Our search for the Warorot Market, Chiang Mai

Mrs.Herbivore wanted to go shopping, and to see a traditional Thai market in full swing. So, the decision was made, we would get up early the next morning, and walk from our hotel in the old city to the Wararot Market to the Wararot Market, Chiang Mai's traditional-style market for food and other goods. And it was early.  We left about 5am ("come on dear, we need to see the city before it gets busy," cried Mrs H, the Morning Bird).  And so, armed with an imprecise tourist map, and some bleary eyes, we set off in search of Wararot. 5am turned out to be an interesting time to walk around Chiang Mai.  For a start, the Monks are up early, and it's a good time to see them strolling to and from their wats. Our map wasn't helpful.  We didn't know exactly where we were going, except that we were headed for Warorot Mueang Chiang Mai District, Chiang Mai.  While it was vaguely indicated on our map, we found it hard to match the map to the streets down which we were walking.   This wasn't so much an issue with our navigation skills, as that the map didn't actually show the streets properly! We ended up by the River Ping at sunrise.  An opportunity for a spot of yoga to relax after the headaches of the map, before heading off again. After our diversion at the river, we kept walking.  We asked directions a couple of times, getting contradictory advice from the locals.  It seemed either that nobody knew where Wararot was, or it was a broader description of the area, not just the actual market. We eventually found the market.  We ventured indoors into a kind of food hall. We saw a large array of dried fruits, nuts, spices and herbs.  It was a world of vibrant colour, interesting products, and chillis. Mr Herbivore was getting pretty excited by the potential for cooking exciting dishes, but alas our hotel didn't have cooking facilities, so we limited our purchases to a large bag of cashew nuts to munch on over the next couple of days (they were delicious!) We liked the dried foods section most of all.  There was a lot more to the market area though, including a fresh fruit and vegetable area, and a meat and dish area.  We didn't linger in the latter, which was slightly disturbing for herbivores.  Instead, we much preferred the array of wooden goods and handicrafts on display. We're glad we made the effort to go to Wararot.  It was a great opportunity to see a more traditional Thai market, and to get away from the throngs of tourists at the Night Market.  We recommend an early start to get there before things get busy - and also recommend a decent map!

Fancy a flying carpet ride at the Art in Paradise 3D Art Museum, Chiang Mai

One of the slightly peculiar - but worth visiting - places we stumbled across in Chiang Mai was the Art In Paradise 3D Art Museum, where you can "be part of the exhibit and create your own story".

We walked there from our hotel in the old city - it was a good walk, and quite doable, but when we stopped to ask for directions a couple of times, the locals thought we were mad to be walking. It really wasn't that far, but it seemed to be unusual for tourists to be walking.  If you are staying in the Old City though, and have kids in tow, we'd suggest a tuktuk.

The idea of the Museum is that visitors can immerse themselves into the 3D artwork and use it to tell a creative story.  You can, for example, pat a dolphin, get eaten by a shark, take a flying carpet ride, or transform yourself into a flying angel.

The Museum (more of an interactive gallery really) is located at 199/9 Chang Klan Rd, Chiang Mai.

Anyway, we found the Museum and, not quite knowing what to expect, we paid our entry fee (THB 300)  and went in. It was both kind of odd, and pretty cool.

You need a camera to make the most of it, as you are able to insert yourself into a myriad of 3D scenes that have been created within the gallery. You can ride on a flying carpet, appear as a flying angel, take a romantic gondola ride in Venice, fight a rampaging tiger, or do a spot of deep sea diving.

We enjoyed our trip to the Museum.  We'd rank it a 7/10 on the list of things to do in Chiang Mai.  If we'd had kids with us, it would have been a 10/10.  There are lots of cool pictures for snap-happy children to take.

We finished our trip with an ice cream from a cafe at the Museum.  The ice cream was good after a long afternoon of illusion art - but was pricey at THB 80 each.

Our helpful hint: take a tripod for your camera.

Thapae Boutique House

During our stay, we moved hotels, just to try something new, and found ourselves at the Thapae Boutique House.  

This is an older establishment, with a fantastically friendly staff, three extremely cute and friendly cats, and a pleasant semi-outdoor dining area.   

Breakfast was part of the deal here, comprising toast, eggs, fruit, coffee and juice.  We enjoyed our breakfasts  here.

However, we were on the ground floor of the building, the first floor of which appeared to be inhabited by a herd of elephants.  We didn't actually see the herd in question, but the frequent stomping overhead (and especially when people walked up the stairs) pointed either to the herd of elephants, or to extremely poor sound-proofing, or both. 

The bed in our room was very large - perhaps a super-king size bed and looked inviting - but it was actually as hard as granite (perhaps the elephants had been stomping on it?).

To be fair, we did try to arrange another room, and the staff were apologetic and tried to be helpful.  However. the hotel was fully booked and no other rooms were available.  Overall, we gave Thapae Boutique House a score of 5/10.

At the time of our visit in February 2015, there was also a building site next door, and a lot of noise from associated construction.

Mrs Herbivore personally choose this hotel because she read some review on tripadvisor that talk about the cat here. 

She was curious about the cats' story, and the lady that worked in reception told her that the hotel management adopted the cats when they were kittens.  They were sick and had been dumped at the elephant shelter.

Now the three "mouseketeers" look happy and healthy with a lot of love and attention around, especially from Mrs Herbivore.

So, the verdict: did we prefer a comfortable bed and stringent rules of Lamphu House or the friendly staff and the cats of Thapae?  They were different experiences - but broadly in the same price range.  On balance, Mr Herbivore would go for Lamphu House and the swimming pool, while Mrs Herbivore would go for Thapae Boutique House, if they changed the hard bed :)

Lamphu House Chiang Mai Review

During our visit to Chiang Mai, we stayed at the Lamphu House, near to the Wat Chedi Luang, the Sunday Street Market, and the Thais That Bind restaurant. We chose to stay here because Mrs Herbivore had stayed at the Lamphu House in Bangkok on another trip. 

