We’ve spent about five days total in Chiang Mai, walking around the little “Old City” and looking at a lot of stuff (and not buying anything! ok, one thing). There are lots of markets here chock full of the usual Thai souvenirs. There’s the Night Bazaar, open everyday. I met a lovely woman named Po there, who had been to Pun Pun. She was really stunning – I should have asked her to take her photograph. She had the most beautiful long silver hair, bright smile, and very fit body. Every minute or two she’d mention how “old” she was. She gave me the name of her “guru,” who I still need to look up. We also went to Warorot Market, which is mostly food and stuff locals want; a market right at Tha Pae Gate (mostly touristy stuff); and the Saturday Walking Market, and the walking really is a key part of that experience.
As the title of this blog post suggests, we did a little grooming here in Chiang Mai. I spoiled myself and got another massage, justified by my 2 hours/day of manual labor on the farm. I walked down the street to Green Bamboo Massage (Moon Muang Soi 1) and I got the oil massage this time, which was amazing. The therapist used some thai massage techniques but none of the airplane rides from last time. A $10 well spent.
I then went next door and got a $3 hair cut. I’ve needed a cut for a while and despite my creative asks of Brandon, he just wouldn’t cut my hair for me. I googled extensively to find a hair stylist in Chiang Mai but mostly found horror stories about hair cuts gone awry. I asked my massage therapist where to get a haircut and she said that she heard good things about the woman next door.
I walked into Nita’s hair salon/internet cafe and immediately fell in love with the place. I think it was Nita’s personality and warmth that drew me in. She listened to what I wanted (just a clean up, and thin the hair out, it’s getting too heavy!) and within 15 minutes I got one of the best cuts I’ve ever gotten. We talked a bit and she lamented that she didn’t have a website, as she’d love to promote herself more. Website? I can do that!
The next day and I stopped by and we worked on a website for Nita’s business. Check it out: thaibeautyandinternet.weebly.com. I’ve been using the Weebly interface and highly recommend it to anyone looking for a simple website. It felt good to do something worthwhile, something I’ve missed out on since leaving McLeod Ganj. So if you need a haircut in Chiang Mai, check out Nita at Thai Beauty and Internet. One last thing – I love that she has an internet cafe and hair salon in one. What a great use of space. Ok – a 2nd last thing- Brandon got a haircut too and he loves his cut. 2 happy customers! And he’s much harder to please than me.
We’re at the Arcade Bus Station in Chiang Mai waiting for our lift north to Chiang Rai. Signing out for now. Tomorrow, Laos!
I wanted to let you know this shop is no longer. I visited and called Nita to make sure. She doesn’t have a shop anymore. May want to take down the website. It was very good of you to post this and organize that for her