Sunday night walking street is one of Chiang Mai's biggest attractions, certainly found on every Chiang Mai vacation must-do list. While the market has a massive, and sometimes overwhelming amount of goods for sale, there is another treat that this spectacle of consumption provides other than handicrafts and graphic T-shirts.
I refer to no other than the coveted foot massage. 75% feet and 25% neck, shoulders and back. The biggest reason for my attention being to this massage on this day at this place . . . competition has got prices down to ฿140/hr, which means $4.27 USD for an hour of thumb prodding and elbow rubbing.
A seasoned Chiang Mai ex-pat and massage connoisseur will tell you that it is definitely a good rubdown for the price, so it's not the quality that's lacking. Standard fare for a foot massage in a parlor is 200, and the fancier the place is the higher the price goes (without offering a better service, only a more chic environment).
There are two difficulties to managing a Sunday Night Walking Street massage. One, the crowd. The crowd can be so massive that if you don't get in at just the right time, you will end up in a cycle of perpetual waiting. Best to get there early and get the fresh hands before the masseuse is tired and people are lined up to soothe their feet. Second, the crowd! I know it is the same thing, but there is really so many people at the Walking Street in the high season months that it gives me anxiety to head into this part of the city. Walking down the street gives a person the feeling of a migrating salmon on it's way to spawn, or the emperor penguins huddled en masse for heat in Antartica.
Do yourself a favor and get down there early on a Sunday evening and take on an hour worth of people watching and foot relief. While you are sitting in the chair I want you to think about all of the things you can do or buy for the same price that you are receiving your paw pampering.
If you aren't in Chiang Mai, I challenge you to brainstorm ways you could rearrange your spending habits to afford a trip to Thailand. Examples include not eating out, stop buying alcohol for a month (especially from a bar or restaurant), quit paying for cable TV, etc. It might seem crazy because you are so used to doing or having these things, but you can get some inspiration here from Phil, who has already done it. It is possible! Leave a commet to say if you will take the challenge and implement your saving ideas.
There are two difficulties to managing a Sunday Night Walking Street massage. One, the crowd. The crowd can be so massive that if you don't get in at just the right time, you will end up in a cycle of perpetual waiting. Best to get there early and get the fresh hands before the masseuse is tired and people are lined up to soothe their feet. Second, the crowd! I know it is the same thing, but there is really so many people at the Walking Street in the high season months that it gives me anxiety to head into this part of the city. Walking down the street gives a person the feeling of a migrating salmon on it's way to spawn, or the emperor penguins huddled en masse for heat in Antartica.
Do yourself a favor and get down there early on a Sunday evening and take on an hour worth of people watching and foot relief. While you are sitting in the chair I want you to think about all of the things you can do or buy for the same price that you are receiving your paw pampering.
If you aren't in Chiang Mai, I challenge you to brainstorm ways you could rearrange your spending habits to afford a trip to Thailand. Examples include not eating out, stop buying alcohol for a month (especially from a bar or restaurant), quit paying for cable TV, etc. It might seem crazy because you are so used to doing or having these things, but you can get some inspiration here from Phil, who has already done it. It is possible! Leave a commet to say if you will take the challenge and implement your saving ideas.
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| This lady did what I have paid double for elsewhere. |
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