Chiang Mai

We took the overnight train from Bangkok to Chiang Mai -- this time in 2nd class sleepers as 1st was sold out -- and it was very easy. Sam, Jack and I preferred 2nd class because you are not confined to a small cabin, instead curtains are used to provide privacy for your "bunk". Philip, however, missed his privacy and wants to make sure we travel 1st class next time! We'll see.
Our hotel in Chiang Mai, Golden Cupids, and its owner were the highlight of Chiang Mai for us. Pepe, the owner, is about 45 and married to an 80-year old Englishman. We never even saw Peter, her husband, as he is ill at the moment, but we did get to enjoy meeting all of her relatives who work there. It is a happy, lovely place. I took a cooking class with another women staying there, which was terrific as it was lots of personal attention and we got to choose which things we wanted to learn to cook. Two nights there were fireworks for the kids, including the most beautiful paper lanterns that you light and release into the sky. Thai tradition says that the lanterns take all of your bad luck with them as they float away and we enthusiastically participated!
Elephants are a big part of most people's Chiang Mai stay and we had two very different experiences with them. The first included an elephant show and a one-hour trek into the jungle on an elephant's back. We all enjoyed it tremendously, especially the ride. The second experience was a day at an elephant conservation camp and that was very different. We learned a lot about the brutal way that domesticated elephants are trained to do all of the things we had enjoyed a few days before and it took some of the joy out of our previous experience. While at the camp we got to feed the elephants (bananas, watermelon and pineapple) and give them 2 baths in the river. It was amazing, we all fell in love with the elephants and would love to have brought them home. The only catch was that while you were bathing them big bundles of elephant poo would come floating between your legs. By the end of the day we all stunk, but we all really enjoyed it.
Another interesting experience was visiting a village (set up for tourists) where people from different hilltribes live and let you come visit to make money to send back. The most dramatic of the tribes is known as the "long-necked woman" and it made a dramatic impression on us, but particularly Sam. These women start putting brass rings around their necks when they are about 5 and continue to add to them until they are adults. We saw one women with 23 rings, and it didn't look comfortable. They can't really move their heads normally, bend over or even drink easily. We spent a lot of time discussing the importance of respecting other people's traditions, but in this case we struggled to think it was a good idea.
Next is a 2-day boat trip down the Mekong to Luang Prabang, Laos.
Overall we liked Chiang Mai, it's sort of a Bangkok Light.