Suanthip Vana Resort Hotel Chiang Rai

... put on all their tribal 'glad rags' which were beautiful. As part of the few days we were able to have a Q&A session with the village Shaman which was fascinating and alien. Have a look on the blog some time soon and you'll see Ian and I dressed up Akha stylee! Of course there was lots of 'Akha Water' (rice wine) going around too! To deal with the hangovers, that we inevitably had, we were treated to some Akha massage and an Akha steam room session filled with ...

... a private tutor to local people who really want to learn English but can’t afford much. I have two students in Mae Yao who are doing superbly. Both have come so far in such a short time. One’s a Thai-Khmer who tries incredibly hard and still manages to have a lot of fun along the way. The other’s Thai with Chinese ancestry who loves a challenge and questions ...

... centers where children who were abandoned by their parents or whose parents died or who do not have a school in their village can come and live and go to school. The leaders here are constantly pouring into these children and lavishing them with Truth and God's love. The center itself has Bible verses painted onto little pieces of wood and hung on every single building. They also have worship every morning at 5 ...

For much of last week I was checking out the FreeSchools in the Fang area. FreeSchools World Literacy is a Canadian charity that gives education to those that otherwise don't get it in Thailand and India. Mirror Foundation runs the Thailand side of things for them. Sue (the director of FreeSchools), Judy, Jo, Jadad, O, Mai, myself and some other volunteers went to check things out and plan for the future. Here are some pictures

... thankfully has free calls from his Thai Mobile to mine! This enables me to chew the ear off him on a regular basis. Thanks also for the handy phrases. I'll impress them to no end tonight with my grasp of the language.... Love to you all, and let me know if you want me to take you off the blog! Sal XXX PS - Eh, Dan? Remember me, your mother? You might drop me a line sometime......! PPS - Its all about the Elephants, both types (private joke, sorry!)

... separatist movement. Their is some speculation as to how dedicated this group is to it's political agenda as one of the main leaders accepted asylum from the Burmese government in 1996, betraying his people for personal economic gain. Also their is Mon refugees from Burma who work the Poppy fields seeking refuge amongst the SUA from human rights violations. (Burma's soldier's have been known to use members of this tribe as ...

... rooms with all the basic mods and cons for 400 baht a night. I still like Mae Sai and besides a larger market knocking off all the latest imported Chinese technology, the town hasn't really changed that much. It is also a great place for day trips around the area. On the second day, the wife and I set out on our own for Doi Tung and Mae Fah Luang. The best way of traveling up to Doi Tung is biking. But I decided to do the wise ...

... king seat on the back, but the last bit the mahout let me sit on the head. It was very, very cool! I tried to steer him with my feet but what the hell do I know? The mahout had him under more powerful control then my feet, he remote controlled him with words. Apparently an elephant can learn up to 70 words (commands that is, they can't talk). We were three people plus a guide on the trek. One was Mark who had worked for Doctors Without Borders ...