Ohhh, Pai. One of my happy places. San Francisco feels gloomy and stressful today so I'm mentally transporting myself to Art in Chai, where I spent countless (literally. The lady definitely thought I was a degenerate) hours reading, FaceTiming, and journaling while sipping delicious Chai lattes.
While Southern Thailand can be somewhat polarizing (people either love the beaches and parties or feel scammed by the locals and overwhelmed by the crowds), most people I met while traveling fell in love with Northern Thailand. I didn't really have expectations for Chiang Mai or Pai (again, having no expectations is key) and I fell in love with both cities.
Here's a secret about my trip to Southeast Asia: I didn't do any research. I bought a one-way ticket to Bangkok, had a close friend email me some recommendations, and assumed I would figure the rest out by talking to fellow travelers. Thankfully, I assumed correctly and there were very few (maybe one or two) times on the trip when I thought, "man, I really wish I had done more research." Great adventures can't be too planned, after all.