On your next trip to Chiang Mai, why not go
on a vegan food tour, or perhaps learn more about the ancient art of the yantra
tattoo? Better still, step out of your comfort zone and join a hill tribe in
their rice planting activity, while picking up a thing or two about soul healing
in the forest.
By
Raul Dias
A mixed bag of clichés. That’s one of the
first things that pops into the minds of most when we think of Thailand. From
the ubiquitous, raver-infested full moon parties on its many not-so-pristine,
beach-fronted islands and Bollywood-themed dinner cruises along the Chao Phraya
river to the unfathomable opportunities for conspicuous consumption that its bustling
capital city of Bangkok offers, finding something new to do in Thailand seems
like a pipe dream. And amidst all this crass commercialism and tourist-targeted
bogus, the true-blue ‘traveller’ seems to get left out of the equation like a
neglected stepchild! But all’s not lost, as I recently found out.
On a recent trip to the north of the country, I had an epiphany of sorts. The hilly Lanna region to be more specific, painted a whole other image of Thailand for me, with its artistic brushstrokes and colourful hues. Thus, bestowing upon the city of Chiang Mai at the very heart of Lanna, a decidedly artistic and cultural cache that makes it a great jumping off point for the traveller seeking the path that’s woefully (and thankfully!) untrodden.
On a recent trip to the north of the country, I had an epiphany of sorts. The hilly Lanna region to be more specific, painted a whole other image of Thailand for me, with its artistic brushstrokes and colourful hues. Thus, bestowing upon the city of Chiang Mai at the very heart of Lanna, a decidedly artistic and cultural cache that makes it a great jumping off point for the traveller seeking the path that’s woefully (and thankfully!) untrodden.
For
The Body…
A firm believer that to truly get the pulse of any new place surging through my veins, I simply have got to start my innings with a taste of the local food. First things first. The food of the north is very different from that of the rest of Thailand. A lighter, more herbaceous take on the coconut milk-redolent dishes of the south, the cuisine of Lanna is aromatic and spicy. And the lynchpins of the cuisine have got to be the piquant, lemon-y Chiang Mai sausage and a brutally fiery mushroom salad called yum hed.
To get a more immersive foodie experience I signed up with the newly launched Airbnb Experiences for a four-hours, hands-on long cookery class with Chef Chanrat Karatna who helped me discover the secrets of authentic Northern Thai cuisine. Here, I learned to whip up from scratch the light khew wan kai chicken curry and the Northern Thailand version of the ubiquitous somtamthai papaya and prawn salad, all served with sticky black rice that is a specialty of the Lanna region.
Now, the words ‘vegan’ and ‘Thai food’ mentioned in the same sentence, seem like the greatest oxymoron. Wrong! The Plant-based Food Experience with Keidra, a local Chiang Mai resident and vegan food enthusiast is a food tour with a difference. The four-and-a-half hours tour takes people for a ride in a bright red songtaew (Thai-style pick-up truck) first to the local fruit and vegetable JJ Market where you can taste exotic Thai fruits like the longan and the snake fruit, while learning about their healing powers. It then careens towards the Lanna’s Herb stall of the famous ‘Juice Lady of Chiang Mai’ where you can sample different herbal healing juices. The tour ends with an all-vegan meal at a few of Keidra’s favourite vegan restaurants like Nong Bee’s and Anchan for some further dope on Thai, Burmese, and Western plant-based dishes.
A firm believer that to truly get the pulse of any new place surging through my veins, I simply have got to start my innings with a taste of the local food. First things first. The food of the north is very different from that of the rest of Thailand. A lighter, more herbaceous take on the coconut milk-redolent dishes of the south, the cuisine of Lanna is aromatic and spicy. And the lynchpins of the cuisine have got to be the piquant, lemon-y Chiang Mai sausage and a brutally fiery mushroom salad called yum hed.
To get a more immersive foodie experience I signed up with the newly launched Airbnb Experiences for a four-hours, hands-on long cookery class with Chef Chanrat Karatna who helped me discover the secrets of authentic Northern Thai cuisine. Here, I learned to whip up from scratch the light khew wan kai chicken curry and the Northern Thailand version of the ubiquitous somtamthai papaya and prawn salad, all served with sticky black rice that is a specialty of the Lanna region.
Now, the words ‘vegan’ and ‘Thai food’ mentioned in the same sentence, seem like the greatest oxymoron. Wrong! The Plant-based Food Experience with Keidra, a local Chiang Mai resident and vegan food enthusiast is a food tour with a difference. The four-and-a-half hours tour takes people for a ride in a bright red songtaew (Thai-style pick-up truck) first to the local fruit and vegetable JJ Market where you can taste exotic Thai fruits like the longan and the snake fruit, while learning about their healing powers. It then careens towards the Lanna’s Herb stall of the famous ‘Juice Lady of Chiang Mai’ where you can sample different herbal healing juices. The tour ends with an all-vegan meal at a few of Keidra’s favourite vegan restaurants like Nong Bee’s and Anchan for some further dope on Thai, Burmese, and Western plant-based dishes.
For The Soul…
While tattoos have always been a sore (pun unintended) topic for me—with their permanency being the major off-putting factor—knowing more about them has always been a source of fascination. And so, I found myself signing up for another super-unique Airbnb Yantra Tattoo Experience that saw me leave the city of Chiang Mai for the quite village of Samnak, a little less than an hour away. Here, my guide Nikom, a former monk introduced me to another monk-turned-tattoo master Arjan Sompong who gave me a crash course in all things Yantra Tattoo.
