So my last day in Chiang Mai, and a lot to try and get done. First off breakfast at the Raming Tea salon which I loved because it is in an old Teak colonial house. It had a lovely garden with beautiful birds, one of the things I love is these houses with these beautiful secluded gardens where you are in a little nature oasis surrounded by the city.

I then took my scooter at Wiang Kum Kan which is the old city of Chiang mai. It was built by the Lanna kingdom and was the capital for a number of years before it moved to Chiang Mai due to flooding.

The Lanna kingdom is important because in Chiang Mai is actually originally Lanna. I’ve mentioned this before and some of the people there don’t view them as Thai or Siam but still view themselves as Lanna (its only been 200 years). It had traded hands between the Burmese and SIam on a regular basis. (http://www.visitchiangmai.com.au/history.html). In 1774 the then Lanna King with assistance from Siam finally drove the Burmese out of the Lanna Kingdom. The Lanna Kingdom eventually became part of Siam in 1892. The Lanna Kingdom was gradually dissolved and condensed into a 20,000 km² area centered around Chiang Mai. Some of the locals are unhappy about it as the lanna language and culture is shrinking.

After Wiang Kum KanI went to Arisara – where I had my first Thai massage. I loved it the first time i was in Chiang Mai. It starts with a cleansing brew, has the massage and ends with tea and a little snack.

Then I handed in my scooter, packed up from my hostel and headed to the train station.