Pai and stuff

Been a while.....

Well...what to say. It's been so long. I think last time I was writing was in Chaing Mai after a rather pleasant meal.

So we left the next day to go further North to a small town called Pai. I cannot tell you how many people told us we had to go there, so we did. We don't like to disappoint people. When we ask for further information as to why we should go 3 hours out of our way, along a hellishly bendy road in a speeding mini bus round rather large, mountains drops no one could really give us a reason apart from, it's just lovely...we were sold. So 3 hours after a hellishly long speeding mini bus ride rounds hairpin bends and sheer mountainous drops we got to Pai. We were not disappointed, so beautiful. We were there for 4 nights staying in our little bungalow with a hammock out front just relaxing. We met a lovely couple from Berlin, Agathe and Manu, who we spent a lot of time with. We hired motorbikes and visited and jumped off waterfalls, struggled to get to the top of scenic viewpoints and stupidly decided to go to a hot springs. The later not a great idea when it is 36 degrees outside of the water. We did make it to the source of the hot springs where the water comes out at a fresh 80 C. Luckily there was a sign warning us not to boil eggs, I was relived to have seen it because I was just about to crack mine out and organise some soft boiled. Aside from this we had an amazing, relaxing time tubing down the river for a couple hours and eat a lot of food. 

The food was good overall, we were a little worried when on our first day the first restaurant we sat in had a small menu that included delights such as noodle soup with pig entrails and pork blood soup. We ended up going elsewhere! I did get an opportunity to enjoy a local delight as I was offered the chance to try a chicken heart, quite crunchy and made me gag a little but I managed to keep it down. Wouldn't kill another chicken soon to get to it's heart though.

On our first evening we found a great bar serving draught beer (kind of a luxury round here) and got to know the owner. He is a great guy and on our final night played live music for us. To begin with we were the only people in the bar but the music was attracting people in. As the owner was busy singing (kind of) I took the role of bar tender and started dishing out the beers. In the end a couple of folk musicians came and played, with me on the boxy drum seat thing and Kinga with a child's tambourine it turned into quite a jam session. 

After 4 days of relaxing, eating, making good friends and getting annoyed at hippies it was time to return to Chiang Mai. With regards to hippies, I am all for peace and love and saving the planet and stuff. I just don't feel the need to grow my hair into an un washable mess, sit around and get high while talking about some species of toad that is under threat of extinction due to the expansion of the local chicken factory. You know that super expensive, healthy soy latte with organic sugar and probably weird lentil stuff in it that you are arrogantly boasting how healthy it is just loud enough so we all have to listen in...how can you afford it hippie? Capitalism or selling drugs? Sorry about that, rant over

The way back to Chaing Mai was great as we hired a motorbike instead of getting the speeding minibus and rode the most amazing road ever on a beautiful sunny day. Since we returned and people have asked us about Pai all we could say was...you have to go, it's lovely. Pai is a place that is hard to explain.

By that evening we had landed in Bangkok and went straight to Khao San Road, centre of the drink, dancing and good times. It was a crazy assault on the senses. Having come from possibly one of the most chilled out towns in the world straight to here, we lasted about 30 minutes before getting grumpy and going to bed.

The next day we just wandered before meeting up with Kym and Devin who we had previously shared our barbecue with in Chaing Mai. We also got to meet Kym's cousin, Sam, and her husband, Des, and had a pretty damn good night. That pretty much sums up what Bangkok was to us, lazy day followed by a few drinks with friends followed by a lazy day. Normally the lazy days were not out of choice, well, I guess a bad choice made the night before when I said yes to another bottle of Samgson.

We did work a few other things out, Bangkok is loud and a bit smelly, it really helps if you have someone who is local to help you out and a mix of hangovers and pushy market sales people and tuk tuk is not good. When you walk past a market stand there is a certain technique you need to perfect to keep things as peaceful as possible...

1) Study the merchandise as you approach but make no movement, no matter how small, towards the stall. Pay close attention to the angle of your hips and shoulders, the slightest lean and the game is over.

2) If you see something you like the look off, study where the owner of the stall is and approach from their blind spot.

3) have a look but don't pick it up, they can sense it.

4) If you don't like it you have around a three second window to beat a hasty retreat, make sure you are counting in your head on your approach.

5) DO NOT make eye contact.

6) If you want to study further pick it up and prepare yourself for first contact.

7) DO NOT look interested or show excitement, it could be the flipping Holy Grail but do not let them know you like it, instead say "it's alright, but there's a better one down there." and point the other way.

8) Put it back down even if you want it, look at something else while they are breathing down your neck. Casually point back to it and ask "How much do you want for it?"

9) Negotiations are on, get the best price you can.

10) Feel guilty when you realise you are haggling over what is about 20p and end up paying more than they are asking for. This step is optional but I always find myself doing it!

Right now we are in a small town just outside of Bangkok while we wait for our visas to Myanmar to be sorted, they should be ready in a few days time. Tomorrow is a trip to a town called Lopburi where they have a temple full of monkeys, I am part convinced that I will go to feed them and catch me some rabies!

And that is that. I am sorry it has taken so long for me to write this, I know you all miss us so much and really look forward to these posts.

Big love and stay safe. 

Additional,

Having written this last night I am now adding in about the most amazing day ever. We visited Lopburi and I didn't catch rabies. I did however have monkeys climbing all over me and grooming me, it was amazing. In Lopburi there are so many monkeys mainly centred around one temple known, funnily enough, as monkey temple. They are free and wild, come and go as they like and are worshiped by the locals. Once a year they even hold a feast in their honour where they put food out for them. It was amazing to walk around there and just watch and enjoy being so close to them. One even managed to steel a mobile phone off a local, it was crazy to see them try to get it back but they know what they are doing. The naughty monkey was sat at the top of a telegraph pole while someone threw mangoes and rice up to it. The idea being that they catch the mango and drop the phone. It worked well, sadly no one caught the phone so it smashed on the floor, now the unhappy owner has lost their phone and their mango! Hehe, clever monkey!

That is it!