chiang mai: from night bazaar to sunday night market

Adorable doglet hanging out at the Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

For our very first night in Chiang Mai, we checked out the Night Bazaar. It's open every evening, and I think this is one of the setups that makes the city such a fun place to be - for those of us who don't frequent bars and nightclubs, it's great to have an alternative option, and Simon and I love markets!

The night had barely begun when we fell in love with the most adorable little dog just chilling out on a big green garbage bin. We devoted several minutes of our time to dog-patting, it was the sweetest thing - so sweet and docile and quiet, no hint of small dog syndrome in this one!

A fruit shake stall at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

There is no shortage of stalls selling freshly blended fruit shakes in Chiang Mai. We kicked things off with a passion fruit shake for 40 baht.

Passionfruit shake at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

We also grabbed some zingy herb sausage for 50 baht...

Chiang Mai herb sausage at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

And a very spicy green papaya salad for 40 baht... (It doesn't look spicy, but trust me, it was!)

Som tum (green papaya salad) at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

As well as some noodle roll thing for 30 baht...

Noodle roll at Chiang Mai Night Bazaar.

Then plonked ourselves down in front of the open stage area at Kalare Night Bazaar, where there were plenty of tables and chairs around for those who want to enjoy their food while partaking in free cultural shows in a convivial atmosphere. All in all, we had a very nice evening!

Musical performances at Kalare Night Bazaar.

So the above happened day one in our North Thailand trip. Fast forward to day nineteen, and we were checking out the night market scene in Chiang Mai again, this time at the Sunday Walking Street Market.

Noodle stall at Chiang Mai's Sunday Walking Street Night Market.

Our main meal this time around consisted of two small bowls of noodles for 35 baht each - noodles in green curry sauce, and khao soi, which we have been eating quite often in the Northern Thailand region (see here and here). Khao soi is also noodles in a curry sauce which seems to be of either the red or yellow curry variety, plus it is typically served with a lime wedge and crunchy noodles on top.

Khao soi from the noodle stall.

That wasn't enough, of course, so we supplemented with various snacks. Such as grilled bacon-wrapped enoki mushrooms, which we have previously enjoyed in Pai - three bundles for 50 baht.

Bacon-wrapped enoki mushrooms at the Chiang Mai Sunday Night Market.

For once, we went past a fruit shake/smoothie stall without purchasing anything...

A smoothie stall at the Sunday Market.

But we did stop at the juice stall, where I selected a guava juice for 10 baht, while Simon went for a passionfruit-infused beetroot juice for 15 baht.

A juice stall at the Sunday Market.

I kind of regret not trying the gac juice, as gac fruits look so intriguing!

Gac fruit at the markets.

We also splurged on some fancy ice cream on sticks, which cost us 35 baht per stick. Behold the delectable "crunchy lime" ice cream, which is basically like a frozen treat version of lime cheesecake. So good.

Crunchy lime popsicle from the Sunday Night Market in Chiang Mai.

Then there is the "chilli pineapple", which to me, kind of tastes like a refreshing Malaysian-style rojak (a sweet-savoury fruit and vegetable salad).

Chilli pineapple icy pole from the Sunday Night Market in Chiang Mai.

They also sell arts and crafts at this market...

An art stall at the Sunday Walking Street Market.

As well as shoes, clothing, souvenirs, and other stuff.

This darling dog was not for sale, but I'm sure many of the visitors of the night market would have loved to take it home with them. What a cutie!

Very cute doglet hanging out at the Chiang Mai Walking Street Sunday Night Market.

That's all for today - and hey, we're halfway through the Chiang Mai series! Hope you're having fun reading the posts - three down, three more to go! We'll meet again soon!