Asian Vacation, part 3

From Siem Reap we flew through Bangkok and on to Chiang Mai. We spent quite a bit of time at the Bangkok airport (we passed through it four times)and it is incredible. It is spacious and airy and fairly quiet. Even though the airport is huge it is easy to navigate, and so well designed. Here are a couple pictures:




Josh's parents met us in Chiang Mai and we spent some time at their lovely house before heading back out to the airport to pick up Ben, Josh's older brother. We then promptly headed to McDonald's for a cheeseburger.

Our time in Chiang Mai was divided between meeting people that Josh's parents are working with, eating every pizza in town to find the best (the winner will be revealed in the following paragraphs since I know you are all on the edge of your seat to know...), napping, watching Animal Planet, and sight seeing. It was really rough.

Josh's parents are working with two children's homes in Chiang Dao, which is north of Chiang Mai. It was really special to be able to meet some of the kids and the adults who work there. The first home we visited held a church service and cooked a meal for us. So delicious- squash, pork, vegetables, and fruit dishes. They had recently moved to a new facility, and were excited to show it off to us. The facility is really nice and has lots of room, all the kids have beds, and there is land nearby that they can farm. The second home is run by a family, and functions more like a foster home. This is the model that Josh's parents are hoping to move toward (less like institutions and more like homes).







Chiang Mai is a town with a lot of historical significance, and it was nice to see it with great tour guides. It used to be a walled city, and parts of the wall, gates, and moat are still there. We went to a couple markets- in Chiang Mai there are markets for literally everything, and Josh bought me a gorgeous bouquet of flowers for about a dollar.





On our last night in Chiang Mai we went on a river boat cruise (good one, Josh!). The boat was moored at a restaurant, so after being seated we ordered food and ate dinner while going up and down the river. So pretty! During our two weeks in Thailand I tried about 50 mozzarella and pineapple pizzas so I can confidently say this was the best one. YUM.