Thailand Trip: Lions and Tigers and Elephants, Oh My!

So up, up, up the country we went (well actually we hopped a plane from Phuket, but this sounds better...) to Chiang Mai, shadowed by the mountains and mercifully cooler by a good few degrees, but with the monsoon still tracking us voraciously…

We checked in to one of my favourite hotels in the world – a unique gem on the far side of the Mae Ping River — the Puripun Baby Grand. Owner-managers, Att & Koi Viravadhya are attentive, charming and knowledgeable hosts and I would count the staff there as some of the best anywhere: I have to say, the bar’s Tom Collins rocked my world on a daily basis! If you want to be out of the maddening fray that modern Chiang Mai has become, then this is the place for you.

Food. Oh, yes. The first stop was Huen Phen, one of my old muckers that always delivers a good meal, at a reasonable price, in a beautiful setting. A couple of stand out dishes – Gaeng Plee — a really light broth with pork ribs, banana blossom, cha om, pak liang, chillies, fermented mud fish... quite pungent and north eastern in style; and then their Nam Prik Ekay, which I adore – pea aubergines, lime, shrimp paste, red chilli and pork scratchings all pounded into an unguent glory. To die for.

Lunch times at Huen Phen are a much more local and low key affair — mostly office workers in search of lots of great noodle dishes. I had an amazing Gaeng Ho this trip — rice noodles, pork, wing beans, long beans, lime leaves, holy basil — mmm!

It wasn’t all about food though. Oh, no. I'd heard about a place called Tiger Kingdom and I had to go. Who could resist the idea of cuddling baby tigers?? Not me! I did have my usual reservations when confronted by any animal in captivity, but I did a little research and found they had a good reputation. They are, in fact, part of a captive breeding programme based out of the Ubon Ratchathani Zoo in Issan.

A lot of people argue that the animals are drugged, but I didn’t see any evidence of this – in fact, to the contrary, I saw a display of raw tiger might that was exhilarating —

(I also heard tell of a couple of tourists being bitten. Well — if you will pull a tigers tale…)

I did however have a problem with the two lion cubs there. They seemed utterly miserable and out of place and made me sad. No one could quite explain to me why they were there. Anyone?

One incredible by-product of the Tiger kingdom trip was a chance encounter with probably some of the best grilled chicken in the world! On the side of the road in Chiang Dao, Toi and Nok grill and sell 100 birds a day.

Toi comes from Vichein Buri in Petchaboon province — renowned for their style of grilled chicken. My God! We ate one between us with a couple of handfuls of warm sticky rice and a sweet spicy som tam. Apart from his secret marinade, there was one other thing that set this chicken apart from others… and I am keeping that to myself! Ha ha!

As we returned to Chiang Mai, the skies cracked open. The monsoon had finally caught up with us...

Undeterred, we plunged onwards. Onwards to more food — and to our wonderful friends Anchalee and Malee Ti-Aree, at their riverside restaurant Puong Thong.

Now when I say it’s their restaurant — that’s the point: they do it all. Prep, cook, serve. With occasional help from Mali’s brother, or a nephew. They are a –maz-ing.

On this particular night, there were a lot of covers in — 2 tables of 6, 3 tables of 2 and a party table of about 8-10. A full house. Yet every dish came out perfectly executed and on time. I really do not know how they do it.

As usual, the dishes were stand-out: Kai Yeow Ma Pad Krapow Krop — the literal translation is "horse-wee eggs fried with crisp basil", but we're more used to them as "1000 year-old eggs (watch this space, as I will be attemping to make some in the coming weeks) — a salty, pungent, spicy sensational plate of food.

Pla Neung Manao — steamed fresh-water fish, blanketed in a vibrant green sauce of lime coriander, sugar, garlic, and chillies — enough to make me cry, and it did. Moo Dat Deow — or semi-sun-dried pork, deep-fried until devilsihly crunchy. Yum Goong Plah — prawns, shallots, lemon grass and plenty chilli! A couple of cold Chang beers, a cool river breeze and warm chat with old friends. Evenings don’t get too much better than that. Then home, home to Puripun and sleep.

Our all-too-brief Chiang Mai visit was nearly over… just one more stop to make before Sukhothai and onto the North East… and that was the most important stop of all! To see my baby Bo That. Well, OK, he's not SO much of baby anymore —

— more like a couple of tons of adolescent male elephant. Hmm. He has been diagnosed with severe naughtiness. And his cure? The Nelly doctors have sent him into the jungle for a bit of solitary. Eating. Sleeping. Having alone time. I managed to jump on the back of his mahout’s 60cc bike and toodle off into a clearing to see him. I think he was happy to see me. It could have just been the bamboo I was carrying. Oh well. I love him.

And there it is. The north in a nano second. I was sad to be leaving the cool climate and the familiar faces, but the heat of the heartland awaited.

Next week: the Central Plains and the wide open spaces of Issan.

K xx

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