Away Suansawan Mae Rim Chiang Mai

... the local golf course.<br><br>I took a stroll down the edge of the moat and found a cool little spot with heaps of bookstores. I traded the ones I had read for the Twilight book. People keep raving about it. We'll see. Spent the rest of the afternoon doing much the same - lazing about.<br><br>The golf course that Mark played at made it into his top 5 all time favourite golf courses. Probably mainly ...

... were taken into a world of cages, chains and very sad monkeys. They were forced to do tricks that they clearly didn&#8217;t want to do (including swimming) and it gave us a real insight into animal tourism in Thailand. As soon as we are home, Beckie will be writing a letter to the animal welfare people about it!<br><br>A trip to northern Thailand would not be complete without visiting the Golden triangle. This is basically where the borders of Thailand ...

... someone doing the moves for you. The petite woman used every part of her body to work me and stretch me out. She would lean with her body against one leg and use her feet to push against the other to get a good groin stretch. The whole body is pulled and pushed the whole time and besides the back, isn't really massaged so much as stretched.<br><br><br><br>We somehow found the cheapest Thai massage place in Thailand ($4.50US, wahoo!) and it was really good- right next to Miguels on ...

... that a very nice man walked around the rest of the 'Kingdom' with us telling us all about the tigers. He used to be a social worker, but says he likes animals betters. I think he was talking to dad when he said that.<br><br>Then we went to the Chiang Mai Zoo and Aquarium. It is huge. The first thing we ran into is some huge hippos who wanted to be fed. What do you know, there was a lady there selling carrots. Their mouths and bellies were even ...

... neck or the droopy ear lobe people. Just an ordinary village with people going about their business. Made me feel uncomfortable. Was if we were supposed to treat them like zoo animals. Taking pictures of them and of their houses. I wouldn't like it if a group of Japanese tourists came down my street and started taking pictures and walking on my front lawn right up to my house and peered in through the windows. Not that I did any of that but I imagine that sort of stuff ...

... returning from their outings, heels clicking, the music from a club or bar, the drunk Europeans screaming at the top of their lungs and last nights new addition the new neighbor who snores loud enough to be heard thru the walls(thinks it's the angry asian woman's boyfriend or husband. We have resorted to ear plugs and ipods but we are waiting tonight for our new noise with much anticipation. We have talked a lot about what we have been doing but it's the city around us that ...

... she was forced to set out alone. Alison and I sat in the garden having a chat. If I'm honest, my first impressions of her had been of a ditzy but likable young lady. As we talked though, it became apparent that the fuzzy valley girl exterior masked a very sharp mind. She told me of how she gone to an arts school as she was a singer, and at Uni had managed to work at Harvard's stem cell research labs. She plans to go on to study to be a doctor ...

... merrily drank the night away in company of our host, group and another of Sun's friends from Germany. Such a mixed group can only bring fresh conversation and constant stimulus for chatter. Our Dutch friends Aad and Gerr kept up beer for beer with the younger guys and were quick to ask what we thought about having to travel with these "old guys." Their humor, wisdom, and tolerance belied their age, proving them to be young at art. Avid travelers, they also further ...

... that the Chinese New Year might limit the number of guesthouse rooms available in Chiang Mai. Energy suddenly became of utmost importance as I wandered the streets with my back-pack, in search of a suitable place to hang my hat. If only I had an appetite. Surely I would be tempted by those tantalizing scents of Thai delicacies on every street corner. But more often than not, I would pass by the pork noodle stands and the exotic fruit displays, eager to return to my room ...

... br><br> <br><br>Katie, me &amp; the German dude were the only 3 people to finish this stage, which shows how exhausting it was. I feel tired just thinking about it... All the others in our group gave up, chucked their bikes onto the jeep which was following us and sat inside recovering, the lightweights! <br><br>So with heavy limbs we made our way to the riverside cafe for ...