Chiang Mai

We have arrived in Chiang Mai and our hotel is lovely. We are on the 16th floor with spectacular views of the city. We are resting a bit before dinner and going to the night bazaar. We traveled by bus this morning and since it is a holiday, the traffic was light and we made good time. We had time to go to the first handicraft shop before lunchtime. All afternoon we went from one shop to another seeing how the different crafts were made and having an opportunity of course, to shop. First we went to the umbrella/parasol shop where we found out how the pretty umbrellas are made. And Ya told us that they would hand paint on our clothes -one souvenir one free for a small tip. I didn't have a plain shirt, so I bought a tshirt and had it painted withalovely orchid on it. But one lady spotted my waist pack and pointed to it and she painted a pretty butterfly on that, which is very nice. I also got a 2nd tshirt and had a tiger face painted on it. We had an interesting assortment of things painted-from snakes to flowers to butterflies to elephants. It was great fun.
Next we went to lunch at a local restaurant that was excellent. They had great noodles and fried noodles and enough plain things that we were able to do just fine. The tapiocca pudding looked like pink worms which we thought was funny, but it actually was very good.
After lunch we went the gem shop-wow. The quality of their stones was amazing and while they were still very expensive, I think they are very good prices for what we got. I got a beautiful small ruby and diamond necklace. What a souvenir! That is my birthstone and I have always loved them. So this is special.
Next we went to a lacquerware shop. The owner showed us how you do the gold inlay and several other techniques and it is really pretty. Next we went to the Thai silk factory. Thai silk is beautiful like the Chinese silk is. The factories are different but the things are similar and pretty.
I have not downloaded the photos from today yet so will try to add those later. Tomorrow is our elephant ride and we are all excited about that!