Scooter Adventures in Chiang Mai

Friday, September 23, 2011

After a wonderful morning snuggling with giant cats at Tiger Kingdom, we continued on our rented scooter to discover the real Chiang Mai. Some locals drew a small map for us with some spots to visit. 

We started by visiting Doi Suthep-Pui National Park, where we took a walk through the jungle to see the waterfalls  and the biggest, tallest bamboo I've ever seen. Locals were having a picnic on the rocks at the base of the falls and I wished we had packed something to eat. We continued on our scooter and drove past rice paddies where men and women were watering the crops and scattering seeds. We ran into a few elephants on the side of the road and occasionally stopped to photograph huts nestled deep in the foliage. We came across children swimming in a nearby creek with magical light streaming through the massive trees overhead. All of it looked like scenes from a storybook to me. 

Some of our best adventures have been those that were unplanned. It's always rewarding to venture a ways out of the center of town to see where the locals live, work, and play. Many of the photos below were taken by me from the back of the scooter while Yuriy drove. Enjoy!

- Julia

P.S. 
In honor of our one year anniversary(!), I will be sharing our wedding images on my personal blog. Feel free to join in!







































16 comments :

  1. wow, looks like a beautiful place. :) i love all the elephants!
    -Tina

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  2. Gorgeous photos as always!! I can practically smell the elephant poo ;)

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  3. I love all the elephants wandering around.

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  4. so gorgeous! travel via scooter is on my to-do list!

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  5. lovely photos! love the sunlight shining through the trees!

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  6. you guys are SUCH EXCELLENT PHOTOGRAPHERS, it is constantly impressive. love this. thailand is so great - riding elephants in thailand and scootering around islands was by far my favorite. so glad you got to enjoy similar things!

    www.spencerandkylie.blogspot.com
    www.travelingtriplets.com

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  7. Didn't manage to go there when I was in Chiang Mai! Looks great!

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  8. Ahh I wanna go back to SE Asia so badly! So fun! x

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  9. God your photos are ridiculously amazing. Such artwork!

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  10. These are some really incredible pictures. I've been here three months and I haven't got a single shot that compares to any of these :(

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  11. That last photo makes me happy. I would like an elephant in my backyard, please.

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  12. it really does look like a magical place from a fairytale. You both look very rested and relaxed in these photos.

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  13. Natasha- Yum. That's exactly what we were hoping to pass onto our readers.

    Sarah- I thought the same thing. Totally unfair, right?

    Inessa- I'm pretty sure we were. You have to take it easy in Thailand.. I think that's why people love it so much.

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  14. Looks like a magical adventure! Is there any way you can share where you went so that others might be able to trace some of your paths and find hidden pools and towns?

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