the original tea-tasting mudhut in the Yunnanese Chinese Ban Rak Thai village in the Mae Hong Son highlands by the Myanmar border
preparing tea for tasting
sniffing the tea for its aroma before tasting
the tea tasters
a Yunnanese boy
hors d'oeuvres in a Yunnanese luncheon feast
Yunnanese stewed skin-on pork leg and steamed buns
fresh bacon with pickled Yunnanese vegetables
braised Yunnanese fish
fresh tea leaf salad
stir-fried chayote greens
Lisa buying lots of tea
Khun Gayson – the Fern Resort manager wearing a Karen hilltribe top
Nowa – a long-time Karen hilltribe employee of Fern Resort
snail and bai chaploo (wild pepper leaf) red curry, Bai Fern
fried sour pork, Bai Fern
northern beef laab with roasted spices and aromatic long pepper, Bai Fern
an assortment of Mae Hong Son sweet snacks
group picture with some of Fern Resort's Karen hilltribe staff
Michael with the friendly Fern girls
Kasma with the Fern girls she's known since they were teenagers
scenery along the drive to Fish Cave
morning fog lifting
the farmed valley by Fish Cave
schoolgirls perform tradtional music at Fish Cave to raise money for their school's music program
feeding the blue carp outside the cave
winding mountain road to Pai
Lisa with our drivers Sun and Rong
Michael and the boys at the scenic viewpoint
old Lisu woman in the village near Bang Ma Pa
Lisu girl checking us out
sorting red beans after the harvest
Lisu girl dresses up in her finest for us to take pictures
silver detail on the back of the vest
mother and daughter
drying chillies in the sun
stained lips and teeth from chewing betelnut
weaving on a backstrap loom
Lisu tries out a Lisu hat
Lisu man stripping bamboo
our lunchtime desserts of green pandan layer cake and golden cassava rolls
rafting through the dark Lod cave on bamboo rafts
Lisu girl at the scenic viewpoint near Pai
jumping Lisu
more jumping Lisus
three jumping Lisus
our dining table overlooking the pool and the mountains beyond, Hut Ing Pai Resort
fried fish topped with sweet-sour chilli sauce, Hut Ing Pai Resort
hot-and-sour chopped chicken salad (laab), Hut Ing Pai Resort
a dinner feast at Hut Ing Pai Resort
sitting down for another yummy luncheon at a family-run eatery, Mae Rim
a monarch butterfly at the orchid and butterfly farm in Mae Rim, Chiang Mai
tropical bird-of-paradise at the orchid and butterfly farm in Mae Rim
a naga statue inside the chapel of Wat Chiang Man, Chiang Mai
detail above the entrance of Wat Chiang Man
main Buddha image in the main chapel of Wat Chiang Man
mural in red and gold inside the main chapel
dragon above the window in the main chapel
pomelo salad, Come Dara restaurant in Chiang Mai
fried white tilapia with herb sauce, Come Dara
fried pork rinds and real coffee for Jodi and Jane at Worarot market, Chiang Mai
riding in the local minibus
Jane emerging from the two-row red minibus (songthaew)
Barry points out the coffee shop for real coffee
the caffeine addicts waiting in line to order their fresh-ground real coffee
Lisa by the naga stairway of Wat Phra That Doi Suthep
Jane and Jodi by the naga stairway leading up the hill
the sacred gold-plated chedi of Wat Phra That Doi Suthep, the north's most important temple
detail of the royal parasol
garudas on the chapel roof
paying homage to the relics of the Buddha enshrined in the gold chedi
young girl lighting her candle
pilgrims circumambulate the chedi three times
reciting the scriptures while circumambulating
Buddha image with long eye lashes
the Buddha and the naga
donated bells above the entrance to a chapel
Has camera equipment become one of the nine possessions of monks who renounce the world?
