said that´s no bad.Beautiful post..and what flowers !!! This time I traveled with you.
By the way I love the music in your blog

Christina Kim said...

Another vacation!! So niceeeeeeeeee....
How I wish I can hop on the plane and leave now!!!:P
Chiangmai looks like a great place..I must ask you for tips the next time I plan for the trip;)

Big Boys Oven said...

oh so lovely to be....have yet been to this place, sound like my next destination.!

stay-at-home mum said...

Stayed at the four seasons? Lucky you! bet it was a wonderful vacation! did they run cooking classes there? (they do at Bali). The food looks really good.

Rafe Totengco said...

how adorable is Chloe! what a trip! Chiang Mai is definitely on my list. Great photos.

Oh for the love of food! said...

Daniel,
Thank you, You certainly deserve a nice holiday!

Daphne,
Yes, the Four Season's was pretty cool, we really had a great time..

Singairishgirl,
Thanks!

Ming,
You would LOVE Chiang Mai, it's a photographer's dream. The Thais love to add raw shallots and lime to their food, and chilli/ chilli paste is a must.

Oh for the love of food! said...

Tiger,
You are so right! We never leave home without the poh chai pills either, but i'm afraid it might disappear from the Chinese Medicine hall shelves soon. Apparently an ingredient in the pills are becoming extinct!

Kelly,
Thanks, it was lovely!

Ashley,
Thanks for the compliments! What did you think of the bugs? would you eat them again? HA!HA!

Vida,
Thanks for visiting my blog and for your kind compliments. Hope to see you here again!

Wita,
Thanks for the compliments, we didn't stay at the four seasons unfortunately, we spent the afternoon and had dinner there ;o)

Sylvia,
Now I'm jealous of you! Your Honeymoon must have been magnificent!

Oh for the love of food! said...

Christy,
Thanks for visiting my blog, and yes, when you do decide on a trip to Chiang Mai, I will tell you all the places you have to visit!

BB OVen,
You guys must make a trip there soon, you'll love it!

Stay at home mum,
We didn't stay at the four seasons, but we did spend a lovely afternoon there and had dinner as well. Yes, I did a cooking class with my family, it was loads of fun! You can read about it on my previous post.

Rafe,
Thanks, she is adorable. You'd LOVE Chiang Mai Rafe, and when you do go, you'll have lots of gorgeoue pics for your blog!

SteamyKitchen said...

C- your photography is amazing!!!!

Oh for the love of food! said...

Jaden,
Thanks girlfriend, I must confess, not all the photos were taken by me, Ming and the girls took some photos too. :o)

Anonymous said...

Please take me with you next time you're on vacation. You know what? If you and I went on a trip together, we'll do nothing but eat, admire the fantastic scenery, eat, take loads of photos, eat, talk non-stop and then eat some more :D

Thanks for sharing these photos. Truly breath-taking.


joy
The Goddess In You

Ashley said...

Carol, I just adore your pictures; what kind of camera do you use? I am in the market for a new one. Perhaps I just need lessons ;)

Anonymous said...

Also you must get a really great (and cheap!) falafel near at Cafe Tropico near Julies guesthouse in Chiang Mai close to Chiang Mai gate. They also have frozen smoothies made without ice.