Charming Chiang Mai

Flying in or out of Chiang Mai, you notice lots of rice paddies. You also see lush, green mountains and the clear, blue water.

This city is a mix of old and new. Around every corner, you find another wat, or temple (over 300 total!). There are remnants of the wall that once surrounded the city, along with the moat. But you also find some American staples (like Starbucks!) and several bars and clubs. There are several nice restaurants along the river. My pictures are lost, but the ones Zack took with his iPad might give you an idea of some of what we saw.

The most impressive wat is actually located a bit outside of the city up in the hills, and it's called Doi Suthep. Here's a picture of me taking a picture (that was later lost), and below are a few other ones Zack captured.

And here's a video Zack got of the main area of Doi Suthep...

While in Chiang Mai, we didn't just visit temples. Of course we had our day with the elephants, and we visited the huge night market, tried different restaurants, got lots of cheap massages, and hung out at bars and watched fire shows in the evening.

We also took an evening cooking class with Thai Cookery School. It was so much fun (I wish I had the pictures!). After a stop at a local market, we made fried rice, a few types of curry, fried bananas, and more. I'm not sure I actually learned anything about cooking, but I did get some useful information about Thai ingredients. We definitely didn't go home hungry, but we did go home with a recipe book so we can recreate some Thai deliciousness in Melbourne!

One evening, we went to a muay Thai boxing match. There were actually several bouts, including ones with little kids, girls, and one where a Swedish guy went against a Thai guy (the Swede won, but we think it was rigged). Some of the matches were pretty hardcore; Thai people were calling out bets and cheering for their fighters who delivered some pretty swift kicks and punches. Other matches were just for fun, including one where they blindfolded a bunch of guys and set them loose in the ring (hilarious!). I'm so sorry the pictures are lost!

A funny sign outside our hotel.

Anyway, I would definitely put Chiang Mai on my must-do list when visiting Thailand. It's a completely different experience than life on the beaches near Phuket, but it's amazing in its own unique way. The temples are varied and incredible, the elephant day was something I'll never forget, the cooking class and muay Thai boxing match were much more fun than expected, and the price of massages, food, drinks, and souvenirs is unbelievably cheap. There's something for everyone, and we loved our three days in Chiang Mai!

Thanksgiving in Australia

Phone pic of yummy turkey.

We interrupt your regularly scheduled blogging (posts about my family's trip) to bring you this Thanksgiving in Australia post. With the warmer weather, it definitely doesn't feel like November. Zack had to work all day, there was no Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade or Detroit Lions football game to watch, and we didn't even get to take a nap after eating (we just went straight to bed). But we managed to celebrate the "holiday" anyway!

Phone pic of my plate.

Our friends Emily and Adam invited us over to their place for a feast. They had even ordered a turkey, and Emily's sister, brother-in-law, and nephew were in town. So my sister and I spent the day cooking up some pumpkin pies, green bean casserole, and pumpkin macaroni and cheese to contribute to the meal. Morgan, Zack, and I stuffed ourselves silly and had a great time hanging out with fellow Americans. We walked home, thankful for good food and friends and family.




Also, I finally created something based on an idea off of Pinterest. If you haven't been to Pinterest, I highly recommend checking it out. Beware; you can easily get addicted and "pin" things for hours. Anyway, I made these little turkey treats. You're supposed to use candy corns for the "feathers," but when you're in Australia, you improvise with what you can find in the candy aisle. I think they still look pretty cute. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

My Australian version of a Pinterest idea.

MasterChef Mania

Zack and I have a little routine going now.  On most weeknights, he gets home from work, we eat dinner, and then we watch a television show called MasterChef Australia.  It is awesome.  Basically, lots of wanna-be chefs are narrowed down, and then there are various cooking competitions to see who gets eliminated each week until they get down to one.  This reality TV show is on six days a week here-it's crazy!  Depending on which night of the week it is, there might be an elimination challenge, a pressure cooker test (timed cooking), a master class with a famous chef, etc.  They also bring in various guest judges and cook-off competitors who are famous chefs and restaurant owners around Australia.

"Five minutes left-chop chop-this is 'do or die' time!"

We have fun trying to figure out who is going to get kicked off, who is going to make something good, and being grossed out by some of the dishes.  We also have a good time mimicking the judges.  They are hilarious.  They say dramatic things like, "Cook as if your life depends upon it" and distinctly Australian things like, "This dish is a cracker!" (that's a good thing), and funny things like when they were cooking Spanish dishes and one said, "You are in a 'House of SPain!'"  One of them wears ridiculous colored suits with fancy scarves every night.  We call him "Scaaaahf," which is "Scarf" said with an accent and a raspy voice.  Try it.

Scaaaaaaahf on one of his more subdued days.

The only problem with this show is that now Zack scrutinizes my cooking like a MasterChef judge!  When it's good, I might hear, "There is an explosion of flavor in my mouth!" (said with an accent of course).  When it's bad, well, I never cook badly, so I wouldn't know!  :)  Ha-just don't ask him about the smoky haze he comes home to sometimes.  I swear it's because of the horrid frying pan in this furnished place-it's a piece of junk!

A contestant gets her dish judged.

Anyway, this show (now in its third season) has brought a pretty big focus on cooking and food to Australia.  The interesting thing is how it's different from reality shows in the United States.  Nobody on this show talks badly about anybody else; they all support each other.  They cheer each other on, help each other out, and they are sad when someone is eliminated.  It's not like Hell's Kitchen or reality cooking shows in the States where everyone yells at each other and fights.  Very different.  Very fun to watch.  And I am very much putting off making our own MasterChef dinner by writing this blog entry!