Chiang Mai, Thailand (Nimman)

Best gym: Playground Fitness ($2 for a day pass or $50 for a month) Best Cafe: Pai Yan Yai Coffee (downstairs has comfy couches, upstairs is for quite study/work)

• A cup of coffee is more expensive than a meal
• Police will set up checkpoints to extract money from you. A no helmet bribe is 500Bhat and you go on your merry way. I told him I’d give him 200Bhat and he accepted. Actually, compared to my interactions with police in America, this was a rather pleasant one
• Text 5555 for lol or hahah (5 in Thai is pronounced 'ha') or add 'ka' for female and 'krap' for male onto the end of some messages for politness
• There are no beggars or homeless people. I can't remember being asked for money even once.
• In terms of robberies, one of the safest places I've ever been to. Things just don't get stolen here. I've left my phone on my scooter multiple times and it was there when I returned.
• Red lights are not respected. Most cars will stop for pedestrians in the crosswalk with the walking man flashing, but not all. If you are crossing the street, look before crossing even if the crossing man is blinking and hurry the hell through the crosswalk. I’ve seen motorcyclists miss pedestrians by less than 2 feet.
• "First Class" movie theatres makes regular movies no longer enjoyable. You get your private two seated comfy recliners, complimentary popcorn and soda and only about 20 total other seats.
• Rent a scooter! It makes getting around easier and you can park anywhere. They cost $80-$120 (2,500–4,000 bhat) per month depending on the season. Buy a phone holder (for directions) at Kad Suen Kaew shopping center.
• Awesome food courts in the shopping malls, huge, quick, and cheap
• Great city for golfing plus night golf is allowed and common
• Bars close at midnight. This is a great thing! If you want to party longer there are places that stay open later.
• There is a small latin dance community here with a few nights of lessons and some dance studios and latin music nights.
• For such a small city (130k) there a lot of gyms (15+) and cafe’s
• For the most part, the streets are very smooth to drive on, no big pot holes
• There are a ton of day trips nearby (Grand Canyon swimming park, hot springs, waterfalls, hikes, elephant reserves, theme parks, ATVs, botanical gardens, bungee jump, etc.)
• They have tourist police and apparently, they’re actually extra legit and always side with the tourist. The number is 1155
• So many events because this is such a digital nomad city, literally multiple events going on every night of the week from pool parties, language exchanges, youtubbers, etc.
• No one beeps their horn
• The red trucks are public buses. Just tell the driver where you want to go. 30Bhat per person

Thai Basic Words and Phrases Language Phonetics Hello - sawatdii-krap Thank you - khop-kun-krap Cute - narak-jung Very beautiful - suay-makma Stop - yut You're welcome - mai-pen-rai No - mai Yes - chai Bye - bai Tasty - zaap / aroy Water - naam I love you - phom-rak-khun How much? - taorai Chicken - gai How are you? - sabaaidii-mai?