Mae Fang Hot Springs

While we where up in the Chiang Mai area, we stop at one of the hot springs in Mae Fang National Park. As warm as the weather is in Thailand you would not really think of hot springs. Thailand has hot springs through out the country, and most of the hottest ones being up north in the Chiang Mai region. You can contact the park by:  Mae Phang National Park, p.o. box 9, Phang district, Cjiang Mai province 50110. Not only can you see the springs here, you can go to the hot spring pools and soak in the mineral water. They also have Thai massage if you really want to relax.

Here are some of the vents blowing steam and hot water. In the small creeks that connected the springs together, there was green algae growing. The water was still very warm, hard to believe that it still could grow.

Here you can see the algae growing in the bottom of this hot pool of water.

Here is an close up of the water coming out of the ground. This will cook you if you get into it.

It just would not be a good trip to the hot springs with out boiling some eggs. You can see the hot water boiling out of the ground in the middle. As you can see by these pictures, everyone was wearing saddles, so they were very careful not to step in the water.

As the pressure built up the steam would come out with more force. When the mail vent did blow all of the little ones would die down to just a trickle. You had to pay attention or you would get sprayed when the large one stoped and the little ones took off again.

When this went off, it would go about 35 meters high. It also had a very loud hiss. Also when this went off all of the little springs died down to a trickle.

Click PLAY to view a short video of our time spent at Mae Fang Hot Springs.

Thai Cooking In Ning’s Kitchen

Come here to learn how to cook  Authentic Thai Food

One of the biggest things you need to do in order to be able to prepare Authentic Thai Dishes is have the right ingredients to use. You can always go to your local Asian food market or order online. One of the best places we have found on the internet is efooddepot . They have Food from all the different Asian countries. Shipping is very reasonable.

The most important ingredient you will need is Fish Sauce.

You have to use this to get the real Thai taste.  Shown in the photo are two popular brands sold.  Squid Brand is made the slow way with no additives and The Three Crabs Brand has Fructose instead of sugar and Hydrolysed Vegetable Protein added to it to speed up the fermentation of the Fish Sauce.  Both have Anchovy Extract, salt and sugar.  Both taste excellent.

It’s beneficial to grow some of your own herbs.
The leaves and any fruit that may grow on the Kaffir Lime tree are very useful in Thai recipes.  If you live in a area that experiences a cold winter, the use of a grow light may be necessary.  The Kaffir Lime Tree should be kept in temperatures of 60°F or above.  It will grow very good in the summer months.

This is  Thai Basil or Cinnamon Basil.
This plant here is at the end of its life.  It is one we brought in from our garden. We will start new plants in February so that they get a good start before planting outside this spring.

One of the most important tools to use in Thai Cooking is a Mortar and Pestle.  It is used to smash or grind pepper, garlic and any other herb or spice you use.  The Mortar and Pestle pictured here is made of granite.  Do not get the clay version of this tool.  They will break very easy.  The clay version is used primarily to make salad and not meant to do heavy grinding.

Thai Vegetables used in Thai cooking.

Thailand has over 200 different kinds of vegetables grown there. Many are used in a verity of ways in Thai cooking. Thai cooking will use any where from the roots of some to the stems, leaves and shoots of young plants.

Plants that use the roots are Krachai, Ginger, Galanga, Turmeric, Daikon Radish, Taro Root, Boniato, Yucca Root, Lottus Root, Cilantro Root and Bean sprouts.

Stems used for cooking are Lemon Grass, Sugar Cain, Cilantro any of the Chives and Green onions.

Leaves used several types of Basils, Water Spinach, Mint, types of Broccoli, Types of cabbage, Bitter Melon Leaves, Kaffir Lime tree and Pea leaves. There are many kinds and this short list is some of the more common used.

Some of the seeds and seed pods used would be, Bitter Melon, Long Bean, Many kinds of Egg plant as Thai, Cherry and Purple Egg Plant, Squashes and Gourds and Pickling Cucumbers. Spice seeds used Thai Chili, fresh and dried. These give Thai food most of the heat. Also used are green black pepper seeds. This is un-dried peppercorn seeds.

Some flowers used are Thai Edible Flower, you can find these frozen imported from Thailand and Banana Flowers. Bamboo shoots are used in Thai curries, this can be found to in Asian stores. Banana leaves are used to for wrapping up food for steaming.

The lists above as mentioned are some common ones used that Ning uses. There are many more than mentioned here. Some can be found in Asian stores. There are always different combinations to use in many of the Thai dishes, so if you can not find a certain kind, you can substitute with an other of the same type.

