Sleeping With The Hill Tribes

---

We went back to Bangkok, and then got a mini-bus to Ayuthaya. On the way there we stopped and looked at some of the rice fields. Once we were there we went for a look at Wut Pra Maha That, which was really beautiful. It reminded me of how a temple would look in Cambodia.

We went back to the hotel, and some of us went for a little bit of shopping. After that we all went for dinner at a floating restaurant, and then got the overnight train to Chiang Mai.

We bought some alcohol and some snacks, which kept us entertained for a few hours. Wendy kept telling us to be quite, but we didn’t listen, as it’s a holiday, so we are going to have fun, and its not like we are going to get the chance to be in a group like this again, so we were going to make the most of it.

Once we were in Chiang Mai, we got a mini-bus to the hotel, which was really nice. Then I went to go and get my hair braided. I had to go and get it done a second time, because I didn’t like the way the first lady did it.

For dinner that night, we all went to a traditional Thai Dance Show. It was really nice, and we all had a chance to go on stage and dance with the locals. After the show a few of us went to the Chiang Mai night market. We saw Ben and Adam there as well. It was more expensive than any of the markets in Bangkok, and it seemed that none of the stall holders were willing to bargin for anything.

After the market we went back to the hotel, and I met a guy called Daniel, who was originally from the UK, but was teaching English in Korea. He was taking a few weeks off, so he decided to take a quick holiday in Thailand.

The next morning we had to get up early, and we all got a mini-bus to a market to buy a few things for our hill tribe trek. After that we were diven for a while to the mountains where we had some lunch.

We began to walk through the mountains in the middle of the day, and there was no cover, and the sun was so strong. When we were walking through the cornfields, the paths were so muddy and steep. We were walking like this for a few hours, until we were under the cover of some really nice trees, and slightly more even ground, which made the trek a little more comfortable.

When we passed through one village, we found ourselves surrounded by people trying to sell us things. None of us were really in the mood. We kept walking, and crossed a river, so we were all walking with wet shoes and socks. Finally we reached the point where we would take a ride on the elephants. It was quite relaxing, and we rode on them for a while before having to trek again.

When we arrived to the village we were all very tired, but yet very keen to check the place out. It was like nothing we had seen before. It was so basic, but yet we all loved it. Kai cooked us all dinner, which was very spicy. Then the children of the village performed a traditional cultural show for us, which was really nice.

A few of the guys came over to our cabin, and we had a few drinks. Then Wendy came outside and asked us to be quite a few times. So we went down to the guys cabin, and continued to drink there. By the time we got back to our cabin, our feet were covered in mud.

I needed to go to the bathroom, and so Mel and I went there. I asked her to shine the tourch inside so I could see what I was doing. As she did I saw the biggest spider on the wall. So I decided to skip the bathroom, and opt for the wild.

We went to bed after this. We slept on the floor of the hut, and the animals were all under the hut. I did manage to have a good nights sleep though!

---