First I got my Taxi from Bangkok Airport; Bangkok is really cheap, it cost only few Baht for the ride to the Hotel, not as cheap as a Tuk Tuk though. I hooked up with friends of mine that were staying at a Bangkok Hotel very close to Siam Centre; it was a first for me to crash with somebody in Bangkok without paying for it, I am usually in one of the many hostels and budget hotels in Bangkok which are quite clean and cheap. So I crashed with them for few days then we headed to Chang Mai. Bangkok has an incredible night life and is a great place to meet other travellers on their way to other places and swap stories with them, some of them still on their way going just like me other on their way back. Bangkok has a totally different atmosphere to Chiang Mai, a bit polluted but still enchanting but I love both places. Bangkok is a place one goes loose and binge eats, drinks and parties all night it has unbridle fun and madness. Chiang Mai is a place of tranquillity and chilling and doing the uuuuummmmm thing, the people are very friendly and hospitable, this is not to say that people in Bangkok are not friendly its just that people in Chang Mai are even more friendlier and culturally proud.
After a few days and nights of partying in Bangkok and visiting many markets and taking numerous Tuk Tuk rides, I must say I love these Tuk Tuk's they suite me, although the fumes coming from old buses and cars can sometimes be a bit much, but they cost tuppence, and suite many backpackers and budget travellers, we were off to Chang Mai the next stage of my Journey.
Chiang Mai is not just a few minutes ride in a Tuk Tuk away, it is quite a long journey from Bangkok the distance to Chiang Mai from Bangkok is about 750 kilometres (468.75 miles). So the overnight train from Bangkok is the easiest, cheapest and I think the best way to get to Chiang Mai. The cost for a second-class bottom bed is about 661 Baht (Only US$17.00). I think it's the perfect the class on the train, not quite as comfortable as first class but not as expensive as first class, and if you ask me it's clean enough and better value. The train is always clean, which makes the journey more comfortable, which is what you need because your on the train for at least 12 hours. When you first look in the carriage the beds appear to not even exist at first, they fold down into comfortable beds at night. The mattresses on the trains are comfortable you get a blanket even though it's definitely warm enough without it, pillow, sheets, and personal light. I always try to sleep on the bottom bed because you get the window, so I really recommend getting this bed, air con. or not. If you are travelling with friends like I was the Journey seems to go by a lot quicker.
After many hours on the train I was happy to finally be in Chiang Mai, in northern Thailand the land of a million rice fields. Chiang Mai is bordered by the Mekong River and the mountains of Burma, and surrounded by jungles from the central plains.
The peace and tranquillity hits you as soon as you step off the train.