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Click here to visit Ning’s Kitchen for Authentic Thai recipes

Thailand Cultural Primer

It is immensely useful to know about the culture of any country that you are planning to visit. Having the right information about the ways of the local people can prevent misunderstandings and will also enrich your whole travel experience. Thailand, which is a very popular holiday destination, has a culture influenced by its historical trade links and conflicts with the Indian subcontinent, Laos, Cambodia, Myanmar, Japan and China.

Here’s a brief list of things to know:

1. The Thai King Bhumibol Adulyadej and the Royal Family hold a deservedly high and revered position in the country. You will do well to respect this popular public sentiment. You can get into serious trouble for poking fun or disparaging them.

2. Show respect to Buddhist monks. They also command a great deal of respect in Thai society. Women should step aside to make way for passing monks and avoid any accidental contact.

3. Buddhism, especially Theravada Buddhism, is the main and government supported religion of Thailand. Other religions followed are Hinduism, Christianity and Islam.

4. The Thai language is derived from Khmer, Sanskrit, Pali, Malay and Chinese. English is widely spoken nowadays, but it’ll be great if you make an effort to learn a few simple phrases. Like ‘Sawadee khrap/ka’ for ‘hello/goodbye’; ‘Sabaai dee mai khrap/ka’ for ‘how are you?’; and ‘Sabaai dee khrap/ka’ for ‘I’m fine, thank you’.

5. One Thai custom you’ll encounter frequently is the Wai. This is similar to the Indian Namaste gesture. You put your palms together at chest level and bow your head. The Wai is used in greeting, in farewell or in acknowledgment.

6. Thai people place a great emphasis on family life and respecting parents, elders and seniors. Seniority, by the way, is determined more by social standing and work denomination than by age, and brings with it certain obligations like paying for the whole group when dining out.

7. Many Thai people have nicknames in addition to their formal Chinese/Sanskrit-derived and often long, complicated given names. The nickname may be a shortening of the given name or can be the word for a color, fruit, flower, animal, etc.

8. Displays of public affection between friends are not uncommon; such displays between lovers are usually less common and less appreciated, but globalization is changing all that, especially in the case of the young generation growing up on American soaps and the Internet.

9. Thais dislike conflicts and loud, angry public arguments. You are likely to be more respected if you stay calm, don’t point left and right, don’t wave your arms about like wind-mills and avoid all excessive behavior.

10. Traditional Buddhist marriages are divided into a Buddhist ceremony and a non-Buddhist ceremony. The groom is required to give dowry, known as Sin Sodt, to the bride’s family.

11. Thai funerals usually last for a week, during which many prayers are recited and crying is not encouraged.

12. Dress modestly in clothes that cover your shoulders and upper legs. Especially when visiting temples.

13. Remove shoes when entering someone’s house or a temple. Try not to step on the threshold when entering or departing.

14. It is considered rude to touch anyone on the head or to touch them with your feet. It is also considered offensive to sit with your feet pointing at someone.

15. Early Thai literature was influenced by Indian Literature. The Indian epic Ramayana was written into a Thai version by the Thai Kings Rama I and Rama II.

16. There are three categories of Thai dance – Khon, Lakhon and Likay. The Khon dance is the one you see on many tourist brochures, with elaborate dance moves and dancers wearing masks, gilded head-dresses and jeweled costumes. Music and dialogs are performed in the background by off-stage performers. Khon was originally a dance for the Royal Courts. The Likay dance, which is considered unsophisticated in comparison, was performed in public for the common folks and has satirical, political and comedic overtones.

17. Thailand is famous for its shadow puppet plays, Nang Yai and Nang Thalung. These plays are mainly performed in the southern part of the country, and are accompanied by music and comedic dialogs.

18. Traditional Thai music is a blending of different cultural influences, mainly Indian, Khmer and Chinese.

19. Thai cuisine, which is world famous for its blend of sweet, spicy hot, sour and salty tastes, is mainly eaten with a fork and a spoon; chopsticks are used only for certain foods. When dining with friends or in a restaurant, use your right hand to pass things and leave a little food on your plate when you finish eating. This shows you have good manners and have had enough to eat.

20. Two important Thai holidays are the Thai New Year is called Songkran, which is celebrated on 13-15 April, and Loy Krathong, which is celebrated on the full-moon day of the twelfth month of the Thai lunar calendar, which usually falls in mid-November.

By Sonal Panse Published: 4/3/2008

The Beauty Of Thai Women