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bus journey

Philippines 2011: Leaving Sagada for Baguio, and arriving in Angeles city

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Aug 31, 2011
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Philippines, Travel

Date: 20th April 2011

I got up at 5:30am, and had to freshen up using water from the hot shower as the tap water was freezing cold!

Sagada village road early morning — I checked out of George's Guesthouse (by leaving the key on the table because there was nobody at the reception) and walked out

Yoghurt house Sagada Philippines — Where I had dinner from yesterday

Sagada village early morning buses — A few inter-city buses were parked at the village center

Alfredo's Inn, Sagada Guesthouse, Gandu Yan Inn — Alfredo's Inn (L), Sagada Guesthouse (2nd from right), Gandu Yan Inn (R) -- plenty of accommodation near the bus station (Panorama shot comprised of 4 photos)

Inside Sagada first bus to Baguio early morning — I boarded the first bus to Baguio leaving at 7am (ticket cost ₱200/$5/€3.5)

Sagada to Baguio misty morning forest trees — The bus left on time. Since I was still sleepy, I decided to keep shooting using my phone as I was in no mood to take my DSLR out.

Sagada village man sitting early morning — Good morning to you too

Sagada to Baguio misty hill — Very misty at this time

Sagada to Bagiuo bus journey view — This was the last photo I took before I fell asleep

But I ended up waking up just half-an-hour later when I briefly opened my eyes. I just had to take my camera out now and take a few shots of the terrain I was passing through.

Rice terrace hills Ifugao Luzon Philippines — I didn't dare open the window as it was freezing cold outside, so I shot all these behind the not-so-clean glass

Ifugao rocky river luzon Philippines — Mostly rocky rivers in these parts

Sabangan town bridge Ifugao Philippines — We arrived at some town/village

Welcome to Sambangan Ifugao Philippines — Where we were

Sabangan rice terraces Ifugao province Philippines — There was more beauty to behold

Sagada to Baguio hills highway Ifugao — We kept going higher and higher

Sagada to Baguio Halsema Highway lettuce farms — Lettuce farms

Sagada to Baguio Gawis Ay Hawkers on highway stop — From a market we stopped at

Sagada to Baguio inside the bus — A lot of the passengers were villagers or farmers getting down at various markets to sell their produce

Mountain province rain clouds Philippines — The stretches of sunshine didn't last too long

Mountain province morning star stop Philippines — We stopped here for a few minutes for a snack/toilet break

Lagoon near Baguio hills — The dark clouds gave way to sunlight

Road works mountain province Philippines — There weren't many bad stretches on this highway, for the most part, it was a lovely journey!

Baguio city shanty homes Philippines — And after nearly six hours, we were in Baguio

I arrived at Baguio just past 1pm. Where the bus stopped was at some lot inside a shopping complex. Didn’t look like a main bus station or anything, so I asked around how I could get to Angeles City. The locals told me I would have to go to another bus depot near SM Supermall and catch a bus from there. So, in a taxi I went.

Riding through Baguio, you could see why Baguio is a predominantly a ‘university town’. Students from all across the North come to Baguio for higher education as it’s the only developed city in this hilly region of North Philippines.

I never had any plans of staying in Baguio because I didn’t find any of the attractions worthy of spending a night here. A short 5 minute ride later (which cost less than ₱100), I was at the bus terminal very near to SM Supermall — the only major mall in the city.

I asked for buses going to Angeles City and was instructed to board any of the buses going to Dau. I bought my ticket (₱290/$6/€4.7) from one of the private bus companies that operates the route and dumped my backpack on my seat. I had a few minutes before the bus departed so I quickly stepped out and went to the nearby Jollibee to pick up some lunch (Jollibee is there wherever you need it!)

Bus terminal Baguio city Philippines — The bus terminal was very busy as this being a hugely student populated town (and Holy Week), many of the buses to the various neighbouring provinces were running full

The bus left at 2pm and I had my lunch watching a very charitable man give away gifts and cash to Filipinos on TV. As the TV signal strength weakened, they put on the usual pirated copies of low-budget action films (first, an unheard of horror movie starring a really fat Val Kilmer).

