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Plastic deck chairs and small mattresses line certain blocks of Thailand’s cities.

It’s massage time.

A massage, on the sidewalk?

Yes, a Thai massage.

Sometimes called a Thai yoga massage in the States, this isn’t the get-naked variety.

Locals fill up the chairs for what feels like a mix of massage and chiropractic work.

Some businesses catering to Western tourists moved their services at least under a roof, but not always in doors. My favorite spot was open on two sides but had long, silk drapes, soothing music and a garden atmosphere.

For 150 Bhat or $5 US, I was bent and stretched and rubbed for an hour. Some people describe it as letting yoga be done to you. A truly Indochina creation, the blend of acupuncture and yoga is meant to stretch muscles and open joints.

In Chiang Mai, I did more than just sit there and relax. I took a 3-hour foot massage course, which is one part of the full body massage.

A fellow Midwesterner had signed up for the same course allowing us to practice our lessons on each other with the teacher’s oversight. It’s harder than it looks. I struggled to move my hands in sync and to put my body weight into it. The teacher kept telling us to “dance the hands.”

I also got to keep the bottle of oil I learned how to mix and a carved stick used for putting pressure on certain parts of the toes. We’ll see how well my oil bottle travels – good so far.

I even got a booklet so I can remember all this when my friends line up for their turns. All for about $30 US.

Similar courses are not hard to find in Chiang Mai. Many yoga studios also offer training and the teacher at Blue Garden does one on one professional courses.

I took my class at Namo, where I also took a yoga class. I didn’t have a chance to take the head and neck class or the one-day Thai massage class because they were full so booking ahead can be crucial. Maybe next time.

While some courses target travelers interested in learning something fun, others focus on training actual massage therapists.

Obviously, the professional instruction costs more and takes more time. A 3-day introduction to Thai massage course costs $130. Certification programs can take a month or more and fewer schools offer this but there are still a multitude of options.

Even the temple in Bangkok, Wat Pho, where Thai massage is based has a training center in Chiang Mai.

I found multiple pamphlets about trainings in the old city area and more information online. For those wanting to train seriously in Chiang Mai, research some places online and only book in advance if you’re sure. It will be important that the teachers speak English in a way you understand and that the rooms are clean.

You may also want to consider transportation around Chiang Mai. Long-term stays are fairly common so guesthouses and small apartments are not hard to find. But getting around town can be an issue. Taxi-trucks run some routes but otherwise you’re left renting a motorbike.

I’ve been wishing I had done some serious motorcycle training before I got here because this is not the place to start. I have seen many, many people with various forms of bandages. I even made one friend who had to go to the hospital every day to have his dressings replaced. This is not uncommon.

So consider the location and how you would get around once there.

Otherwise, in Chiang Mai you’re set. There’s a Starbucks, a Boots (UK drugstore) and multiple Seven-11’s.