Chiang Mai, Thailand’s second largest city, lies about 435 miles northwest of Bangkok.  It is the preferred base for exploring northern Thailand and a jumping off point for adventures in Burma and Laos.

Home to 200,000 people and 300 temples, Chiang Mai is often idealized as a quaint, moated, walled city surrounded by mountains.

We discovered it to be modern while still managing to maintain its charm and sense of place.  Still, like any growing city, it is grappling with rapid development and pollution.

It is also gaining a reputation as a center for Asian-influenced health and wellness.

Early in our trip planning we had pegged it as a place to spend an extended period of time, giving the kids a chance to make good progress on school work.

We spent our first few days there exploring the city, sightseeing and taking note of all the ways we could improve our health while in town.

After a few days I came across one spa that was clearly differentiating itself from the hundreds of other clones.  Janrawee House bills itself as an alternative spa that allows people to “Detoxify for Real Beauty.”

They had my attention.

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