Viang Tak Riverside Hotel

It was inevitable, we were going to take one of those behemoths through the night at one stage or another, don't get me wrong, I don't mind them but given half a chance I'd rather take a sleeper train or break the journey up a little bit but this one just had to be done. More on that later.....<br><br>Getting up today had a little bit of sadness attached as it was to be our last day in Chiang ...

<br><br><br>As my plane circles Bangkok late at night, I felt like I wanted to back it up, stick the plane in reverse, as I was hanging onto the life I left which I loved in NZ, sitting in a unusual state of flux inbetween cultures. As anticipated I walked out of the airport to be hit in the face by the humid heat wall of Asia. In the taxi into the city going 160 on the motorway, no seat belts worked, and hanging my head out the window I couldn't help go wahooooooo ...

Right-o-, so, where was I? Oh yes, on the way to Bangkok! Gee golly wiz I'm behind on these blogs, which means I'll skip the small trivial details about our farewell to Liz, or the 3 hour car ride with a driver named Chewy, or our long search for Collin and Beau. These events, although annoyingly hilarious in retrospect, do not seem worthy of your attention. I would even go so far as to say Bangkok in general was a bit anticlimactic. I mean, Thai people go ball to the walls for ...

... to local people - Allowing tourism to add value to local communities through cultural and knowledge exchange - Allowing tourism to contribute to sustainable development, so communities can become self sufficient - Minimising the negative impacts of tourism - Practicing responsible tourism - Practicing community based tourism. This means empowering communities so that they can manage their own projects. We are engaged in ...

Almost 10pm, ancient, old capital of Thai (Lanna) kingdom-Sukothai. Cool, bright fluorescent lights, timer program on PC showing cost minute by minute, uploading videos of elephant riding Mood: glad to be here, missing company, twinge of sad on bus Today I had a leisurely morning as didn't sleep wel last few nights. Mattress was thin and hard, and actually got chilly under the fan. Thinking about ...

Separated from Trena for a bit....wanted to do some jungle trekking up North....caught a plane and set up a trek. Ended up in the hospital with strep throat for a night...yikes....a little scary. Went on an amazing trek...met tons of people. Went on a bamboo raft. Hiked through rice fields, swam in a waterfall lagoon. Had amazing guides....got VIP treatment... :)

... gushy love songs. The district leader wants to see my paperwork and passport. He reminds me that he's concerned for my security, but I am welcome to stay in his village. His assistant, a Kachin (different ethnic group) asks for English dictionaries and a copy of a English/Karen/Burmese pronunciation CD that I'm producing back in Mae Sot. I tell him I'll get it to him when I can, but in the dark, I soon forget where he lives. I head back to Mae Sot early next ...

... students I'm hoping to interview. I talk to a few of them, and although they're shy and their English is lacking, they are far more politically astute than most American teenagers. State rights within a federal system? These kids know what they're up against and what they'll have to do if the military regime in Burma ever falls. In a nearby building, a group of Australian aid workers are showing photographs of downunder to a crowd of students. Since Australia is one of the ...

... only 400baht, but the bus was due to arrive in less than an hour, so we laughed and said no thanks. I got some sleep and Idan had a conversation with the motorcycle taxi driver from earlier. The bus arrived and the driver seemed like he wanted to push the rickety loud bus to it's limits and drove as fast as possible which i had mixed feelings about. At some point he stopped and checked the back window, seeing it wasn't very stable ...