Namkhong Guesthouse Chiang Rai

... in 2005]. They were in the Lonely Planet and it said that they offered one week volunteer programmes. We decided this would be really cool so off we trotted to MA. We got there and there was this British guy who seemed to be in charge of things and he was a PENIS head! Really unwelcoming and was basically like 'We only want people for 2 weeks we have too many volunteers as it is'. Nob! Then I explained that I was there 4 years prior with Madventurer [an English ...

... get so much out of so little. We’re talking childcare centres, schools, local hill-tribe guides, handicraft artists, village leaders, hill-tribe staff, hospital patients, orphanages, vocational schools, Montessori schools, regular schools, kids with special-needs, Monks in thousand-year-old temples, pigs and chickens and the people that chase them, hack them up and cook ...

... surrounding area. i got my first moped and was an amazing day of cruising around villages and going 80km (which on a moped in thailand is quite a feat!) to the nearby national park, which is home to the highest point in thailnd. it was truly amazing how this moped (In mostly first gear) made it up some of the steepest and windy roads i have seen. it was fun coming down though! i had the pleasure of seeing many waterfalls and stunning views. the ...

... Every 10 seconds someone will ask you if you want a tuk tuk (not a poxy cracker Andy!) or to buy something, and if you smile and say no thanks they beam at you and leave you alone. My particular favourites are Ai and Ramphet from O'Malleys. They see me walking through the Amusarn market a few times a day and lean over the railings of O'Malleys and yell "Saaw-ee, you come in for a swifty...ha ha ha", then they genuinely crack up laughing for ...

... Chiang Mai and the north: It has been about 6 days and I have left Bangkok to ventured north on my own. I took a direct over-night bus to Chiang Mai about 12 hours. It took me a day or so to get orientated but in that time I saw markets and temples. Right now one temple is having a festival called "Inthakin" (Blessing of peace) held at (wat chedi Lunag) a statue of the buda is paraded around the streets wile people sprinkle ...

... in for one more day - this kind of forced my hand so off i was back to Thailand I went to Chaing Rai - which i was told was nice - don't get me wrong it is nice but its just a smaller version of Chaing Mai - which is basically my home in Thailand ...

... then went to Chaing Saen to see an old Wat before gettting back to Chaing Rai in the dark.  Had dinner at the Old Siam which is apparently also the Old Dutch.  Well it is a place we will probably not visit again -- good luck to the waiters there -- I don't think they know how to run a restaurant -- I think they were too busy watching old Thai sit coms in the back ...... We are sleepy now.  Off to bed and tomorrow's adventure. ....