Yesterday I went to a gallery-district cafe with heavenly coconut cream pie. Today’s gem has macaron and honey lattes, and a tree growing through the roof. Since I’m back on the coffee bandwagon I’m spending my afternoons looking for the best little cafe in Chiang Mai. Two down, twelve to go. Tasty times!
Coconut Heaven Pie from Cake Baan Piemsuk, “Happiness you can eat” in Chiang Mai, Thailand. Photo by Amy Jacobs, Flickr.
I just devoured a massive slice of coconut cream pie and a coffee with coconut milk. When I ordered this the barrista looked at me like I’m nuts. “Coconut milk in your coffee? Not milk?” I nodded and the look on his face said “Ok crazy lady.” How can Thailand not use coconut milk in coffee?… It’s the great land of premium coconut milk and mediocre coffee, yet they don’t put them together?! Who’s crazy?
I’ve seen many Buddhist temples over the last three weeks so when I learned we were going to another temple yesterday I thought “here we go again…” But yesterday’s guide (a local ex-monk of 10 years) took us to a secret temple, unknown to any tourist map. It wasn’t spectacular or ornate like the others; it was simple and purely serene. Built among trees and a waterfall, this Wat’s small cement building for “the old monk” was carved like a tree. Each of the three young monks had his own little 5×7′ hut with a small porch and matching terrace overlooking the city. Their orange umbrellas hung from the rooftops like trumpet flowers.
I learned a few new things at this temple, including how to sit and meditate like a monk (legs crossed right over left, hands resting flat right over left), and that Buddha statues are always men and may look like women because they’re designed to look beautiful. But the most interesting thing I learned is that (according to my Thai ex-monk guide), a Buddha, among other things, is a monk who has achieved enlightenment by realizing the truth about Trikaya. When a monk is a Buddha he can sense things, see his past lives and his future – for some this includes the day he will die. The last Thai Buddha died about 10 years ago. Three days before his death he announced he was going to die. People didn’t believe him, until he was found dead in his bed. Then he was cremated and the proof was in the pudding – his bones burned many colours.
The purple mangosteen is a delicious fruit in Asia. Photo by Amy Jacobs, Flickr.
A mangosteen is a dark purple fruit from the mangosteen tree. By squeezing it on the top and bottom it splits open to reveal an edible white part in the middle that looks like garlic and tastes like a cross between lychee and heaven.
I also tried a sapodilla fruit. If I really had to describe it, I’d say it has the texture of a ripe pear and flavour of a concentrated apple, grape, mango smoothie, or something like that.
And then I tried tamarind. It grows in a giant brown pod. It’s sort of like a date. The fruit. It’s good too. They’re all good, but I like mangosteen the most.
“Sunset boat for you, cheap cheap. 80,000 kip!” Sure, why not hire a Mekong river taxi boat for a private sunset cruise? Paired with a cold bottle of Beerlao from the corner store, we couldn’t ask for a better way to spend the evening. Our driver (er, captain?) is a local from Luang Prabang. Like many locals, he was a monk for 8 years before leaving the temple, finding a wife and having 7 kids. Cheers to that!
We’re kayaking down the river in Vang Vieng, Laos, when our tour guide points out a snake in the water. Andrea begins to ask a million questions – is it poisonous? Do people in Lao eat snake? How do you catch a snake?… Before you know it, our guide is bartering with a group of young boys to buy a snake they just caught! The going price in the market is 80 to 100,000 kip (10-14 CAD), which is a LOT when you consider a restaurant meal costs 15 – 30,000 kip. Andrea got a steal of a deal, paying 20,000 kip for the snake. The kids bashed the snake a couple times, dropped it in a clear plastic bag and handed it to our guide. At the end of our trip, our guide arranged dinner, curbside snake soup. It’s chewy.
I’m looking out my hotel window at the most amazing crafts & clothing market. Hundreds of red-topped stalls along the boardwalk of the Mekong river. I’m the type of person who only goes to the mall when I desperately need to, but this is totally different – I’m actually resisting the urge to shop! This market is adorned with beautiful French clothing, bags, shoes and more at SE Asia prices. And for those who like labels, the Chanel & Louis lookalikes look real to me…not that I’m a good judge. Step aside Chatuchak Market (Bangkok), I’ve got a new favourite!