I didn’t take many photographs on this leg of the journey — mostly because there wasn’t a whole lot of scenery worth capturing. It rained a little bit and the bus moved slowly because from here on, we were going downhill and it was quite misty outside.

After a few hours, it got really cold inside the bus as the air-conditioning was truly working. I had to wear my jacket and use my camera bag for additional warmth.

Villasis town hall Philippines — Taken at 4:51pm. We mostly travelled through impoverished towns and small villages.

You know it’s an impoverished part of the country when you see the locals rejoicing with banners when one of their residents become a lawyer. Saw a few of those.

Familyradio.com rapture judgement day billboard ad carmen Philippines — Hey guess what nut jobs, the world didn't end after all!

Soon after one B-grade movie ended, they put on another. This time a Tagalog dub of a Thai action movie starring a popular Thai actress whom I cannot name at all because I only remember seeing the ‘making of’ this film on a show on NHK. Sigh.

I kept wondering how much longer I had to sit in this bus. By sunset, the bus had stopped in the city of Tarlac — and it stayed there for some time. And by now, there weren’t many passengers in the bus. I stepped down to ask if this was where I need to get down but the driver who was taking a break said “no”. I went back in and waited for the bus to move again.

And move on it did. We were on McArthur Highway by nightfall and I again wondered just how much longer I had to go to get to Angeles City.

Around 7:30pm, we finally reached a very busy Dau bus terminal. From there, I got into a trike and asked him to take me to my hotel. The journey took another 10 minutes (he charged ₱110) but I finally got to Red Tulip Hotel. I chose this hotel because I didn’t want a place on Fields Avenue, near all the nightclubs that go late into the night, and Red Tulip Hotel looked like it was a safe distance away. But that was as per the map on their website. In reality, it was a little too far from the main jeepney hub. But more on that later.

Red Tulip hotel single room Angeles City Philippines — I was just glad to see a room so I could dump my bags and stretch my legs!

I had spent more than 12 hours today just sitting in buses. I was tired, so I quickly stepped out to have dinner at 9pm and then went to sleep immediately after getting back. For the first time this week, I didn’t have to wake up early tomorrow!

Day 5 – 21st April 2011

I don’t know how many hours I slept, but I slept well. Lord knows I needed the rest after the last three days! I switched on the television and watched the news reports of how crowded EDSA was yesterday night, with everyone rushing to get out of Manila. In some ways, I guess it was a good idea to arrive a bit early.

By the time I got out of bed, freshened up and made my way down for ~~breakfast~~brunch, it was noon.

Red Tulip hotel restaurant Angeles City Philippines — Looking at the menu, the tulips made sense... the hotel owner was Dutch

I ate lazily, chatted with the waitresses who asked me where I was from and where all I had been to in Philippines so far. Then I went online for a bit after brunch and only at around 2pm did I finally decide to step out of the hotel! I wanted to take it easy for once.

Red Tulip hotel Angeles City Philippines — The entrance

Angeles City sandy road Philippines — It was a sandy road from The Red Tulip Hotel to the San Angelo street (where the Hotel 24 sign is)

Angeles City perimeter road Albacio restaurant Philippines — The walk from San Angelos St. to the main Fields Avenue road was around a 1 minute long

ABC Hotel Angeles City Philippines — Angeles Beach Club hotel, one of the more posher hotels in Angeles City

Balibago jeepney terminal Angeles city — This was the jeepney terminal...

Hotel Tiger Angeles City Philppines — And I initially looked at hotels on this road, San Narciso street. Hotel Tiger looked atrocious both inside and outside...

PJ Inn hotel Angeles City Philippines — ... so PJ Inn was the one I had selected. But they were late to reply back with my room enquiry and by the time they did, they were full. So I had to book at Red Tulip Hotel for 3 nights (they gave it to me for ₱800/$18/€13 per night)

San Narciso street jeepney Angeles City Philippines — The jeepney terminal was up this road, a 2 minute walk from here. I figured, after I was done with the festivities of Good Friday in San Fernando, I could easily catch a ride from here back to Manila.

