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Published: August 14th 2006
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Long Neck Villager
The number of rings is a symbol of pride. It shows a family's wealth, these women are the envy of all women in the village and therefore the attention of all the men. So I know you all got used to long stretches between blog entries, well I just couldn't handle the hours worth of work that goes into creating blogs that cover time spans over a month. So it's your lucky day...
Getting back to SE Asia has been great, been smiling constantly, seeing amazing sights, meeting tons of people. But the craziness is yet to begin, tomorrow we are off to Laos. That's right I said LAOS!!! My Thai visa expires in a couple of days, plus it's time for a change of scenery. Been bouncing around the North of Thailand for almost three weeks now. Past the eighth month on the road mark during that time and have had some real moments of clarity. Bangkok is a big city so you're always running into the sights and sounds common in western society, even Chiang Mai has two Starbucks, but the real fun begins when you hop on a local bus, a minibus or a combination of both for trips, or should I say journeys, that last four hours and only cover 120km of distance. So here goes...
We bounced from Chiang Mai after receiving replacement C.C.'s in the mail,
Hot Springs, Hot Chicks or Both?
Elka, Jessica (Germany) and Moskowitz lounging in the Hot Springs. and taking a Thai-cooking class, next stop Pai. Multiple people I've met, and trust, along the road have recommended I visit this quiet town set in the hills. The ride to Pai wasn't too adventurous since we opted for the AirCon Minibus which is the most comfortable form of travel up here. After scouting for accommodation we settled into our room that was costing us less than US$10 a night split between the two of us. I still can't get over how cheap things are over here.
Pai was a sleepy little town that has recently become a top backpacker destination, fortunately it is the off season so things were pretty quiet around town. The vibe in Pai was great, no Tuk-Tuks, no hookers, barely any cars (lots of scooters though) and mostly local Thai people. There is a bar in town called Shisha which is a Hooka bar so every night after dinner we treated ourselves by smoking some strawberry tobacco, one of our favorite pastimes, plus it reminds me of life in the East Village. On our first night in town we bumped into Jessica, German friend we met on the overnight bus ride from Bangkok to
Chiang Mai Market
This was a small market, but the choices on fresh ingredients were endless, fresh veg, fresh fruits, mushrooms, fresh fish, meat and just about anything your thai cuisine called for. Chiang Mai. She gave us the low down on the night life of Pai. Basically everyone starts at Shisha then heads to Bebop to listen and dance to some live music, then off to Bamboo bar (actually never made it up there). And this happens every night. Many people just use Pai as a jumping off point for jungle trekking, white-water rafting and other adventure and outdoor related activities. Our visit to Pai was centered around clearing our heads and just kicking back. We did a couple of things during our stay though, rented bicycles and road out into the countryside. Passing rice patties, crossing over rivers, got chased by dogs and passed through small villages where the children would chase after us screaming "Hello! Hello! Hello!" probably the only English phrase they know, and when you responded "Hello" it just made their day. Sometimes they would follow it up with "What's your name?".
After one bike ride into the countryside we realized Scooters were a much better mode of transportation. Now us and scooters just sounds like a visit to the Hospital will be in order, especially since Moskowitz (Mr. Goon) and motorized vehicles equals...OUCH THAT HURT! Luckily
Sunset over the Rice
Another great day comes to a close. Or should I say just begins because nightime in Pai just meant a visit to the Hooka bar. we returned our rentals without having any incidents. And they opened up the door to a range of sightseeing possibilities. We rode to a waterfall which was lovely. More importantly they opened the door to the Hot Springs. More on that, Jessica is in Pai volunteering as an English teacher, so when she and her Austrian co-worker Elka asked if we wanted to go to the Hot Springs tomorrow we jumped at the opportunity. What could be bad, natural Hot Springs and two hot Blond chicks sounds like fun to me. So after they jumped on the back of our scooters, we somehow managed to get to the hot springs without crashing, still not sure how we pulled that part off. Riding a scooter alone is hard enough but I was not feeling confident about driving around with another person on the back. Now hot springs are always fun, even when it's 35 degrees outside (90+ Fahrenheit). These springs were just a bit more comfortable once you got out. Being with two girls in bikinis didn't hurt though. We all had a blast hanging out together.
The other big activity in Pai was riding bareback on an Elephant. Went
Nap time
Look at that face. These kids make such good models. on a two hour trek in the surrounding mountains. The first hour and a half or so I was questioning how much fun I was having, riding an elephant hurts your ass. But it was all worth it once we got into the river on the elephants and we got to play around with them. By play around I mean they roll over and thrash about trying to throw us off. I managed to stay on a few times but fell off more than a few times.
My Japanese friends Max and Tara from apple picking were nice enough to give me their highlights of Thailand and we took their word and headed to Mae Hong Son. Only way to get there is by local bus which didn't mean bus at all. It meant Pickup truck with a roof over the back and two bench seats down each side. You would think this would be the start of a horror story, but it was completely the opposite. Choosing to travel around the world the way we do, we often sacrifice comfort for experience and that's exactly what this ride was, a great experience. We were the only two foreigners
Big Ear Villager
Another of the Hill Tribes women are known for the large earings they wear. on the ride, we exchanged smiles and pleasantries with the locals but since most of them don't speak English and I only know how to say "Hello" and "Thank-you" in Thai our conversations were short. I did get offered Rice Whiskey the homemade Moonshine variety by some local drunk, had to take a pass on that. Most of the time I just sat there staring out the back with my leg dangling off the edge, just taking in the sights, sounds and smells of the mountains. This was when I had that moment of clarity and as I have many times before came to the realization that dropping out of life and traveling was the best decision of my entire life.
We expected Mae Hong Son to be an even smaller town than Pai, but it was about three times the size with about half the amount of travelers. We spent three nights there the highlight being our second day when we took a tour of a Long Neck village. The Noi village is actually part of a refugee camp 3km from the border with Burma (Myanmar), there are over 200,000 Burmese refugees in Thailand. Since the village is
Snack Time.
One of the many great shots I got of this kid. part of a refugee camp I doubt it was an authentic village experience but it was still amazing. some of the women of the Karen hill tribe wear heavy brass rings around their necks. I mean heavy 5+ Kg. Wearing these rings presses down their collarbones over time and creates the illusion that they have longnecks sometimes exceeding 20cm (that's almost 10 inches). I have read other bloggers say they find the practice cruel to woman, and only continued because tourists come and pay money to see these people. But according to our guide the women that wear the rings are the envy of all the woman of the tribe. I didn't have a problem with being one of the tourists who pay 250 baht to see these people. This is a custom that was practiced long before tourists played any part in their lives. Plus the money earned is shared by the village and provides for many things including education. People from another hill tribe also inhabit this village they are called "Big Ear" because they have huge earrings or holes in their ears. People from both tribes are all extremely friendly, pose for pictures and make money by
Wash Your Hands First
Didn't look sick so the dirty hands into the mouth doesn't seem to be hurting him. selling their wares to tourists. One of the bonuses is all the young children running around make for great photos ops.
We're back in Chiang Mai and this will be the final blog of Thailand...Watch out Laos here we come!
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Betty
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Beautiful Thai
Nature, beauty, relaxation, fun, culture, amazing vegetables, new sandals (I see them) You look great; congrats - you've achieved success on your trip. Even carp for gefilte fish, what more could you want? Be safe, Love You!