Chiang Mai, Thailand

I've been busy here and haven't been able to write my traditional end of year blog listing the places I've been, etc. So instead I will write a new year intention post and then include photos of my time in Chiang Mai...

2015 was an abundant year of firsts: I wrote and published a thesis to receive my masters degree; I survived a life-threatening situation in the Alaskan wilderness; I spontaneously encountered a flash flood in a slot canyon in Utah; I learned the techniques of how to build sustainable housing and had hands-on work building in New Mexico and Colorado; I biked 440 miles across 3 states; I traveled to a new country-Thailand.
I believe that we need to constantly be experiencing firsts. And they don't have to be huge undertakings like traveling abroad. They can be as simple as trying a new food or running your first 5K race. Challenging ourselves, taking risks, facing fears, getting out of our comfort zones, and experiencing firsts contributes to personal growth. I'm not saying it's easy either. Traveling is stressful for me and I can honestly say I would be much more comfortable at home, but pushing ourselves to get uncomfortable, to be brave, adds to our character and gives new experiences to draw upon. It adds to the lens in which we view the world. If I keep doing the same things and remain complacent how am I growing as a person? I intend to keep pushing my comfort zones (not necessarily means dangerously, mom) and continue to experience firsts and increase my own personal growth -->These are my thoughts as another year has passed and I embark on a new year full of unknowns and firsts. I've got some big ideas for this year-and those ideas are constantly changing, shifting, morphing into new and better ideas.

And now...
After leaving the island, we traveled to Thailand's second largest city, Chiang Mai, in the North.