Rainy Day in Chiang Mai (November 19, 2025)

In Thailand, there’s the “rainy season” and there’s the “dry season.” Historically, November marks the start of the “dry” season and so November 19th should be well into the dry season. Such is life. We woke up to a heck of a downpour this morning. Not a subtle light drizzle, but more of a violent “I’ve been saving all these buckets of water for YOU!” sort of rain.

Didn’t phase Violet in the slightest as she slept right through it. Elena and I woke up at our regular 6am time without alarm. Ah, the “advantages” of getting older. We had a nice lie in and then a wonderful breakfast at the hotel. And then …

Cross stitch! Elena loves this hobby when there’s down time ….

There’s the smile. Just needed a minute to be “ready.”

Yes, I know. I need some hobbies of my own. I’ve been reading a lot more while on this trip. In addition to all the “broccoli” books (what Elena calls anything that’s educational, self-help, life-improvement, or anything else that falls into the category of “not fun” reading), I’ve been enjoying the Douglas Adam’s Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy series. As well as discovering which streaming services allow me to watch while out of the United States (i.e. Amazon Prime vs. Netflix).

Despite the rain, I might go for a swim. Why not? It’s still warm, right?

I was able to do some Yoga in my room thanks to my good friend Yoga with Adriene. As much as I prefer live Yoga, having support via YouTube has been incredibly supportive. And yes, despite the rain, there will still be plenty of options for a Thai Massage today so I’m sure Elena and I will enjoy that when the rain lets up a bit.

In fact, the only thing we probably won’t do is poke around old town. And that’s okay. We did our fair share of poking yesterday. I think we did enough exploring for both days we’re here in Chiang Mai. And, who knows? The rain may let up and we may get some bonus time to poke around. Either way, we’re in Thailand with no agenda. That’s the best way to be on vacation, right?

Time to cease the day. Carpe diem!