Feeling Like A Princess at Sonya’s Bed & Breakfast
(above photo features my bed at the Fennel cottage)
I spent the weekend before Christmas with my family at Sonya’s Bed & Breakfast, a tucked away section at Sonya’s Garden. :)
My brother and sister-in-law decided to gift us full body massages for my parents, and foot spa for all of us “kids”, including the brothers. My mom said that her massage was one of the best she’s had, and that says a lot because she’s quite particular about her massages. But the more notable part of this story is how obviously extremely uncomfortable (fearful, even) my dad was with the idea of getting a massage, so much so that he was offering that my brother take it instead. He refused, of course, forcing my dad to go through his ordeal. When we saw our dad again after our foot spa, he looked so relaxed and only had good things to say about the massage and was already planning our next stay at Sonya’s. :D
Honestly, I sometimes dread family vacations because well, it can be quite stressful traveling with one’s family, with one member wanting to do this, the other wanting to do that, and people just rubbing each other the wrong way - the way that families usually do. But for some reason, there was none of that on this trip, and it was one of the most pleasant family vacations I’ve been on. :)
Read more about my experience and Tita Sonya’s beautiful B&B here.
![Life of PaiJuly 29 - August 3 in Pai, Thailand
I am a chill traveler, but in Pai, I was SUPER EXTRA CHILL.
Pai in northern Thailand is more than just an idyllic town (you can engage in white water rafting, elephant training, biking, trekking, yoga, meditation, go to bars, etc.), but I chose to experience this place in true small town style, in a rattan-walled hut across a rickety bamboo bridge. :)
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[Outdoor workspace]
[Indoor (messy) workspace]
[View out my window]
Scored my own private bungalow for 100THB, baby!! That’s $3.33 or 133PHP.
Granted, the bathroom was SUPER basic (read: manual flush), they gave no complimentary water (unlike Mint House, my happy Chiang Mai home), but the view won me over, plus the receptionist was friendlier than the one at the guesthouse I stayed at the first night (meh).
Mind you, not all guesthouses in Pai are this cheap. I’m just patient enough to find a good, cheap one. :)
[My bungalow’s exterior]
[The view!!]
Because of my awesome Pai home, I didn’t want to leave my room, and pretty much spent 3 whole days blogging, emailing, social media-ing, or reading from my Kindle. Seriously, what a deal. And if I had a roommate, we would only be paying 120THB, or 60THB/person. Agh, so cheap! @#$*&%!
The only times I ever had to leave was when I went to get food in town (8-10 minutes away by foot), either from Charlie & Lek, the afternoon market, or the night market (which I’m sorry I can’t blog about because I FORGOT TO TAKE PICTURES — when I saw the food I always thought: BUY. EAT. And never TAKE PICTURE — suffice it to say, the food was awesome, especially my elusive samosas. *drool*)
And each time I left to buy my rations, I embarked on my own thrilling adventure each time! I had to cross either 1 or 2 rickety bridges all the time. And my heart always did a victory dance when I successfully made it across without falling, getting wet, or dropping valuables.
[Rickety bridge #1]
[Rickety bridge #2]
View more pictures of Pai (including the town and night market).
And now, I’m back in Chiang Mai, awaiting my bus to Vang Vieng, Laos, leaving at 7pm and arriving at 1pm tomorrow. Crossing borders and going on a looooong ride again. :P
And huzzah! I’m almost blogging in “real time”. *pats self on the back*Now my mother and boyfriend really know what’s happening. :P
No more backlog,Jen
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Life of Pai
July 29 - August 3 in Pai, Thailand
