By the second week of February, our 'dream life' routine in Koh Lanta had become so comfortable that leaving felt like a deliberate system crash. But a part of me was also extremely excited about Chiang Mai (and Chiang Mai food). So, it was time once again to become full-time tourists. If Bangkok was about a food mission and Lanta was about the shelter mission, Chiang Mai was our 'buffer period'—a place to catch our breath before exiting the country. “This city is a vibe, guys”—I had already heard this repeatedly from friends and bloggers, so my expectations were pretty high, but Chiang Mai was better. I can’t exactly put a finger on what made it better than all the Thailand that I experienced, but I will try.
The people vibe: On the first day on the streets, we were stopped within the first 10 minutes of walking by the most gorgeous-looking jackfruit and some very fresh ginger tea being served by a very friendly Ajji by the street. We were off to a good start, and this incident already gave us the first hints: The locals (Northerners) are significantly soft-spoken and warm; it's almost like they want to be globally known for their cuteness. I would like to help spread the word about their cuteness.
We stayed at a homestay called The Ghee House. The lady running the place told us that it was named after her maternal grandmother. I will be honest: when I first met her, I was bracing myself for some unfriendliness. Thai aunties don’t love Indian tourists (and no offense, but I don’t blame them too much). However, once we got started talking about important issues like where to find fresh nam prik or khanom jeen, she opened up like a beautifully indexed Yellow Pages, giving us all kinds of tips—from how to navigate local markets to where to find the best roti.
From there, when we visited the roti lady around the corner, we discovered that she was a very old Ajji, once again very friendly, very colorfully dressed in a salwar kameez (I was so confused but later discovered that she was actually a Thai-Pakistani lady). She has been serving hundreds of orders to a very large crowd of travelers every evening—successfully for the last 40 years!! You would never be able to tell how successful she was (holding a Michelin Bib Gourmand for many consecutive years) by how humble she was.
Some more walking around and vibe gathering indicated that (other than tourists like us) this was a hub for two types of people:
The "Jobless" Nomads: Chiang Mai is effectively the global headquarters for folks that 'look jobless'—you’ll see digital nomads networking, closing deals, or fixing bugs, all over a 60-baht cold brew while sitting on a stool that looks like it hasn't been moved since the Lanna Kingdom fell. We felt very much at home with the abundant co-working spaces and modern, fully stacked gyms, and tasty snacks and drinks everywhere.
The Artists: Then there are the artists—they’ve been here for 700 years, but the new generation is doing something different. From the silversmiths on Wua Lai Road to the modern art studios like the Dream Space Gallery—the city feels like an open-air museum. Places like The White Market felt minimalist, airy, and highlighted what happens when a community decides that making a ceramic bowl and embroidering T-shirts is just as important as meeting OKR deadlines. It’s 'Slow Life' personified, and it’s infectious.
Though the outward appearance of the two groups may be very different, they are both there for the same reason: the freedom to define their own routine. That, and also it's a pretty affordable and laid-back city serving excellent coffee around every corner.
The food vibe: We had been missing the local market feeling a little since leaving Bangkok—Lanta did have a night market but it didn’t feel very authentic for some reason. So, we tackled various night markets during our stay. Other than our favorites like nam prik and sai ua, we discovered a delicious treat called 'Bua Loi,' and I had to visit this particular spot in Chang Phuak Market two times just to cement the memory in my mind.
I know it doesn’t look like much, but it tasted something like a warm, sweet (and slightly salty) kheer made of coconut milk, with pandan-flavored rice dumplings served with a chunk of coconut ice cream. I am very happy to report that while polishing this story weeks later, I can still accurately recall my first bite of Bua Loi.
We obviously had several khao soi places on our list, but the one that won all hearts was Khao Soi Mae Manee. We got a huge portion of the all-included bowl to share, and that bowl of khao soi went directly to fill our hearts. Several other khao sois from several other spots were demolished in these few days, and did satisfy us (no such thing as a bad khao soi in Chiang Mai), but the one at Mae Manee was definitely in a league of its own. It does make sense, too, as it was recommended not just by Mark Wiens as well as the Michelin guide, but also, most importantly, by our very cute friend Andrew <3.
Oh, a small context to this next dish—this was actually a recommendation from a couple that we randomly met while having lunch at one of our favorite spots in Sigiriya, Sri Lanka. The guy said, 'For some reason, Chiang Mai has the best roasted chicken on the planet—you will find it on the streets and you have to try it to know what I mean.' We always take food recs very seriously, so we looked it up and ended up at Grilled Chicken Nimman Soi 11.
This was truly a special find—their roasted chicken (gai yang) is renowned for its superior taste due to a unique combination of intense marination, slow charcoal cooking, and specialized dipping sauces that balance savory, sweet, and smoky flavors. How good can roasted chicken even be, especially for someone coming from the land of kebabs, right? Well, no shade to kebabs, but I think this might be the highest-quality roasted chicken we have ever had. Once again, it doesn't look like much, but you have to either take my word for it, or travel Chiang Mai to find out.
This next dish I am mentioning is technically not from Thailand, but I will still remember it for a while—we discovered it at a vegan stall at one of those night markets. This was the Burmese lotus flower salad (a perfectly crunchy, tangy cousin to the tea leaf salad). This dish alone is putting Burma pretty high up on my list of countries I wish to travel to. On the very last day, we also managed to snag what happened to be my first and last Green Curry at Warorot market, which was the perfect, creamy, spicy (check out those fried red chillies), and tangy farewell to Thailand.
Why I will miss Thailand:
I’m going to miss this country because it proved that 'unlimited travel time' doesn’t have to mean being a wandering ghost—it can mean finding a temporary home and familiar comforts in three completely different worlds, within the same country. Thailand managed to meet us exactly where we were at every stage of the journey.
The Food: From the Pad Thai shacks to the Michelin-awarded roti aunties and the 'final boss' Khao soi, I’ll miss a country that takes its street food more seriously than most countries take their fine dining.
The Meaningful Grime: I’ll miss the contrast of the Lanta life—the way a day spent smelling like dogs, cats, and Thai tea made those empty-beach sunsets feel like an earned reward. It reminded me that maybe our 'dream life' is 10% postcard views and 90% finding a mission that feels good.
The Lack of Performance: I’ll miss the way our best Thailand moments didn't require an entrance fee or an 'influencer' setup. Whether it was the clean, empty beaches in Lanta during high season, or a quiet alleyway in Chiang Mai, or the NYE party at Culture Café, Bangkok—the good vibes here are just as accessible as the food and don’t demand you to be anything other than present.
Thailand gave us a routine when we needed one, a community when we were volunteering, and a 'slow-life' artistic palate cleanser when we were ready to leave. We left with a stronger understanding of what home looks like when we are on the road.
Our stories will head toward Vietnam next, followed by the Philippines and Indonesia. But as I polish this story, I’m already looking ahead to mid-April. We’ll be in China with our favorite human, Andrew, and I have a feeling the food stakes are about to get even higher. If I thought the Bua Loi at the night market was the peak of sweet-and-salty coconut magic, my research is already promising me that the Tangyuan in China is the final evolution of this sweet treat.
Stick around for the Vietnam chaos—it’s going to be featuring one more very special gap-joiner 😊 and as always, we love you guys for being here <3
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