Angeles City perimeter road traffic Philippines — I walked back to the main road

Angeles City Istanbul doner kebab house Philippines — I had dinner from this Turkish restaurant yesterday night, good shawarmas!

Angeles city Balibago terminal Philippines — I decided to hop over to SM Clark mall to pass some time

Angeles city road to Clark afternoon Philippines — This road leads to the Clark Freeport zone and Clark airport

Angeles City Clark freeport zone Philippines — My friend Aimee told me AOL once had an office in the Freeport zone

Angeles City Clark road closed Philippines — The plan was to first check out SM Clark and then head to the Freeport zone for all the duty free shops

Angeles City SM Clark mall Philippines — But as I walked towards the mall...

SM Clark mall Angeles City panorama — Closed! (Panorama shot comprised of 5 shots)

A security guard came up to me as I took the above photograph, and he told me the mall was closed today and tomorrow, being Good Friday. I asked him how far the Clark Duty Free was from here and he said around 8kms and he told me there’s a high possibility that would be closed today as well.

I sighed and walked towards the jeepney drivers nearby and asked them if the Clark Duty Free was open today but they confirmed it saying it was a holiday today.

Angeles City Balibago jeepney terminal Philippines — Oh well

Angeles City jeepney terminal Philippines — So I walked to the jeepney terminal to find out where to board the jeepneys going to San Fernando and the timings

Angeles City Dau pickup-point to go to San Fernando — This guy told me to come to this pick-up point tomorrow morning to go to San Fernando. Yes, he was quite joyful to be in the photograph.

Angeles City perimeter road Philippines — Decided to check out Fields Avenue

Angeles City walking street girls Philippines — I was stopped by another one of those "Hey foreign guy with DSLR, take photo of us!". Guess which was the girl who requested it.

Angeles City walking street Philippines — This was Walking Street (don't know why they call it such but still allow vehicles in!)

Angeles City closed shops afternoon Philippines — Here too, the scene wasn't any different -- just about everything was closed!

But I wondered if it was just because it was in the afternoon.

As I reviewed my shots, I noticed they were all quite dark and that I couldn’t change my shutter speed now. It was stuck at 1/1250! Grrh, I hate it when things like this happen, and that too just before a big event like tomorrow’s crucifixion ceremony! I had no choice but to continue shooting with it.

Angeles City locksmith near public park — I went to that locksmith who was fortunately open. He tightened one of my tripod legs with an Allen key as I had misplaced mine. He wouldn't accept the ₱10 I was ready to pay him either 🙂

Blue Nile Double A poker club walking street Angeles City — I walked back on to Walking Street. Only a few places were open and had the usual sight of geriatrics drinking away with their Filipina companions

Angeles City Cambodia nightclub Philippines — Pretty cool entrance

I walked back to my side of town and felt the urge to have some ice cream.

Iglesia ni christo church Angeles City Philippines — Iglesia ni Cristo church

Bought my ice cream from a convenience store at a Petron station on this side of Perimeter road, which houses a few more nightclubs, and little else.

Once back in my room, I fiddled with my camera for nearly an hour, switching it on and off, taking the battery out multiple times. Fed up, I went online to find a solution. Saw a few threads on such issues and then felt like an idiot after reading the ‘solution’. I had accidentally pressed the ‘Lock’ button near the dial which stuck the shutter speed at the last setting.

-_-

Anyway. After ‘fixing’ my problem, I sat in the room and worked on a few photos to upload and stepped out only for dinner. I went back to the Turkish restaurant as I miss Middle Eastern food and I wanted to make the most of the authentic food available as much as possible. (The restaurant was run by Turks)

At night, there were a lot more people out and about, but it still didn’t look like this is the most action Angeles City usually sees. So yeah, if you are coming to Angeles City purely for the nightlife, Holy Week isn’t the best time for that 🙂 Some of the nightclubs were still closed.

Back in the room, I packed my camera bags, kept all my batteries for charging, cleaned my lenses, set my alarm, and went to bed. Tomorrow was going to be the big day, and I couldn’t wait for it to begin!

