16. Sugar Shack (Charoen Prathet Road / 089-557-0679 / Open daily: 17:00 - 01:00) Are we feeling tipsy yet? You bet! Stop at the Sugar Shack for cocktails before you decide whether your team wants to continue with live music (18-19) or a night of dancing 'til dawn (20 -21).

17. Riverside (9-11 Charoenraj Road / 053-246-239 / Open daily: 12:00 - 02:00) Probably Chiang Mai's favourite nightspot, the Riverside is busy every night and offers seats, stools or standing at the bar. Live music blares out from two separate areas, but there's space for chatting, mingling or just bopping to the beats. Lots of young Thais here to mix with too.

18. The Brasserie (37 Charoenraj Road / 053-241-665 / Open daily: 17:00 - 02:00) Boy, we are flying now! It's been a long night and no better way to bring things to a climax than taking a pew at the Brasserie for some scintillating R&B and Rock n' Roll music courtesy of Took and his live band. If you still have the energy and the music has inspired a second wind in your sails, take a tuk-tuk to Spicy (20). Otherwise call it a night… and a good one at that.

19. Bubble Disco (46-48 Charoen Prathet Road, under Pornping Tower Hotel / 053-270-099 / Open nightly: 21:00 - 02:00) Chiang Mai's No.1 dance spot for foreigners is a 70s retro-techno dancehall that rocks every night of the week. Enjoy a Carnavalesque atmosphere and boogie 'til you drop. (No point going to Bubble until after midnight)

20. Spicy (Chaiyaphun Road (aka Kotchasan Road) / Open nightly: 21:00 - 04:00) It's the end of the night and it's "last chance saloon" time! You'll need to grab a tuk-tuk and head for Spicy. Strictly for those with strong immune systems, Spicy gathers all the deadbeats, freelance bar-girls, drunken farang and miscellaneous insomniacs in this small, crowded, smoky cavern of sin. If you can't stand it, you might find the Cocktail Caravan parked nearby where you can sit and pat yourself on the back for a night well done. If any of your party are lost in Spicy, just leave them: they've been captured.

21. Breakfast: Kuey Chiang Mai (Sriphum Road / Open daily: 18:00 - 06:00) Your last friend has gone off with a ladyboy; the others passed out in Bubble. Congratulations! You're a survivor! Reward yourself with a barbeque breakfast at the northeastern corner of the moat. You've come full-circle since last night and you're still standing. You must be Scottish or something. Join the other survivors for a `sunriser' and some sticky rice, which might just insulate your system from the hangover damage it deserves tomorrow (today). When you see the monks coming round collecting alms, you know it's time to hit the sack.

Well done, Chiang Mai: been there, done that!

OK - Ed. says enough is not enough. Here's MoT's addendum.

So… for those of you who want a mini-pub crawl, or who prefer a lower key in raucousness, here is -

Man about Town's Alternative Pub Crawl

1. Darling Wine Bar (49/21 Huay Kaew Road / Tel: 053-227-427 / Open daily: 17:00 - 24:00) A good enough place to start. Small, cozy and friendly, this wine bar is situated next to bustling Rincome Market just 200 metres west of the Huay Kaew-Superhighway Junction. Open-air seating and a decent place for people-watching, the bar is now owned by an English couple, Trevor and Jill, who have continued the Darling tradition of importing and stocking some of the finest wines in the country.

2. The Pub (189 Huay Kaew Road / 053-211-559 / Open daily: 12:00 - 24:00) Cross the road from Darling War Bar and walk 100 metres towards the aforementioned Amari Rincome-Superhighway Junction and bingo! You hit "The Pub" and are transported back to sunny Somerset or Limerick or Auckland. A favourite den of the older male expat, The Pub offers Sunday Roasts, sports on TV, and a selection of pub grub and draft beers (Tiger, Guinness and John Smith's).

3. Drunken Flower (Mao Dokmai) (295/1 Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 1/ 053-212-081 / Open daily 18:00 - 01:00, except 2nd Sunday/Monday of each month) Turn into Nimmanhaemin Road from Huay Kaew Road and walk 150 meters past the Amari Hotel. Turn into Soi 1 (Lane 1) and walk to the end and you'll find the Drunken Flower. Ever-popular with farang, especially those of an NGO disposition, this is a great venue for conversation, small get-togethers and …well… pub crawls. Food is poor, drinks are over-priced, seats uncomfortable and the live music is lame. God knows why we all go there.

4. Monkey Club (7 Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 9 / 053-226-997 / Open daily: 17:00 - 01:00) Head back to Nimmanhaemin and go four blocks until you find Soi 9 and one of Chiang Mai's most popular venues for the young and trendy. Monkey Club rocks every night with indie music and a choice of indoor air-con or outdoor seating. Good atmosphere, but limited range of drinks - local beer, Bacardi breezers and spirits.

5. Soi 13 (24 Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 13 / 083-203-3666 / Open daily: 18:00 - 00:30) Another cute Thai bar offering breezers, whisky and beer, but has a pool table, comfortable cushioned seats and big screen music videos.

6. See Scape (22/1 Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 17 / 053-222-950 / Open daily: 18:00 - 00:30) One of the area's best-kept secrets, See Scape is cool and relaxed, but less noisy and pretentious than other joints. Time to chill out and take a wee rest on your Pub Crawl.

7. Magenta (3/1 Nimmanhaemin Road Soi 17 / 086-654-2123 / Open daily: 19:00 - 00:30) Working your merry way back up to Nimmanhaemin Road, you might want to stop at this economical outdoor bar for a quick shot before wrapping up your night at a nightclub. Magenta has recently opened in a car park area and comprises no more than a caravan which serves whisky, breezers and beer, and a few tables to quietly get sloshed at.

8. Warm Up (40 Nimmanhaemin Road / 053-400-677 / Open daily: 18:00 - 01:00) A great place to end the night for those who consider themselves young and beautiful enough. Warm Up is a pretentious venue that resembles an American franchise, but which is seriously fun and offers something for everyone. There's an indoor air-con fishbowl for shuffling your feet and an outdoor zone for watching the beautiful people come and go. Warm Up even boasts a sushi bar and a cocktail bar. On Fridays and Saturdays the dance floor stays afloat 'til at least 1:30, so if you're feeling suitable sexy, Warm Up is the place to be.

9. Sudsanan (30 Ratchaphuek Road, Soi 085-038-0764 / Open daily: 18:00 - 01:00 ++) So, it's the end of your Pub Crawl and you have reconciled with the fact that you are too old (over 20) for Warm Up. Now it's time to find a comfy location with good live music and a chatty atmosphere. Leave Nimmanhaemin Road behind to the teeny-boppers and head back to Huay Kaew. Turn right and start heading back towards town. Just before Central Department Store, opposite the Shell Gas Station is a dark soi called Ratchaphuak Road that leads to Sudsanan, a modest wooden house converted into a magical little joint where you can booze and cruise until the wee hours of the morning.

Tamam Shud - as old Omar Khayam puts it: Turn down an empty glass for me.

(Text © 2007 Colin Hinshelwood 2007)