Khum Nai Phol Chiang Rai

... a total population of some 2.3 million people in five countries: Thailand, Laos, Myanmar, China and Vietnam. It is said that in Thailand alone there are 70,000 scattered over some 300 villages and live in the mountains through out Chiangmai and Chiangrai provinces. They farm mountain rice, corn, soybeans and raise ...

... from the wheel and as Mr Baker looked down he realized the tire was no longer on the rim. We stopped and we all jumped out of the back onto the road. Straight away the driver new what was wrong and set about fetching the jack and the spare wheel. The only problem was……there was no spare wheel. The wheel was on another truck. We did however know the cause of the problem, Chasha had said as she got on the bus “I bet we will get a ...

... ultra posh resort, which was quite hilarious, it was taken really seriously, however I am sure you can imagine that having people riding elephants swinging six foot long sticks at a ball while in motion is a recipe for disaster! We got to feed the elephant before the game which was fun, the elephants were just absolutely demolishing whole tables of fruit, whole watermelons in one! I have 5 days left now and actually as things are starting to come ...

... and by the end of the year they will be in a good position to continue things without me. I think by the end of the year I would have finished contributing to them having more money, more volunteers and them reaching out to more people in a wider area. So that is good. I think I have made a difference. I am thinking that I may try to work in disaster relief. This is something I have been interested in for a while. It would ...

... this parade was one of the best photo opportunities that I have ever come across. I was surprised by how large this parade was though because even though I had an hour, I did not see either the beginning or the end of the procession. This was only the opening event for the "2009 Chiang Rai Flower Parade and Beauty Pagaent", so I was disappointed that we were not able to stay in Chiang Rai for a few more days. However since our bus was leaving at 11:15, at 11:00 I ...

... An early start and emily and I with two cheerful french compadres Pierre and Stephanie in toe began are jungle exploration. First on narrow boat we traversed one of the many snaking rivers out of Ching Rai. After half an hours marsh reed skating we arrived at one of the few working elephant sanctuaries. Yes I had agreed to ride an elephant. Now in the light of day i realised the enormity of the task I had taken. With no head for heights and deeply unsure of animals of ...

Chiang Rai was just an over night on our way to Chiang Khong and the Laos border. Some of the eateries seem a bit more upmarket than other towns. There is a decent night market. This is our last night in Thailand on this trip: Thailand Summary ------------------ - Well developed tourist infrastructure. - Comfort zone compared with other Asian countries (Myanmar). - People are friendly but your are always going to be a farang. - Many farang with thai ...

The bus trip to Chiang Rai was a pleasant surprise: comfortable seats, air-con, on-board toilet and even a lunch stop! Aside from the small child travelling with his mother on the seat next to me, who whined incessantly for several hours of the trip and then squirted milk all down my leg whilst playing with the carton, I would go so far as to say I actually enjoyed it. At Chiang Rai I checked into a cheap & cheerful guesthouse ...

... project. (Human trafficking is pretty much the modern phrase for the slave trade). Anyway, the camp was run over the school holidays with numerous Hill Tribe kids attending. These kids are the people that will be at risk of being trafficked when they are older. So the camp aimed to arm then with the tools to avoid that. They learnt languages, about human rights, money management. They had fun, were given contact numbers, information about human trafficking, etc.

We came to Chiang Rai to see a specific temple, Ban Ruang Khu. A very famous contemporary thai artist, whose name escapes me, is creating the most beautiful temple I have ever seen. It is a work in progress, it should be finished in 25 years, but the main temple is close to completion. It has surpassed my previous favorite, Sagrada Familia, which is located in Barcelona, Spain. Wow.....................amazing!