Previous posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Sagada’s Lumiang burial cave, Sumaguing cave, Hanging Coffins of Echo valley

Philippines 2011: Day 3 – Banaue town; heading to Sagada via Bontoc

Philippines 2011: Day 2 – Banaue rice terraces; trekking to Batad village

Philippines 2011: Day 1 — Manila American Cemetery and Memorial, Fort Bonifacio

Philippines 2011: Flying over South China Sea for the first time

Other posts in this series:

Philippines 2011: Day 6 – Good Friday in San Fernando, San Pedro Cutud Lenten Rites

Philippines 2011: Day 7 – Leaving Angeles City for Manila, Mall of Asia

Philippines 2011: Day 8 – Manila tour: Rizal Park, Intramuros, Manila Cathedral, China Town

Philippines 2011: Day 9 – Cebu: Fort San Pedro, Basilica of Santo Niño, Taoist Temple

Philippines 2011: Day 10 – Bohol tour: Chocolate Hills, Loboc river cruise, Tarsiers, churches

Philippines 2011: Day 11 – Arriving in Puerto Princesa, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 12 – Puerto Princesa Underground River tour, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Day 13 – Puerto Princesa to El Nido by bus

Philippines 2011: Day 14 – El Nido island hopping tour A and sunset at Las Cabanas beach, Palawan

Philippines 2011: Back to Manila, shopping, and my final thoughts about the country (Last post)

Thailand 2010: Golden Triangle in Mae Sai; Chiang Rai’s White Temple (Wat Rong Khun)

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Jul 06, 2011
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Chiang Rai, Thailand, Travel

Date: 24th November 2010

Woke up at around 6am today. I re-packed my bags and checked out of my room as by the time I would have come back, it would have been past 12 noon. I left my bags at the hotel reception and walked to the bus station after having tea from stall serving early morning office goers.

I boarded a bus leaving for Chiang Saen at 6:30am. Mae Sai is the northern most town in Thailand. Located in Chiang Saen (which is in Chiang Rai province), it is from here you reach the Golden Triangle.

What’s the Golden Triangle you ask? It’s the point where three countries – Thailand, Myanmar & Laos – all meet, with only a river separating them.

The journey to Chiang Saen town takes one and half hours.

Small town Chiang Rai school parade Thailand — Passed through a small town

Small town school kids north Thailand — Cute kids were all dressed up and marching somewhere

Bus ride to Mae Sai town Chiang Rai Thailand — Concrete roads gave way to untarred roads. A sign of how remote a place I was heading to.

By around 8:15am, I was in the town of Chiang Saen. Now, I was expecting to see the ‘Golden Triangle’ right as soon as I got down.

Mae Sai town Thailand — But I was told it was still further away

The awaiting moped taxis offered to take me there… for ฿100. I said ‘No way!’ and instead got into a pick-up taxi going to the Golden Triangle. Cost around ฿30.

Mae Sai river road to Golden Triangle — It was still a bit chilly in the morning

Mae Sai river town Chiang Rai Thailand — That’s Mekong river

Road to Golden Triangle Chiang Rai Thailand — It’s a 10 minute drive to the Golden Triangle

Golden Triangle sign Chiang Rai Thailand — And finally, here I was

The Imperial Golden Triangle Resort Chiang Rai Thailand — The Imperial Golden Triangle Resort, the only major hotel facing the Golden Triangle

Golden Triangle entrance Chiang Rai — I kept walking to see where the ‘triangle’ was

And here it was…

Golden Triangle Mae Sai Chiang Rai Thailand panorama — That’s Myanmar to the left and Laos to the right

Hmm, that’s it. That’s what I came all the way for 🙂

Myanmar Burma from Golden Triangle view Chiang Rai — Not sure what this building in Myanmar was

Golden Triangle special economic zone Laos — Across in Laos, this was some special economic zone

Mekong river Myanmar Laos view from Golden Triangle — The Mekong river flows all the way from China

Now, I didn’t come all the way here just to see a river. After all, Myanmar and Laos doesn’t look all that different from here.

There are boat rides that take you along the Mekong river and up to the shores of Myanmar and Laos. I approached one boatman and he told me I’d have to wait a bit for other tourists… or pay ฿1000 for the ride. Needless to say, I told him I will wait.

