Northern Thailand

  Pai, Thailand
Wednesday, July 18, 2007

So we began our epic journey to Chiang Mai via pick up truck, 3hr boat, 8hr bus journey, followed by a 15hr train journey and finally a taxi. The sleeper train was fun but incredibly sweaty! 
We arrived in the city of Chiang Mai at 6am and had the usual task of finding a suitably cheap (but decent) guesthouse to rest our sweaty, weary bodies! But no sleep for us, oh no, we hired crappy pink push bikes and tackled the crazy traffic of tuk tuks, taxis and buses, to explore just a few of the 300 temples of Chiang Mai. That evening we visited the night bazarre and Faye was given the opportunity to show off her excellent haggling skills (Rachel is far to soft ha ha). The following day we took a "bus" up a long, steep winding road to Doi Suthep, a temple set on the mountain side overlooking Chiang Mai.
Wat Phra Doi Suthep this is where an elephant carrying relics of Budha is said to have died, hence the sacred temple. This was our favourite Wat so far partly because we got blessed by a monk, for goodluck and happiness, which so far appears to be working. That night we experienced the night life of Chiang Mai begining with a lady-boy show and some Thai boxing action (including Faye being taught how to fight by a Thai admirer). We also met some fit Ausie blokes (from Brisbane) who kindly informed us that there is a major water drought going on in Oz and that you are only allowed four minute showers, so thats something to look forward to!
We ended the night in Bubble nightclub which was a curious yet entertaining establishment where we made friends with some lady-boys with whom we compaired assets! We enjoyed Chiang Mai but found the place a bit sleazy with a heavy emphasis on sex tourism, despite this the charm and beauty of Chiang Mai make it well worth the visit.
The next morning we took the local bus (yes local) along the mountain road up to Pai. This four hour journey was possibly the most uncomfortable journey of our lives. The seat Faye was sat on was stuck jolted forward so the seat infront was almost touching her forehead. The seat I was sat in was stuck jolted back and had two shards of metal sticking out which poked me in the bum. mmm comfy! The leg room was also non existent even for us short arses. (I think you get the idea). We could have paid an extra 80 pence or so and travelled in airconditioned minibus luxury but where is the fun in that?
We eventually emerged from the clouds arriving at our destination of Pai. This quiet, layed back valley town has become a popular retreat for travellers, artists, musicians and hippies who come to visit and end up staying. Hence the town has a very chilled, relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Pai is spread around the river and is overlooked by green jungle covered mountains littered with waterfalls and hot springs.
After settling into a hostel we went for dinner and bumped into our friend Shane (last seen in Koh Tao) and his friend Phill. We went with them to a place called Moon Village, a Japanese Hippy commune on the outskirts of Pai where they were having a music/art festival, we listened to a jamming session and ate banana love muffins. these are made from bananas and yep you guessed it, lots of love! All a bit surreal really.
After a good lie-in and an hour watching a gripping Thai soap we had the bright idea of hiring mountain bikes and cycling 8km uphill in the searing heat to visit a waterfall! Needless to say we wouldn't have embarked on the journey if we had realised that the map wasnt to scale and if it had shown the contours! (Can I just add that I have never done this much excercise in my entire life! - Faye). Whilst straining and sweating up the hill we were frequently laughed at by locals, who thought we were "ting tong" (crazy)  for not hiring motorbikes and riding up like everyone else. We didnt because I am too chicken to hire a moped. So we eventually reached the waterfalls, had a quick dip in our knickers and bras (not a pretty site for the onlooking Thai tourists) and free-wheeled all the way home. We had an early night due to sore bums and in readiness for our 3 hour elephant treck the next day. Now let me impart a piece of wisdom for you, if you are suffering from saddle sore it is not the best plan to spend 3 hours riding bareback on an enormous elephant. This was the second most uncomfortable journey so far, but most definately worth the pain! We spent one and a half hours wandering through the jungle and one and a half hours being thrown into the river by the elephants.
Health and Safety was not a feature of this experience, and there were moments when our lives flashed before our eyes. One such moment was when our elephant decided to uproot a tree whilst i was sat on its neck and Faye had nothing to hold onto. It was only our superiour rodeo skills that stopped us from falling off the massive beast. But we will remmember this rare and beautiful experience for the rest of our lives. The ride was followed by a dip in the hot springs to get the river parasites out of our pants and soothe the bum.
Last night we sampled the night life of Pai and made some new friends along the way by hitchng rides on motorbikes (again perfectly safe mum honestly). So with more bruises and bites that we thought possible its time to waddle like John Wayne out of Thailand and into Laos. By the way we have been informed by our friends in Koh Tao that the weather is now beautifull down there, (bastards!) We appear to be bringing Yorkshire with us wherever we go!
Anyway, bye for now
lots of love Faye and Rachel xxx