Shangri La

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When I was a kid, I read a short story about a man lost in the mountains in Asia who stumbles upon the mystical Shangri La, or Paradise. In the story, he was never allowed to leave once he found the place, and had to eventually sneak out at night to get back home. I think this may have been the place he found, but I can't figure out why he would have wanted to leave. Okay, maybe for some decent Mexican food, but other than that....

We're about halfway through our ten day stay in Pai, and this is a great place to put your feet up and relax with a book, or laugh with the locals in the nearest tavern over a large Singha beer. The pace here is very slow, but that doesn't mean you can't find what you need. There are bookstores that cater to the English tourists (mostly full of used books from folks like us travelling through and exchanging), great restaurants, great bars, and lots of places to go and things to do. Among the restaurants are a couple of outstanding health food restaurants as well as a pretty damn good Italian place. Wendy and I spent the day yesterday in a Thai cooking class learning to make curries, spring rolls, coconut milk soup, Thai-style stir fry and sweet sticky rice. Don't worry, we'll have a dinner party when we get home to show off my new skills. You won't be sorry.

There is a tattoo artist here in town who has studied in the U.S. for years and now lives a very comfortable life here in Pai. He is one of the finest skin-ink artists I've seen in all the world, so I think Tricia and I might take advantage of his services and get a couple of tattoos to commemorate the trip. I'll take photos after the work is done to show off on here.

Every afternoon, the village market sets up and the town turns out to buy their produce for the evening meal. There are copious fresh vegetables, fruits, prepared sticky rice treats, teas and nibblies to choose from, as well as quite a few things you don't want to get too close to, but stare at askance, waiting for something strange to happen. Live fisch from the river, small nets full of live frogs, fried whole frogs on skewers (we did NOT try one of those just to say we did), black duck eggs with partially formed young ducks that the locals eat as a delicacy (ewww). But there are also tables full of broiled chicken, pork and beef that are delicious. Top it all off with a sweet Thai tea and you really will think you're in heaven.

Around town are extraoardinary people and beautiful views from every small rise. There are also the ubiquitous Buddhist temples here including this incredible white spire on the edge of town that is amazing to see. . Each day starts with a morning run through the hillside, followed by a one hour massage, then a lazy day enjoying beer, reading books, meeting with friends and loving the trip. We're here until the 24th, and then we're off to someplace new, we're just not sure where yet. We may try to get over to Cambodia to see Angkor Wat, one of the seven wonders of the world, or we may just head down to Koh Tao for a week of scuba diving and fun on the beach. I'll keep you updated on the plans, but for now, it's time to relax a bit and enjoy the beautiful day. It's quite a bit less humid most days here since we are higher in the mountains than Bangkok.

Till next time,
Sawatdee Kap,
Tricia and Greg

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