March 14, move to Chiang Mai

We got a ride to the airport with Johnny's help. A nice air conditioned van - the last we'd see for a while! Got to the airport in lots of time, needed to pay extra because our luggage was too heavy by Thai standards. Had an interesting lunch - getting things we never ordered. It was all good but we don't quite know how that happened. It was only a 1 hour flight to Chiang Mai, good thing because it was built to Thai sized people, so cramped for a bunch of Canucks. Arriving in Chiang Mai we were greeted with a sign "Terry" because Johnny had prearranged our pick up. This time we loaded 9 suitcases and 5 of us in the back of a half ton. We were delivered to the Holiday Garden View Guest House. Rustic as they all are. But we do have a pool. And air conditioning! They advertise it across from a playground - they don't tell you its a hundred years old. We had a western breakfast each morning here - the eggs just about got up and ran away they were so raw. And we noted often that they leave their eggs out in the sun for who know how long! So far no sickness.
We went about town on foot and found a nearby market with some very "interesting" looking foods. Found some fresh watermelon and grapes to snack on. The fruit here is sooooo goooood. Bought a few souvenirs here too. Later we discovered the night market and bought more souvenirs. Everything seems so cheap you don't want to leave it behind. We are finding more silk up here, scarves for 150 bhat (4.50), silk robes for 300 bhat ($9). From there we caught a truck to the arena to watch Thai boxing. There was a Canadian fighting, and we had front row seats. It was just as entertaining to watch the crowd as it was the fight. The Thais are REALLY into their boxing! A Thai man, manager of the place, took a liking to Norrie. Had some good laughs over that. Got back to our rooms around 11:30 and crashed.