Unfortunately, I couldn’t waste any time and so, I decided to check out the surroundings.

Golden Traingle temple park Mae Sai Chiang Saen Thailand — There was a temple-slash-park nearby

Golden temple coin rolling buddha statue Mae Sai — This was some contraption where in you roll a coin down to the smiling Buddha statue down there and you can hear the coin roll all the way down into his tummy

Mekong river Golden triangle boat tour — I could see one group boat tour on their way

Temple entrance near Golden Triangle — Checked this place out next

Wat Phra That Ku Phao temple Mae Sai Thailand — Wat Phra That Ku Phao temple

Golden Triangle view Mekong river from hill Mae Sai Chiang Rai — You get a better view from up here

Wat Phra That Pu Khao old temple Mae Sai Chiang Rai — Checked out what looked like an even older temple

Wat Phra That Pu Khao tourist Chiang Rai — Got back down

Once out, I went back to the river banks to see if there were enough tourists in a boat ready to embark on the river tour, but there still wasn’t any.

I waited a little bit.

But the heat was getting to me, and time wasn’t on my side. There was one attraction I just had to see before I left Chiang Rai. My Orient Thai Airlines flight was at 4:25pm, which meant I had to be at the airport at least by 2:30pm. Given that the journey back to Chiang Rai town was going to take one and half hours (now considering traffic), I couldn’t hang around much longer.

I boarded a passing by pickup taxi (which itself aren’t that frequent on this stretch) and made my way back to Chiang Saen town.

Laos across Mekong river Chiang Rai — Was I disappointed I couldn’t do the boat ride? A little bit

My friend Sawmteii (whom I would meet up with in a few days) did the Golden Triangle boat tour from Chiang Mai, which cost them around ฿2000 per person. They told me the boat tour basically takes you to the shores of Myanmar and Laos for a few minutes. Doesn’t sound that exciting I know, but if I had managed to get a spot on a boat from here for a reasonable rate, I would have done it just so I can check off the ‘Golden Triangle tour’ from my list of things-to-do in Thailand.

Chiang Saen town bus stop — I got into a bus heading for Chiang Rai

Bus Chiang Saen to Chiang Rai — Bus ticket cost ฿74 (Taken on the Nokia E72)

Leaving Chiang Saen for Chiang Rai Thailand — The bus left at around 10:30am

Chiang Saen outskirts farmland Thailand — Since I woke up early, with the sun hitting my eyes, I quickly dozed off

But I woke up to see the bus stopped and a police officer inspecting the passengers. He approached me and asked me where I was coming from. I quickly realized it was a check for illegal immigration, in case somebody from Myanmar or Laos just waltzed right into Thailand. I had a copy of my passport and showed him my driver’s license. That was it, the officer got down from the bus and we were on our way again.

Chiang Rai new bus terminal Thailand — This is the new bus terminal, which is a bit far from the main town

I got back to town just past 12 noon, so I was good on time. I decided to have lunch from The Pizza Company, which is Thailand largest and most popular pizza chain. They have a lot of value for money meals and their pizza was quite good too (my meal cost ฿179).

Soon after lunch, I decided to quickly head to Wat Rong Khun, also nicknamed the White Temple. I approached a tuk-tuk and told him I needed to quickly visit the White Temple and then be back in town to head to the airport. He offered to drive me to the White Temple, wait for me there, and then drive me to the airport — all for ฿250. Figuring it sounded like a time saver, I considered it a good deal and we first went back to Ruangnakorn Hotel to collect my bags.

Chiang Rai tuk tuk driver Thailand — The journey takes around 10 minutes from the city

Once I reached the White Temple, I left my bags in the tuk tuk and entered the premises. There isn’t an entrance fee for Wat Rong Khun.

Wat Rong Khun white temple Chiang Rai Thailand — It’s an art masterpiece for which construction began in 1998

White temple Wat Rong Khun tree heads Chiang Rai — The temple is designed with a theme of passing through hell during rebirth, a chance to purify oneself. Thus the colour white.

