I've been living in Chiang Mai, Thailand for 48 days now, just enough time to make some friends, get a feel for the area, discover some hidden gems and start to feel at home.

Lotus flower in the clouds

Living In Chiang Mai

It's easy to see why people love this place. Did I mention how affordable it is, how many things there are to do, and how good the food is?

There's hundreds of YouTube videos posted online by travelers and digital nomads about living here and how affordable it is, but the best way to experience the quality of life is to come here to see for yourself.

This is the first full month I've paid rent, water, and electricity on my Chiang Mai apartment. For a place with a pool, gym, and internet included it came out to;

• $231 USD rent
• $86 USD electricity
• $1.50 USD water
• Free internet, gym, pool
• $318.50 USD Total

For another $84 USD a month I rented a scooter for transportation that gets 160 kilometers on $2 USD of gas, bringing the total to $402 USD/month for shelter, transportation, internet, and gym.

You can get delicious Thai food everywhere in Thailand for about a buck or two per meal. It's literally everywhere, on almost every main or side street. There's plenty of vegetarian options, fresh fruit, BBQ, stir fries, smoothies, coffee shops, bars, and restaurants to satisfy any taste, budget, or schedule. It's a foodies paradise.

Visiting The Neighbors

My apartment is right next door to the Wat Jedyod Royal Temple and twice a day at 5 AM and 5 PM the buddhists begin their chanting rituals. When they ring the bell before each chanting session that notifies all the monks it's time to begin, all the dogs in the area begin to howl along with the bell.

Today I decided to have a closer look at the temple and perhaps get a glimpse of the monks. We are neighbors after all. Hearing the monks chanting everyday envelops you in a peaceful feeling of tranquility.

Monks Chanting

Here's a video tour of the place and the monks doing their daily ritual.

Wat Jedyod Monks Chanting In Chiang Mai Thailand

Thai Street Food

There's so much good food in Thailand and I will be doing a post just about the food here but here's a little taste of what's available on the street.

If you like fruit you'll love Chiang Mai as most of the fruit in the country is grown here. It's cheap, plentiful, and fresh as can be. This plate of pre-sliced fruits is only 45 baht ($1.36 USD) and includes some grapes, papaya, melon, mango, apples, pears, and passion fruit. What a great breakfast.

If you're carnivorous there is so many meats to choose from and the marinates they use are spicy with lots of ginger and garlic. Each one of these meat on a stick delights are only about $0.30-0.60 cents each.

There's a woman just down the street from my place that makes Pad Thai so delicious I've become addicted to it. She makes it fresh on the spot and it only cost $1.20 USD.

I'm loving the area where I live and am getting to know more people and even met some people who are on Steemit. We had a meet up this week and I'll post about that soon Apparently, there are a lot of Steemians in Chaing Mai and we're going to start having more meet ups.

Tomorrow morning I'm flying to Bangkok where I'll be staying for a week before heading to Steemfest in Krakow, Poland. I plan to meet up with @waybeyondpadthai while I'm there and look forward to meeting her.

Steemit has changed my life and opened new possibilities and it never ceases to amaze me. If you're in Chaing Mai or will be coming here soon, please let me know and we could meet up and do something fun.

Thanks for reading my post and stay tunes for more adventures on my way to Steemfest.

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The Royal Park Rajapruek in Chiang Mai, Thailand is a feast for the eyes and a perfect opportunity to indulge in some photography. Originally built to commemorate His Majesty the King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s Accession, his 60th year as the king and his 80th birthday, Royal Park Rajapruek is now counted as the center of agricultural research in Thailand.

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Wondering what awaits in those hills, the bike read my thoughts and seemed ready to find out. Making quick work of it as it glided along the perfectly smooth roads, the bike and I became one, racing away from the city below flying past the croaking frogs and rice paddies, through thickly forested hills and breathtaking vistas, round the winding roads and waterfalls, cutting through cool, floral-scented air pockets until we reached Doi Suthep.

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Call me crazy but last week I flew to Bangkok, Thailand with nothing but a camera, half a suitcase of clothes, my trusty laptop, and an incurable case of wanderlust for new adventures. While that may seem impulsive to my close friends and family, some who've made their opinions concerning my sanity very clear, to me it's perfectly normal. Home is where you feel at home and for me, that's almost everywhere.

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