Two countries of Thailand - North and South. Part 5.
Part 5. In which we abandon all plans, again freeze very much, and accept the parade in the evening.
November 23, Friday. Chiang Mai.
Plans for the day:
-to live a day without plans,
in the evening - Loy Krathong parade.
On this day, we were tired of plans and we decided to do without them. Well, how are we... Personally, it’s hard for me without plans. I woke up and don't know what I want. But the husband likes to go where his eyes look. Therefore, this one day, in the city we loved, was given to him at the mercy, so that later he humbly followed my plans)
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We first had breakfast on Ratvithi Rd at the "Breakfast and dinner" cafe. The food is European, quite expensive, but tasty.
Then they crossed the road and exchanged money. The rate in the super rich exchanger is better than in other places, although it is clear that we did not monitor the rate meticulously. So, we looked in several places, for general development. When exchanging, a passport is required. We did not have passports, but I always carry copies with me. A copy has arrived.
We went outside and thought about what to do. Without plans - it is so)
Husband says:
- I want to go to the store. I need to buy T-shirts, shorts. .
I don't want to go to the store, but I'm not giving orders today. I thought and thought and suggested the Promenade. I really liked the photo in google map. How to get to the Promenade? Of course, by tuk-tuk) We catch the first one that comes across, we agree for 300 baht.
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We rush through the streets like birds, I hold on with my hands and feet. We're going for quite some time. The city in some places turns into a real city, but more often these are one-two-story houses along the road, with shops and cafes.
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The Promenade store is really beautiful. But there is nothing to buy there)
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We walk and wander, trying to find shorts and T-shirts for my husband. But we find me. That's how it always is. Everyone around me wants to go to the store, but I don't. As a result, everyone is without purchases, and I am with purchases.
We spend not so much time in a half-empty shopping center, but as soon as we see a Japanese restaurant, we immediately feel hungry. Prices are high. But there are people)
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The air conditioning in the cafe is very hard, 15 degrees in the room) It's cold terribly. I wrap myself in a scarf and tremble all the same.
We order a complex from a bunch of small plates, we figure out what's what. What do they eat and how do they wash their hands))
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The dessert is amazing. But not enough)
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After eating, we walk around the territory. Everything indicates that concerts are held here in the evenings.
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Suddenly we see a bus. I say - let's find out when the departure.
Let's find out. Departure is right now. These buses run only 2 times a day. At 6:30 and 12:30. We read this right at the bus stop. There were no other numbers. And on the website https://www.google.com/maps/d/u/0/viewe. . . 54917&z=15it says that the R2 bus runs every 30-45 minutes from 6:30 to 20:00.
There are only two people on the bus besides us, and one of them gets on the road and gets off after a couple of stops. In Chiang Mai, public transport is poorly developed, one might even say underdeveloped) This is some kind of vicious circle. There are no buses because there are no passengers, and there are no passengers because there are no buses.
We really liked the bus, only it was terribly cold in it. It was even colder than in a Japanese restaurant) In Asia, contrasts are very fond of.
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We leave near the western gate, further on foot.
We walk down the street, warm ourselves in the sun after the bus, turn our heads in all directions. Good as!
Undoubtedly, temples are the decoration of Chiang Mai. In preparation, I wrote down the most beautiful and most visited ones in my list. We never visited some of them, some we saw through the fence, or visited at night. But they discovered some other, less well-known ones. And sometimes we just walked and went into the courtyard of the temple, not knowing the name, walked or lingered for a minute to take a picture of a house of incredible beauty. And now we can not pass by and go to the territory of the next temple. Thai temples are always several buildings, they are all beautiful, but some of them are fabulous.
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Near our hotel there is an old temple Wat Lam Chang, we also went there.
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Abandoned chedi, it is clear that she is a lot of years old.
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And this is new. And time has already left its imprints on it.
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A small temple for the dead.
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Elephants are alive.
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By the way, during our entire stay in Thailand, we never saw live elephants. Neither my husband nor I like zoos and animal rides. My last zoo was the Singapore Zoo in 2014. Then somehow especially I was not well. It may sound pathetic, but this is our sincere conviction - we do not accept slavery in any form. Any tourism business related to animals is a mockery of them. There is no other way and cannot be. In Chiang Mai there is a shelter for retired elephants. Those elephants that cannot work, mostly injured, are brought there. They do not ride tourists, but you can approach them, take part in feeding, bathing. It was on this last day in Chiang Mai that we had thoughts of going there. But somehow internally felt that we do not need it. And then, already at home, I read reviews about this place and many people write that the conditions there are terrible.
I spend the middle of the day by the pool. Water is cold! Teeth shrink) 
But brave men, like me, swim in the cold, because there is no sea in Chiang Mai, and in the heat you want to swim. My husband does not belong to the brave, although it was he who insisted that hotels in Chiang Mai be with a pool. Now lies in the room, and I swim for two. Says he's already cold enough in Thailand)
When I'm cold enough too, we're going to dinner. The evening is hot and languid) It beckons us with bright lanterns and delicious smells.
We have dinner on our favorite macaroni, we catch dumplings from the soup with chopsticks.
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Next to us, the Chinese are doing the same. Tables are almost on the roadway. Cars, motorcycles, people - everything turns into one big restaurant in the evening) For me, this is not quite exotic, I have already seen this in Vietnam, but my husband is very happy with the color and sweets.
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We finally find a real pancake with a banana, the one that symbolizes the sweet life for me) Believe me, there is nothing tastier in the world.
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When, finally, we were able to tear ourselves away from the pancake topper, it was already late in the evening and it was time for us to go to the parade.
The Loy Krathong parade is exactly the event that you need to see at least once in your life. It's like carnival in Brazil. I haven't been to Brazil yet, so see for yourself:
From Tha Phae Gate, along Thapae Rd, towards the river, there are columns and platforms.
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Colorfully dressed, beautiful people stand on the platforms and wave to us. There are children among them.
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The street is packed with people. Spectators lean on each other and slowly squeeze the aisle. Specially trained people run in front of each platform and push the crowd away. But there are no fences, so the people again lean forward.
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To say that the Loy Krathong parade is beautiful is to say nothing.
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It's not just beautiful, it's grandiose! The spectacle captures you completely, delight blocks your breath.
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I even cried a little) I'm not lying! )
We stand and watch the parade for four hours, practically not moving, only rolling and rolling along with the human wave.
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NEXT, as we understand, is the organizer of all this action.
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A separate truck is carrying some very famous artist. The people rage, the artist is embarrassed. He has a girl with him, but it feels like people are happy to see the guy.
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Above the crowd, lanterns fly and fly, which today continue to be launched on the Ping River.
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Then we move down a little, towards the river, and we find small stands along the way, sit down there and look behind our backs. Tired. But it's impossible to leave)
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Of course, platforms attract us the most. But even those who walk the earth are interesting and incredibly charismatic.