Wat Rong Khun White Temple hands from hell sculpture — Wat Rong Khun is easily one of the coolest works of art I’ve seen!

Wat Rong Khun White Temple buddhist hindu temple — The temple was designed by the same man behind the Golden Clock Tower in the city, artist Chalermchai Kositpipat

White temple Wat Rong Khun Chiang Rai Thailand — Photography inside the main hall, which houses the Buddha statue, is prohibited

White Temple Wat Rong Khun no alcohol Thai cut out — No alcohol allowed inside Wat Rong Khun… so says this cut out

White Temple Wat Rong Khun Chiang Rai panorama — Panorama comprised of 6 shots

White Temple Wat Rong Khun white fish pond Chiang Rai — Even the fish are white!

White temple Wat Rong Khun front Chiang Rai Thailand — It was time for me to leave

I went back to my waiting tuk tuk and we headed back into the city, because the airport was in the other direction.

While in the city, I saw a sign pointing to Chiang Rai beach… which made me wonder how there is a ‘beach’ in a land-locked district. Turns out it’s just on the shores of a river.

On the way to Chiang Rai airport — The drive to the airport takes around 30 minutes

Chiang Rai international airport Thailand — I arrived by 2:10pm, early enough

Chiang Rai International Airport is enough to serve the district and offers nothing fancy. I got my window seat and sat in the departures lounge.

Orient Thai one-two-go airlines Chiang Rai to Bangkok — My Orient Thai flight was on time as well

The ticket was cheap and the time suited me fine. Initially I was reluctant to fly Orient Thai, because they don’t seem to go by One-Two-Go Airlines anymore, because the airline apparently had a poor safety record in the past.

Aerial view Chiang Rai Thailand — But the flight was just fine

Clouds Thailand aerial photography from plane — The scenery gave way to the clouds

Thailand bangkok at night from flight — By the time I was over Bangkok, the sun had set

My next stop was Pattaya but in the flight, I was contemplating whether I should stay on Khao San road tonight and leave for Pattaya early morning tomorrow. But after I got out of Don Mueang Airport (the old airport), I decided to try and get to Pattaya tonight itself so that it’ll save me the trouble of waking up early again. I took a taxi and headed to Mo Chit bus terminal. En route the taxi driver asked me where I was headed, and when I said “Pattaya,” he told me “Oh, you won’t get bus now!”. Which I didn’t pay much attention to as I figured it was his way of making me consider taking a taxi ride all the way. Once at Mo Chit, I easily got a bus ticket — though most bus companies were on their final trip for the evening. This was around 6:30-7pm.

Sukhumvit Bangkok MRT pillars at night — The bus set off past 7pm, passing Sukhumvit

Rama highway to Pattaya at night — We mostly rode on the elevated highway, the longest in the world

Bangkok port on way to Pattaya — The journey took more than 2 hours

I arrived in Pattaya, not knowing where in the city I was. This was my first visit to Pattaya, as I had zero interest in visiting the place last year on my first trip to Thailand. I only had a hotel reservation for tomorrow, so I still needed to find a bed for tonight. I got into a pickup taxi and asked the driver to just take me to a “cheap room” for tonight. It was already past 10pm and I was eager to crash, as I have been up and about since 6am today. The driver took me to a place called Little Court. A single room cost ฿250 and I checked in. After freshening up, I went out to pick up some dinner and to buy some credit for my local SIM. After updating my father, I called it a night. Well, I tried to… but the room, despite being on a higher floor was still open to the bars outside playing loud music. I guess this was to be expected with Pattaya.

