I’m very grateful to have two days of rest - this time in Chiang Mai, one of my favourite cities. Every time i return to Chiang Mai, the beat of life slows to a relaxing pace, and stresses and troubles fade to the background. I’ve found that northerners are generally more chill and do things one step at a time, whereas southerners tend to be more “type a”.

Because I’ve been here a few times (it’s usually the base for riding around northern Thailand), there hasn’t been any pressure to explore or even ride around nice roads nearby - I’ve had time to get a few things in order, to sleep in, and to enjoy a lot of coffee.

Nice cup of gesha to start the day

Saturday was spent doing laundry and fixing things:

• thorough wash of my regular clothes (thanks to a neighbourhood laundry service)
• self-service wash of my riding gear - this was a bit more involved and i needed to go to the place several times to ensure it was washed properly/not damaged
• attempt at deodorising my airbag (this can’t be washed…)
• attempt to fix my gps, which had water damage
• buying a few things to fix the extra charging ports I’ve purchased on my bike
• buying some external storage for the video footage I’m capturing

The most interesting interaction was at the gps repair shop (which ChatGPT had helpfully: (1) suggested a solution, (2) directed me to a local Thai tech mall, and (3) told me the store number in the tech mall(!) where most didn’t speak English, so this would have been drawing from Thai sources of information.).

The local tech mall ChatGPT found for meThe store which repaired my GPS

My gps had taken a bath during a rain shower in Phuket, and had water enter the unit. The suggested remedy was an ultrasonic bath, and an alcohol flush, so as to get rid of the water from the internals, and some of the corrosion/damage done.Corroded internals

What was interesting here was the pricing model. The shop charged 300 THB if they weren’t able to fix the tablet, and 1000 THB if they were. I love a bit of incentive alignment!Waterlogged display

In the end, it was a mixed result. They got rid of the water from the internals, but the screen remains waterlogged and some components were damaged. It works, but i wouldn’t consider it waterproof anymore and it may fail at any time. They deemed this to be an unsuccessful result so they only charged 300! (For what it’s worth, i would have been fine and happy if they charged the full amount).

Roast8ry make a mean pour over

During this time, i also had some excellent coffee from Roast8ry and yummy northern food from TongTemToh.

I also had the chance to catch up with an old friend, Jay, who runs a tailoring shop in Chiang Mai. For those that visit, I can highly recommend his tailoring, his impeccable service, and ability to “get it done” in any space of time.

Sunday was more relaxed. Some more laundry, some durian, and a wash / detail for the bike.

Sandeep not so scruffy anymore after a wash Me and my prized durian (it was okay - i’d rate it 5/10. The durian i had in Kuala Lumpur for reference was a 8-9/10).

China, the primary destination of my trip awaits. The itinerary for the next few days are as follows: reach the Thai-Laos border tomorrow, reach the border with China the following day, and then over to China on the 19th!

Tomorrow; Chiang Khong!

Some stats:

• 45 KMs traveled
• 4 unique interactions
• 75g coffee consumed
• 1.25 durians consumed (total of 6 durians so far)
• no fuel added

Some more snaps:

I’m guessing this is a family business and the kids are minding the produce while the parents go do something else

One of many durian stalls. Thai durian tends to be much larger in size.

Stacks of watermelons at the market

With Jay outside his shop

A worldcoin orb!