Apparently, the traditional hand done Thai tattoo is not regarded as a tattoo, but as an indelible talisman imbedded into the wearer’s skin. While there are several types and patterns of Yantra Tattoos with their own respective meanings and purposes, they all feature ancient geometric symbols, animals or deity designs. These motifs are believed to offer protection to the wearer against bad luck and bestow upon them good fortune.
More interestingly, I was also told about the very rare invisible Yantra Tattoo that Sompong does, where a mixture of black sesame seed oil and invisible tattoo ink is injected into the recipient’s dermis layer. The mantras imbued into the person are meant to protect them from all harm, without the tattoo being traceable at all.
Now, at the risk of fueling another cliché of “heading to the hills to find healing”, here’s another rather unusual activity for the soul that one must try when in Chiang Mai. Claiming to possess the power to heal herself and others in vastly different ways; emotionally, spiritually, and even physically, Naiyana offers her very unique four-hour meditative ‘Soul and Energy Healing in the Forest’ experience.
At Yardfahmadin, her healing home nestled deep in the woods outside Chiang Mai, besides a gurgling stream Naiyana teaches people the ancient healing art of Omtri. This therapy is said to be a fusion of several powerful healing modalities, combining crystal healing, Reiki, and traditional Asian healing practices to help to bring your mental, emotional and physical energies into alignment, all by accessing your soul’s own inner wisdom. Besides said to bring inner peace and harmony, Omtri also allegedly helps balance and stabilise physical energy, provides relief from aches and pains, and relieve specific issues, such as anxiety, depression and insomnia.
While tattoos have always been a sore (pun unintended) topic for me—with their permanency being the major off-putting factor—knowing more about them has always been a source of fascination. And so, I found myself signing up for another super-unique Airbnb Yantra Tattoo Experience that saw me leave the city of Chiang Mai for the quite village of Samnak, a little less than an hour away. Here, my guide Nikom, a former monk introduced me to another monk-turned-tattoo master Arjan Sompong who gave me a crash course in all things Yantra Tattoo.
Apparently, the traditional hand done Thai tattoo is not regarded as a tattoo, but as an indelible talisman imbedded into the wearer’s skin. While there are several types and patterns of Yantra Tattoos with their own respective meanings and purposes, they all feature ancient geometric symbols, animals or deity designs. These motifs are believed to offer protection to the wearer against bad luck and bestow upon them good fortune.
More interestingly, I was also told about the very rare invisible Yantra Tattoo that Sompong does, where a mixture of black sesame seed oil and invisible tattoo ink is injected into the recipient’s dermis layer. The mantras imbued into the person are meant to protect them from all harm, without the tattoo being traceable at all.
Now, at the risk of fueling another cliché of “heading to the hills to find healing”, here’s another rather unusual activity for the soul that one must try when in Chiang Mai. Claiming to possess the power to heal herself and others in vastly different ways; emotionally, spiritually, and even physically, Naiyana offers her very unique four-hour meditative ‘Soul and Energy Healing in the Forest’ experience.
At Yardfahmadin, her healing home nestled deep in the woods outside Chiang Mai, besides a gurgling stream Naiyana teaches people the ancient healing art of Omtri. This therapy is said to be a fusion of several powerful healing modalities, combining crystal healing, Reiki, and traditional Asian healing practices to help to bring your mental, emotional and physical energies into alignment, all by accessing your soul’s own inner wisdom. Besides said to bring inner peace and harmony, Omtri also allegedly helps balance and stabilise physical energy, provides relief from aches and pains, and relieve specific issues, such as anxiety, depression and insomnia.
Bringing into perspective Chiang Mai’s prowess as an arts and craft stronghold are a number of activities one can partake in that help unleash the mind’s creativity. Initiated by Khun Jao, and hosted by Emika, Made in Chiang Mai is an Airbnb Experiences project that relies on the support of local people to help travellers get a better understanding of the arts scene. Located 45 minutes outside of the Chiang Mai city centre, the village of On-Tai is where one can learn everything from working with clay from a local expert to meeting with the village artisans and learning how do bamboo and cotton weaving to picking up the nuances of the natural tie-dying process.
To end my sojourn in the Lanna region, I decided to do something rather different. And so off it was with Pat, my tattooed, Steven Tyler doppelganger of a guide in his off roader for a tryst with the Karen hill tribe. Our destination: an authentic Karen village a good hour’s drive away from Chiang Mai over bumpy, nausea-inducing mountain roads. A place that seems untouched by time, where the villagers still live in traditional stilt bamboo houses.
As it was lunch time, we were invited to sit down cross-legged on the thatched floor and partake in a traditional lunch of a watery, bitter herb-flavoured chicken curry with a side of stir friend pumpkin leaves—all washed down with a tasty home distilled rice-based drink. It was only after we were sated that the villagers took us around their super clean village, sharing with us everything from their rather complicated fabric weaving techniques and rattan basket making to planting the all-important rice crop and herb foraging.
Live like a local. How’s that as the new mantra of travel with a purpose?
(An edited version of this article first appeared in the October 2018 issue of Jetwings International in-flight magazine of Jet Airways http://www.jetairways.com/EN/IN/jetexperience/magazines.aspx)
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