Wow - What a Journey! Part II

Talk about a New Year's Party!

The physical facilities, grounds and setting here at the Anantara Resort/Golden Triangle in Chiang Rai, Thailand are absolutely beautiful with an elephant-themed design. Service level is somewhat spotty due to English language/communication breakdowns. But a great plus: Elephant training camp! Bev, Zen, Sofia and I experienced a magnificent New Year’s Eve Party here that included a mass Baci Ceremony, an elephant parade and a lavish dinner around the pool complex. To top it off, the Anantara even provided all guests with Lana (minority group) costumes for the party – Zen and Sofia loved the dressing up part!

In contrast to just 5 years past, it’s truly amazing to see the number of families traveling to Southeast Asia during the holidays. While at the Anantara, we met families from Santa Monica, NYC, Milwaukee, New Haven, CT, and San Francisco - a wide range of age groups – many families traveling with kids age 6-10, teenagers – Zen & Sofia met many new friends, including a Danish family. In the past we met mainly Europeans traveling with their kids – now its predominantly American families we see. It's so great to see this!

I must tell you about the Mandarin Oriental Dhari Dhevi/Chiang Mai. This is a sprawling luxury resort covering over 40 acres with spacious 2-story Thai-style villas, over-the-top amenities and very courteous, friendly English speaking staff.

-Although the service here is superb, the physical grounds are so large and spread out that the environment seems a bit overwhelming and excessive, not so much an intimate feeling.

-A must place for breakfast is the Spa Center outdoor café overlooking the property’s idyllic lush, green North Rice fields. It serves very tasty organic foods and juices – the egg-white omelet with herbs and vegetables is sooo good!

-Another bonus here for the kids is the working water buffalo in the adjacent rice fields – Zen and Sofia loved the ride on the water buffalo!

-An interesting sidebars: check out the Mandarin common-area restroom – so luxurious with pervasive scent of mint.