The hotel was clean, relatively new, and pretty basic, but we thought it was good value.  What we liked: the pool (although the water was a bit chilly after the sun had left the pool area), our sunny balcony, the comfortable bed and the great location - walking distance toWat Chedi Luang and an easy stroll to Thapae Gate.

We were also interested to meet the two extremely cute dogs who lived across the road and who greeted us with wagging tails every morning,

If you like the quiet part of Chiang Mai and walking distance around the temple, we recomend staying around the old city. 

What we didn't like: well, the staff didn't seem overly friendly, the hotel linen was on the well-used and threadbare side, and there was a long list of rules (mainly about how we couldn't leave marks on the sheets).  

We also thought it was a bit odd that we had to pay a cash deposit to get the key to our room - but the pros outweighed the cons, and we would absolutely stay here again.  

Room advice : Choose the room with pool view in the 2nd floor or 3rd floor. Our score: 8/10.

Chiang Mai, Thailand: A Veggie Paradise

Our adventures began in Chiang Mai, a small city in northern Thailand.  We met here on a surprisingly chilly February morning. The great thing about Chiang Mai is that, aside from its numerous cultural sites, it is a fantastic place for vegetarian travellers.  

We reckon there are more than 40 vegetarian or vegan restaurants around the city.  We know that Thai cuisine is diverse and delicious - but we had a specific mission: to find the best vege pad thai and tom yum dishes in all of Chiang Mai.  

Sadly, we didn't get to experience all 40+ vege restaurants.  Partly this was because we found fantastic food at some places and had to go back to them, and partly because we just ran out of time.

Taste from Heaven

We visited the Taste from Heaven Vegetarian Restaurant twice during our stay.  The food here is magnificent - and Mr Herbivore  especially recommends the Mushroom Satay (his culinary highlight of the trip!).  

We ate well here, with delicious pad thai, spring rolls, and Mrs Herbivore's obligatory tom yum as well as the legendary mushroom satay.  We weren't so thrilled with the deep fried mushrooms, which were a bit oily for our taste - but some may prefer that.  

The restaurant has wifi, it was clean and the service was friendly.  Mr Herbivore was very happy with the coffee here, although it was a bit strong for Mrs Herbivore's tastes. 

Overall though, we thoroughly recommend this restaurant, scoring it a 9/10.  One note of caution however is that many other people seem to like it too. 

In the evenings, it can be hard to get a table, so we advise you to go early!  You can find Taste from Heaven on Ratmakka Road, next to the Lost Book.

Bubbles Live

After we failed to get a table at Taste from Heaven for a romantic dinner on Valentine's Day, we stumbled upon the Bubbles Live restaurant one night.  This cafe, at 5 Ratchamanka, soi 2,  wasn't busy, but was brightly lit, colourful and had a healthy organic menu rather than traditional Thai food. 

On our visit here, we had an avocado, tofu and eggplant salad platter, that came with whole bread. The people were really friendly, and the food was tasty.  We scored it 8/10.

Aum Cafe

Aum Cafe, a vegan restaurant opposite the Thapae Gate beside Black Canyon Coffee, is a place not to be missed (although it can be difficult to find - look carefully for the small wooden building). We searched it out having read reviews from other vegetarian travellers and can confirm the recommendation.  

While the building looks old, and it's fairly dark inside, the food is fantastic.  Seated on the floor at a low traditional table, we feasted on a traditional Chiang Mai Khao Soi noodle soup, along with another pad thai. 

We really liked the coconut flavours of the Khao Soi, and the fresh veges.  We scored Aum Cafe 9/10.

Thais That Bind

Thais That Bind was a surprise find for us nearby our hotel and opposite Wat Chedi Luang.  While not actually a vegetarian-only restaurant, it was vege-friendly.  The service here was exceptional, the food was really yummy and well-priced.  

On our various trips to this restaurant, we ordered fried vege rice, sticky rice and of course our staple tom yum and pad thai. We rated this place a 9/10 also.

Phon Non Cafe

We visited the Phon-Non Cafe twice.  Easy to find near the Thapae gate, with the wonderful view of old architecture around. 

Our first trip was there for brunch.  We enjoyed a spicy Tom Yum soup and Pad Thai, watermelon juice, pineapple juice and coffee.  

On our first visit, the food was spectacular, fresh, delicious and warming on a not especially hot day.  To be honest, our second visit, later in the week for dinner, was not quite so good. 

The service seemed slow and less friendly, and the food seemed to lack the spiciness and fresh flavours of our first trip.  We think perhaps a different chef in the evenings might not be as liberal with the ingredients.  

Nonetheless, Phon-Non is well-priced, conveniently located, and has the advantage of good wifi services, so perfect for checking those emails.  On balance, we score the Phon-Non 7/10.

Pacamara Coffee House

We didn't actually eat at the Pacamara Coffee House, but we did drink coffee there. We were really happy with our caffe lattes, and scored it a 9/10.

Café de Siam Coffee House and Restaurant 

We breakfasted one morning here , with toast, croissants and coffee.  We sat outside watching the squirrels scampering in the trees across the road.  The toast and croissants were pretty average, but the coffee was okay.  We gave Café de Siam a score of 6/10.

We did eat in other places too, but these were the restaurants that stood out to us as being worthy of mention.  Next time we're there, we will revisit some of our old favourites (we can't wait to get back to the Taste from Heaven's satay mushrooms) as well as seek out new places.