C-hampden's travel blogs:
|
|
  | |  |
Hill tribe jungle trekking!
Entry 37 of 67 | show all | print this entry |
Well I survived!!!! Got back from the jungle trek yesterday and it was awesome. The first day we drove out to the jungle, stopping to pick up fruit and veg from a market, then stopping at a hillside temple. It was the first time we got to know our tour guides, Rambo and Quad, who seemed nice guys from the start. We had a nice mix of a group too. We only walked about an hour and a half the first day, getting to the Karen tribe village at about 4. Once there we relaxed, wandered around, ate a great meal cooked by Rambo and Quad, and chilled out around a camp fire. We had a bit of a sing-song, with my entry for England being Oasis' Wonderwall - I was never going to do it justice! After that, a local came and did some magic tricks with string. He couldn't speak a word of English, but the magic tricks were cool. I also ended up getting a massage for free from a female tour guide from another trek. A great result!
After a good nights sleep in the bamboo hut (on stilts) we got up, had brekkie, and made tracks. We walked 6 hours in total, stopping at a number of waterfalls. Our lunch was pre-made Pad Thai, which was wrapped in Banana leaf. Environmentally friendly and bloody tasty! I managed to fall over on the rocks at one waterfall, which made everyone concerned, but all I could hear was Ross laughing! After all the walking, we got to a really nice Mongh (sp?) village, which was much better set up than the first village. There was also loads of dogs, after the king dog had been working hard! The routine was pretty much the same as the night before, and it was nice chatting with all the other people. They were all really interesting, and it was good to speak to people who had travelled so wide and far.
The best day was saved until last. After an uncomfortable nights sleep, I woke to the sound of cockerels (again). We went to another jungle waterfall that was deeper than any of the others so me and Quad climbed the rocks and jumped into the waterfall. It was pretty cold, but good fun. After spending some time there we walked a bit more, then got back into a car that took us for lunch, and then onto the Elephant camp! That was quality. I rode on an elephant for about an hour, all offroad. The bananas I had bought with me fed him well. He deserved it for carrying me for that long! The adventure continued when we went bamboo rafting... I was one of the rowers/stick weilders, but I sat down to do it as my balance is absolutely awful. At least I succeeded in rocking the boat enough to make Ross fall in. The rafting wasn't that quick, but it was nice to drift down the river, with many Thai families sitting by the river eating, and saying sawadee krup/ka as we passed them. They seem to like us farangs. The action-packed trek came to an end when we got off the raft, after which we got dropped off at our guesthouses in Chiang Mai. The trip was class, and will be a strong memory from my travels...
In the evening we went to the Riverside bar, meeting up with our group for a post-trek drink. It wasn't a big one though as we had to be up early today. I say early, but it was really about 8.30. We got a taxi for the day, which took us to Doi Suthep, one of the most important temples (and tourist traps) in Thailand. It is also one of the highest, sat on the mountain side, giving it great views of Chiang Mai and its smog. We had a Thai girl in the car, and she answered my constant stream of questions (that she could understand). She's a tourism student so I guess I was helping her! The temple was pretty good, but I'm starting to get a bit templed-out to be honest, and it didn't help that I had a head ache. At least I made it up the 306 steps to the temple!
After the temple we drove for an hour (I slept) to Mae Sa / Mae Rim, where we watched a monkey show and a snake show. At both we got loads of pics, such as the monkey on my lap, the snake round my neck, my snake hat, and other similar ones. I can't find my camera at the moment, but when I do I will upload a few of them! The shows were good but I was a little disappointed with the condition of some of the animals, and I'm not sure I would pay to see them again.
We've onhly just got back, and I'm absolutely shattered. Tomorrow is definitely a lazy day for us. Maybe the next day too... We leave Chiang Mai on 1st Feb, heading up to the Golden Triangle, crossing into Burma for a bit, then staying in Chiang Rai. On the 2nd we move on to Laos.....
|
|
If you like this entry, search for other entries by c-hampden, from Thailand or try a new search. |
| |
Back to Entry - Back to Home
|
Send a message
5 votes 
