A Mellow Busy Day

Today was a more mellow day than elephant day for sure.  We had a slow morning which I think we all needed.  It was hard to get the girls dressed and out the door today.  I think we were finally out by about 10:30.  Stopped at a restaurant called, Butter is Better and filled them with pancakes.

Today we hired a driver for the day.  He drove us up the mountain to Wat Phra That Doi Suthep. A beautiful temple in a really cool town at the top of the hill.  The guidebooks say that this is one of Thailand's most sacred temples.  There are 306 steps intended to "help devotees accrue Buddhist merit".  Thankfully, this temple was not as crazy crowded as the others we have been to.  It was golden and beautiful and aside from a few people with loud voices, it was a peaceful place.  

 In one of the areas of the temple, there was a monk who was blessing people.  It took a few minutes to convince Mackenzie, but she finally went down on her knees with us and we moved toward him.  He blessed us with holy water by sprinkling it over all of us with a bamboo brush and reciting prayers we couldn't understand.  He then dipped white string bracelets in the water and gave them to us.  He instructed us to tie them on the girls' wrists.  These Sai Sin bracelets apparently come with words of good luck and fortune.  Fiona and I have decided to leave ours on indefinitely.  It was a moving moment and a bit clumsy for these westerners on our knees.

After we finished our visit, we took the stairs back into the hustle and bustle of the shops selling trinkets and things you can't live without.  We couldn't live without a few little souvenirs, two chocolate waffles, and some Thai tea.  It was a nice break before stopping at a waterfall on the way down the hill.  

After we left the Doi Suthep National Park, we googled to see if there were snakes there.  Let's just say, it's good we waited until after we left. 

Next stop, Wat Chedi Luang which used to be Chiang Mai's tallest structure.  Until the condo towers moved in.  It used to house the Emerald Buddah which we visited in Bangkok.  It was very beautiful and at the end of the day, it wasn't Mack's favorite stop.  It was a quick temple visit and she survived. 

The day ended with a dip in the pool (yes, it was their bath) and then dinner and a little shopping at the night bazaar.  Today was a pretty good day.

Fi and I are taking a vegan Thai cooking class tomorrow.  Brian and Mack are off on a Daddy adventure to somewhere.  We'll meet back up after and I think some more shopping needs to happen!