"My mum (Mrs. Chaisai) wanted to use this piece of land as a place for meditation. So I fulfilled her dream," she recalled with her trademark smile.

Simplicity is always the key to ML Sudavadee's designs. In the East-meets-West fashion show, she defined her design as integrated for relaxation of body and mind with high-quality hospitality and professional performance.

From the outside, this small and romantic resort is just a cluster of ordinary bamboo huts with thatched rooms, but once you step inside you realize that these huts are special. Devoid of brand name decorative items and expensive furniture, Phu Chaisai chose to build with decorative items.

The air is just one of the many attractions of Phu Chaisai (Mountain of Clear Hearts), an enchanting little "boutique" resort located in the hills outside of Mae Chan, in Chiang Rai. The relative silence is another. The breathtaking views afforded from the generous terraces and the bright and airy rooms, as well as most of the common areas, is yet another.

The resort is ideally for the traveller who wants to get away from it all without leaving the comforts of home, to get off the beaten track but without going to far. The rooms call "cottages", are stacked three high in seven hillside clusters and constructed in traditional hill tribe style with mud floors, bamboo walls, and leaf roofs.

All of the furnishings are, of course, ingeniously made of bamboo, from the tables and chairs to the door handles and light fixtures, even clothes hangers and soap dishes.
 

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The open-air restaurant with a panoramic mountain views of Doi Mae Salong offers an extensive simple menu, but not too simple. The menu includes outstanding "Sai Oua" (Northern sausage) made from scratch, and even pizza and bread baked fresh daily. Most vegetable and herbs are grown organically on the property, with the goal of being as close to self-sufficient as possible.