performing a ritual symbolic of donating money for electricity for the temple
spooning oil into the lotus-shaped silver oil lamp
nagas and bells on the roof
the black Buddha and the tiger
Earth Mother goddess wringing her hair
refreshing fresh passion fruit juice
a northern hors d'oeuvres platter with two popular spicy dips and accompaniments, Kaeng Ron Baan Suan, Chiang Mai
green papaya salad, Kaeng Ron Ban Suan
sticky rice in bamboo server is the traditional rice of northerners
sai oa spicy northern pork sausages with accompaniments, Kaeng Ron Ban Suan
spicy northern curry of pak wan (a vegetable) and dried smoked fish, Kaeng Ron Ban Suan
northern hunglay pork curry, Kaeng Ron Ban Suan
stir-fried long green eggplant with chillies and holy basil, Kaeng Ron Ban Suan
the room-mates Audrey and Lisa relaxing after a satisfying northern meal
the spires of Wat Jet Yod ("seven spire temple"), Chiang Mai
the remaining stucco detail on the base of the spires, Wat Jet Yod
monk taking an art class at Wat Jet Yod
Wat Phra Singh, Chiang Mai
the Phra Singh Buddha image from Sri Lanka
fading water-damaged 19th century mural on the wall of the chapel
nagas on the roof, Wat Phra Singh
nagas guarding stairway entrances, Wat Phra Singh
Bhutanese Buddhist banners, Wat Phra Singh
donation banners hanging from the ceiling of the chapel
The banners celebrate the coming of a sacred Bhutanese Buddha image to the country in honor of the King's 84th birthday.
It's the first time the small sacred Buddha enshrined in the white box left Bhutan.
pilgrims paying homage to the sacred Buddha image
fried chicken, Tha Nam restaurant, Chiang Mai
steamed seafood curry in young coconut, Tha Nam
sour tamarind curry with fried snakehead fish and assorted vegetables, Tha Nam
Muslim yellow rice with goat (kao moek pae), Sofia, Chiang Mai
the avenue leading to the Royal Pavilion at the Royal Flora Expo, Mae Hia, Chiang Mai
the Royal Pavilion
exterior detail of the Royal Pavilion
the centerpiece in the Royal Pavilion honoring the present King of Thailand
the golden Bodhi tree with well wishes for the king written on the leaves
the Royal Pavilion reflected in the surrounding pond
the ferris wheel behind the Bhutanese garden
Bhutanese fish motif on the wall surrounding the garden
steamy bromeliad-cladded cone, Belgium garden
orchids in the Orchid Pavilion
unusual dendrobium smilae
dendrobium
red vanda
golden vanda
vanda
the native very fragrant rhynchostylis gigantea
cattleya
beautiful sprays of fragrant rhynchostylis gigantea native to Thailand
a lovely display of phalaenopsis
blooming rhynchostylis orchids by a weeping wall
demonstration of farming linchue mushrooms
bromeliad
a kind of tropical ginger
another tropical ginger
Abyssinian gladiolus
a woman dressed up as the mythical "kinnaree" bird people
the kinnaree dance
blooming rhynchostylis hanigng from a tree
naga fountain in a demonstration garden
a bowl of spicy kao soi northern curry noodles with roast duck
exquisitely detailed woodcarving at Roi An Pan Yang's wood carving museum
an intricate carving out of a log of a kinnaree in the forest, Roi An Pan Yang
fried sour fish, Vientiane Kitchen, Bangkok
crisp-fried smoked boned pork leg with skin on, Vientiane Kitchen
fried snakehead fish and an assorment of tidbits to be wrapped in wild pepper leaves with a sweet-sour sauce (miang pla chon), Vientiane Kitchen
stir-fried pak wan greens, Vientiane Kitchen
dinner entertainment at Vientiane Kitchen
dancers performing the umbrella dance of northern Thailand
Don invited by one of the dancers to participate in a Thai dance
"How am I doing?"
Who's leading the dance?
Thai dance?
a talented musician and performer
