We arrived at our hotel in Chiang Mai around midnight on Monday, January 16. The routing for this trip was an exhausting challenge for us. We had a few delayed flights and near-miss connections so we feel grateful to be in Chiang Mai on Tuesday as planned. We opted for breakfast at the hotel which is a pretty good value for coffee, fresh fruit, juice and cereal or fried rice topped with an egg – all for $5.00 each. The breakfast is in a pleasant, sheltered outdoor space but most mornings we’ll have breakfast in our room.
The weather was cool this morning but the afternoon temps are quite warm.
We’re staying at the Sakorn Residence Hotel in a one bedroom no-frills but very comfortable apartment. This is a view of the complex – it’s our 5th time staying here. The Sakorn is a family-owned place and the staff has stayed the same over the years. We especially like the location across the Ping River from the Old Town. We are paying 28,000 Thai Baht for our one-month stay. That’s $847. 00 or about $28 U.S. Dollars per night. We’ll pay an additional $45.00 per month for cleaning (2 times a week) and a minimal fee for water and electricity.
This morning, we walked from the hotel to buy provisions for our one-month stay. On our way to the Rimping Supermarket we met two couples from Saskatchewan, Canada who are staying at our same hotel for one month and who were also on their way to the Rimping for provisions. We look forward to comparing notes with them on restaurants, activities and all.
The Rimping Supermarket is very modern and it has many familiar brands plus local specialties-it’s fun to shop there.
If you buy at least $35.00 worth of groceries at the Rimping, they will deliver your groceries directly to your hotel room! A real plus! It’s not safe to drink the local water here so having a bulk quantity of water plus other heavier-to-carry items delivered is great.
We are reacquainting ourselves with the neighborhood and still have some shopping to do at the local fruit stand. We’re resting up. It’s been a long journey and we’re happy we can settle in for awhile.