Monks in bunks and hill tribe trekking
Trip Start
Jan 27, 2009
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Trip End
Jan 27, 2010
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The sleeper train was a great experience, very comfortable. It looks just like a normal train until your attendant comes round and magically converts the chairs into beds. They had proper matresses, sheets and pillows and each berth had a curatin to pull around. All that for just 16pounds for a 12 hour journey! In the morning they put the seats back down and I ate breakfast while I watched the Thai countryside whizz (well not quite as I don't think we ever made it over 30mph) by - perfect.
I arrived in Chiang Mai and booked into my lovely guesthouse, double ensuite room for just 6 pounds, I love this country! I spent two days doing the usual sites including more temples, I'm starting to feel a bit templed out. They are beautiful but very samey. The weekend market was brillant, with all sorts of food, clothes and knick knacks for sale, and clearly I had to help out the Thai economy with a couple of purchases. I did manage to get myself lost, in all my excitement I completely lost track of where I was, not helped by the fact that it was dark.
For the next couple of days I booked myself onto a hill-tribe trek, which is the reason why many tourists come to Chiang Mai. Our group of 11 set off with our guide, Kai, into the hills. First on the itinerary was elephant riding, fun but the novelty wares off after about a nanosecond! We then began our tekking..... I'm not quite sure what I expected but it bloody hard work After about 10 minutes I was wondering what I had let myself in for. We walked mostly along narrow tracks through the forests, sometimes crossing streams and stopping to paddle in the waterfalls (way too cold to swim)! The last stretch was the hardest, it was so steep we had to pull ourselves up by the rocks. I sweated like I've never sweated in my life, but it was worth it for the stunning scenery!
Our hosts for the night were the Lahu tribe, one of the many hill tribes living in Thailand. They originate from Vietnam and speak their own local dialect. It was a small village of around 150 people, plus the many pigs, chickens and dogs. Their bamboo huts were amazingly built into the side of the hills. I think I had expected the villages to be far more secluded but there was a road which led all the way up from the town, which they used to bring in supplies by motorbike. Strangely enough they had solar powered electricity as well. After being welcomed to our hut for the night I enjoyed a much needed shower - it was freezing but amazing. We then enjoyed a lovely meal before sampling the local whiskey around the fire. That night there were celebrations in the village for the end of the chinese new year. Fire crackers were going off left, right and centre and even a firework of two. There was music and dancing in the villlage square, which I have to say was slightly strange. A few old men played drums and banjos while every one danced around in circles. It was very untuneful and the dances just kind of repeated themselves over and over. The up side being it made them easy for us to learn. I had been a bit worried that visiting the tribes was going to be very staged and not authentic but the nice thing was that we didn't bother them and they didn't bother us, they just went about their normal ways.
My nights sleep wasn't exactly peaceful but it was still amazing sleeping up in the middle of the hills, the music still playing well into the early hours. My alarm clock was the very vocal cockerels of the village!! What goes up must come down - and so we did! There seemed to be no happy medium with the walking, either straight up or straight down. Not suprisingly enough lots of us ended up sliding down rather than walking down the hill - ouch! Next was white water rafting..... yes I know after my last death defying experience you think I would know better! But being the dry season it was very tame and more like a cruise. We got out (or rather I was thrown out) and went swimming which was great - the current gently taking us down the river. Then we switched to bamboo rafts, although they didn't seem to float very well and instead we sat waste deep in water!
It was an amazing couple of days, very surreal at times and very rewarding. My last night in Chiang Mai I spent with the two kiwis guys from my group, Nick and Herman, who were cool. We enjoyed couple of drinks and saw some live blues bands. Unfortunately I had to leave the peace of Chiang Mai and I'm now back in good old Bangkok. Hadn't been looking foward to coming back but I actually had a brilliant night out with a few of the boys from the hostel! You know who you are ha ha!
Next stop Ko Phangan, an island off the east coast of southern Thailand. I'm still as white as when I arrived so going to have to do something about that!
Hope you're not too cold with all that snow at home!
Comments
Mum's the word!
Guess what?! I'm having a kiwi for supper too! What's the problem with the tan? Dave's nice and brown - I checked him out today! Love you XXXX