Next posts in this series:

Thailand 2010: Pattaya — Beach road, Viewpoint, Jomtien Beach, Walking Street

Thailand 2010: Back to Bangkok — Chinatown, Patpong, Platinum Mall and Chatuchak Market

Thailand 2010: Gurdwara Siri Guru Singh Sabha, Sampeng Market, JJ market (again)

Thailand 2010: Damnoen Saduak Floating Market tour, Cobra show… and leaving Bangkok

Previous posts in this series:

Thailand 2010: Heading to Chiang Rai by bus, Wat Jedyod and Golden Clock Tower

Thailand 2010: Last day of Loi Krathong; Sunday Grand Parade (Day 4, Part 2)

Thailand 2010: Chiang Mai Zoo (Day 4, Part 1)

Thailand 2010: Chiang Mai Loi Krathong celebrations; first Grand Parade

Thailand 2010: Chiang Mai cooking class; Loi Krathong celebrations in Mae Jo, Sansai

Thailand 2010: First day in Chiang Mai for Loi Krathong; driving up Doi Suthep

Thailand 2010: Arriving in Bangkok and preparing for Loi Krathong in Chiang Mai

Golden clock tower at night Chiang Rai Thailand

Thailand 2010: Heading to Chiang Rai by bus, Wat Jedyod and Golden Clock Tower

By Mithun Divakaran
/
Jun 25, 2011
/
Chiang Rai, Thailand, Travel

Date: 23rd November 2010

After 4 splendid days in Chiang Mai (amid some disappointments), today I left the city to go further up north. I went to the main bus station and only managed to get a ticket for 12 noon as all others were sold out. (Don’t remember exactly how much I paid for the ticket, but it was around ฿100)

Golden dragon bus Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai — After the instructional video on bus safety, they played ‘Predators’ (in Thai)

Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai road north Thailand — I got a seat right in front

Bus ride from Chiang Mai to Chiang Rai — Chiang Rai city is around 200kms from Chiang Mai

Highway to Chiang Rai north Thailand landscape — The journey is quite scenic

Welcome to Chiang Rai board highway sign — After nearly 2 1/2hours, I arrived in Chiang Rai

The bus first stopped at what looked like a new bus station. I didn’t get down here because a lot of the Thais stayed in their seats. So I assumed this was not the final stop. Unfortunately some western tourists did get down and started hailing for taxis towards their hotels.

For which there was no need for, because the very same bus started again and drove straight into the city in 5 minutes time. This bus station was according my prior research, very close to the night market.

I hired a tuk-tuk and checked into my hotel.

Hotel Raungnakorn road Chiang Rai — Raungnakorn Hotel is located on the road of the same name

The room cost ฿350 for the night and I was only going to be staying one night. My flight from Chiang Rai to Bangkok was the next day evening. I know one day isn’t much in Chiang Rai, but this was my first time here and as always with first visits, this would be more a surveillance visit than any other.

Wat Phra kaew temple Chiang Rai Thailand — It was near this temple

Evening market Chiang Rai clock tower — The hotel is close to the fresh market

Road leading Chiang Rai Golden clock tower — Spotted it already haven’t you?

Golden clock tower junction Chiang Rai — Chiang Rai’s Golden Clock Tower

Golden clock tower roundabout Chiang Rai — Designed by a renowned Thai architect named Ajarn Chalermchai Khositphiphat

Chiang Rai golden clock tower — It was built in 2008 in honour of the King (as is usually the case in Thailand)

Chiang Rai bar restaurant Jedyod street — Jedyod road, you find a lot of restaurants here

Wat Jedyod temple Chiang Rai Thailand — I decided to check out this temple

Black cat in front of Buddha statue — Oh the irony of seeing a black cat at a place where people come to pray for good luck

Wat Jedyod golden buddha statue Chiang Rai Thailand — The temple is named Wat Jedyod

Gautum buddha staring eyes Wat Jedyod statue — The eyes…

Wat Jedyod Indian god paintings Chiang Rai — The hall had paintings depicting Hindu gods and some connection with India mythology

Indian gods Thai ancient wall paintings Wat Jedyod — I was very curious to know the connection, but unfortunately there weren’t any descriptions in English or a local guide in sight

Wat Jedyod temple hall Chiang Rai Thailand — I left the temple

I dropped by a few travel agents and tour operators along the way and asked them about day trips to the Golden Triangle. But because it was already late in the evening, nobody could assure me a spot as they needed few more tourists to fill up a group as tomorrow’s first group were already full.

A British guy who was behind, overheard me and told me he was in the same situation as I. So we chatted for a bit and exchanged numbers in case either of us managed to get into a group tour that was going tomorrow morning.

