Four Tans of Fun in Penang!: Chiang Mai--Baan Suksan and Nearby Restaurants

It didn't take us long to settle into our bright and airy family guest room in our modest guesthouse that cost just US$30 a night.

The location was fantastic as things worth exploring were just 15 minutes walk in any direction.

While there are many guesthouses that are inexpensive in Chiang Mai, there are few that accommodate 4 to 5 people.

Hungry, we went back outside to explore the quaint Vietnamese Restaurant we had passed. We had not had good Vietnamese food for a long while and were quite excited!

We were thirsty, and the 15cent water was great!

The restaurant is family owned and run, and as we arrived, the boy was apologetic and informed us that it might be a while before we are served because they were suddenly slammed with customers.

This table of ladies were long time patrons of this restaurant, but had lost touch with them as they had moved recently. They were thrilled to have found them again and were not shy about sharing their high praise for this place.

A mound of fresh herbs is a promising start to a Vietnamese Meal.

Crispy, fresh spring rolls!

We had to wait quite a while between courses, but it was very pleasant in the shade.

So we amused ourselves by checking out the restaurant.

The green papaya salad with broad shavings was a nice twist.

Fried fish cake.

The kids found a willing friend to be petted out back.

What looked like a tiny cafe opened out to a large courtyard with many more tables in the back.

Seafood fried rice that was even better than it looks!

Fermented pork ribs that were tangy, earthy, succulent and so easy to devour.

Chicken Kway Teow.

The meal took over an hour and a half, but I didn't mind.

Later that evening, we tried an Italian Restaurant that we marked earlier in the morning--Pucinella da Stefano. Monica adored the velvety butternut squash soup.

The kids hit the 4 cheese wood fired pizza hard, but it kicked them back with rich dairy. They didn't feel so well after.

Risotto.

Pepperoni Pizza.

Tagliatelle with roasted eggplant and ricotta cheese.

Some locals were playing a game of Baachi in a lot devoted to this game near out guesthouse. They were warm and friendly and invited us among them to watch. They even invited us to play, but we wisely declined.

Morning!

The kids really wanted to try a western breakfast in this new-age-y guesthouse. The food was good, really good, but the portions were less then zen-like. It warped your perspective when you realize that the hashbrown was smaller than the egg yolks! And it was not cheap.