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Published: October 8th 2009
After three days of travelling we arrived safely in Chiang Mai, a fantastic city full of lots of fun opportunities.
Our first adventure arose from a simple conversation with a lovely guy who told us about a seven hundred kilometre circular route starting and finishing in Chiang Mai, travelling through the mountains of Northern Thailand close to the Burmese border. He said it was well worth doing if we had the time, so we set off.
There was very little traffic, no endless lines of coaches to overtake, no hassles, just an opportunity to ride the bike all day long on some of the best roads imaginable.
We had so much fun over the four days, stopping off whenever we wanted, visiting small villages and chatting with the locals. It felt great to be free from the timetables of buses and boats, to ride for as long as we liked, take it all in. We swam under waterfalls, visited the hot-springs, met the long neck tribe and stopped off at an elephant camp. It really was a special four days, one that will probably stand out in our memories when we look back on our trip.
Once back in Chiang Mai,
we were ready for another adventure, the arrival of Goncalo and his friend Grazynia. We were super excited, the first visit from back home. We thought that a trip to a Muay Thai Boxing arena was the perfect way to welcome them here. Paulo managed to get us ringside seats where all the madness took place. The atmosphere in the arena was electric, with cheering and shouting from the local crowds and the tourists alike. As the night continued and the fights got bigger and better, Paulo and Goncalo were placing their bets with the touts which made the fights even more interesting to watch. We had such a fantastic night. Paulo came out a very happy man, with an extra 100baht in his pocket. It is a small 2euro to you back home but to us, it'll pay for tomorrow’s dinner!
Trekking was next on the agenda and we decided to spend two days in the jungle. Our guide Ludi was excellent and made the trip super enjoyable. We set off early in the morning excited about what lay ahead. As we walked deep into the jungle, the path that we started on became narrower. Ludi led us through
valleys and up mountains with stunning views all around us. Of course this beauty didn't come without a price and with all the climbing came some falling. Paulo was the first to hit the ground but I soon went tumbling after. One by one we dropped like flies, but the poor Israeli girl who was with us definitely had it worst of all; branch of a tree fell on her head!
So after a long, tough day of trekking we were happy to arrive in a tiny village to rest for the night. There was no running water there, no electricity, not even doors to enter our bungalow. We bathed in the stream nearby and lit a fire for light and for cooking. Ludi and Paulo split a bamboo stick and popped a chicken in the middle to barbecue for dinner and Goncalo made sure it was cooked to perfection. We all ate together by the fire and stayed up until the early hours of the morning playing cards.
Luckily the tough trekking was done on the first day so we had activities to look forward to the following morning; the most exciting of which was the white water
rafting. The river's water is at it's highest level here in Thailand at the moment. Paulo and Goncalo were so excited by this; they looked like two little school boys, smiling from ear to ear. Although the news of the high water and the sight of people floating down the river after capsizing out of their boats didn’t really seem too appealing to me! We were in the water less than two minutes before we were almost thrown from the boat. It was incredible, such an adrenaline rush. My fear was quickly replaced with the excitement the boys were feeling. We all loved every second of it, although I can't say I was much of a team player as I spent more time holding onto the rope and squatting between the seats instead of rowing. The boys got us through!
Elephant riding, bamboo rafting, white water rafting and trekking; we did it all, enjoyed every minute and came out of it injury free. What a fantastic way to spend a couple of days. Things are about to change now though as we head for the bright lights and the big city of Bangkok. Can't wait!
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Wow!
It just keeps getting better and better.. .. Thanks for the updates and the super pics. We miss you! x