Sanpanard road Chiang Rai Thailand — I like their sign posts

Chiang Rai night bazaar entrance — A few steps from there and I was at the entrance of Chiang Rai’s Night Bazaar

Chiang Rai night market shops — But since it wasn’t night time yet, nothing was open

Chiang Rai night market food court evening — I would be coming back here for dinner

Phaholyotin road shops Chiang Rai Thailand — I decided to go the main bus station to find out when the first bus to Mae Sai would be

Chiang Rai bus stand Thailand — I was told that there are buses every 30 minutes starting 6am

Phaholyotin road Wangcome hotel Chiang Rai Thailand — I headed back as I still wasn’t feeling too well, and it gets pretty chilly in Chiang Rai at night

I rested for some time after applying some Vicks. I just didn’t want to fall sick. It’s the worst thing that can happen on one’s vacation. Well, one of the worst things.

I got up at around 8pm and craved to have some hot Thai soup for dinner.

Chiang Rai evening market fresh vegetables — I walked to the night bazaar

Sukgatis road night golden lamp posts clock tower Chiang Rai — It also changes colour

Chiang Rai night bazaar street vendors — You have the usual wares being sold at the Night bazaar, no different from any other night market in Thailand

Chiang Rai night bazaar street stalls musician — But you do see locals and a few students trying to make some dime with their talents

Chiang Rai night bazaar food court — Quite a change of scene from earlier

Chiang Rai fried insects Thailand — This place sells you french fries…and fried insects. How nice of them!

Chiang Rai night bazaar seafood bbq — Despite being very far the sea, you still get good enough seafood in Chiang Rai

Chiang Rai night bazaar stage music — Poor guitarist on stage was hardly getting any applause from the diners

Chiang Rai night bazaar dining crowd — I scanned the vendors for appetizing soup to warm my body up

Spicy Thai seafood soup Chiang Rai night bazaar — I ended up picking up this big bowl of tangy seafood soup loaded with veggies (cost ฿100)

Chiang Rai night market live stage entertainment — They had cultural dances later

Post dinner, I scanned the shops a bit. Unlike last year, when I bought 10 t-shirts from Thailand, I figured I wouldn’t need to buy much this time.

Alas, I ended buying two from a small vendor at the night bazaar after bargaining it down to ฿300 for both. Oh well, we’ll see how many t-shirts I end up buying this year.

Chiang Rai night restaurants tourists — This was right in front of the vendor I bought the t-shirts from

As I needed more rest for an early start tomorrow, I headed back. Plus, there was little else to do in Chiang Rai. There is barely any nightlife in Chiang Rai. It’s a lot quieter (and smaller) than Chiang Mai.

Chiang Rai golden clock tower at night — I took one last look at the Golden clock tower

As I was clicking this photo, I bumped into the same British guy I had met earlier at the travel office. He told me he met up with a group of people who were planning on going on a trek (Chiang Rai is famous for trekking and cycling) and asked me if I wanted to join them. I told him I was unfortunately not in the best of health and that I had to be back in town early enough for my evening flight to Bangkok.

We wished each other well and parted ways.

I reached my room, freshened up, dabbed some more Vicks and snuggled up for a good night’s sleep.

Next posts in this series:

Thailand 2010: Golden Triangle in Mae Sai; Chiang Rai’s White Temple (Wat Rong Khun)

Thailand 2010: Pattaya — Beach road, Viewpoint, Jomtien Beach, Walking Street

Thailand 2010: Back to Bangkok — Chinatown, Patpong, Platinum Mall and Chatuchak Market

Thailand 2010: Gurdwara Siri Guru Singh Sabha, Sampeng Market, JJ market (again)

Thailand 2010: Damnoen Saduak Floating Market tour, Cobra show… and leaving Bangkok

Previous posts in this series:

Thailand 2010: Chiang Mai Zoo (Day 4, Part 1)

Thailand 2010: Chiang Mai Loi Krathong celebrations; first Grand Parade

Thailand 2010: Chiang Mai cooking class; Loi Krathong celebrations in Mae Jo, Sansai