You and I, the last refugees

To the North We Go

I've noticed that when I'm in large cities I get a bit claustrophobic after about 4 weeks. This is a bit problematic as it means I have to find various excursions to regain a bit of sanity.

On the latest excursion I headed up to Northern Thailand to the city of Chiang Mai. I must say it was a lot of fun. Highlights of the trips include: walking through the jungle to get to a waterfall where one could actually swim, white river rafting, riding an elephant, visiting some hill tribes, eating a Khantoke dinner at the Old Thai Cultural Center, and seeing Doi Suthep.

Now as you all like to know my thoughts on certain subjects I'll provide you with a bit of detail. On river rafting: Each time I got I swear it only makes it more addicting. The first time was in Austria, the second in Central California, and this time in Northern Thailand. Upon arrival at the rafting site in Thailand (by site I mean a little shack) I had slight misgivings about the legitimacy of the whole operation as it seemed semi sketchy, and I was wondering about one's safety seeing as they allowed David to go even though he did not know how to swim. On top of that, seeing as he did not know how to swim they were about to make him sit at the front of the raft. (Now that's pretty standard because they usually put heavier people at the front as to avoid the raft from flipping over --- however you should not put someone who has not gone ever and cannot swim at the front of the raft). So, he and I switched places and I got to be in front which is what I wanted anyhow seeing as it is A LOT more fun in front because you get all the splashes. We made it down the river safely after a good couple of rapids -- I'd say it's almost a level 3, if the water was higher and flowing faster it could be a level 4.

Elephants: Love elephants, I really wanted to just hug a couple of them and feed them. Motherly instinct you think? (I have no idea, it's not to the point of pandas, koalas, or dolphins, but I'm a bit crazy about those.) I did feel bad about riding the elephants as they were prodded by pointy objects and I'd assume don't really like following the same path everyday carrying people on their backs. Also, not very comfortable either, I believe I have two large bruises on my back from my back hitting the wooded cart every ... single... plod ... plod... plod.. of the elephant.

Doi Sathep, like other temples in Thailand, is amazing. I'm still awestruck with the architecture. Perched on top of a hill (one climbs steps to get to the top - i'm not sure how many steps take you to the top) it provides a beautiful view of Chiang Mai below and has a serenity about it that is amazing.

Trekking through the jungle is actually a lot of fun. I told Jenny I'm not a big fan of hikes, but shorter ones, say hour to 2 hour hikes are pretty fun if it takes you to an amazing end point. We walked to a waterfall which wasn't spectacular but it was nice enough and hey, I could splash around in the pond it created which was great.

So to hilltribes. I have quite mixed feelings about them. For one thing I don't like taking photos with the people or taking photos of the people as it makes it seem like they are animals at a zoo with groups and groups of tourists parading through. I did however take one photo with the long neck people, which you can view in the photo album. It really is like a trade or a business with the tour companies and the people. It's just stalls and stalls of handicrafts (which were gorgeous) but somehow felt like, "hey it's Disneyland, go on down, give the children some candy, take some photos, you have 30 minutes.. now off you go." Can you really understand them, get to know their culture in 30 minutes? Of course not, till you actually get to know them I think it's a bit premature to start snapping photos of them, so won't be doing that again.

That concludes the trip to Chiang Mai. In all I like Chiang Mai more than I do Bangkok, it's got the city and city activities, but it's just less chaotic than BKK.

For photo photo click here

(For those who made it through this.. you can view the photo of me in Thai dress, the photographer thought I was Thai, moreso than Michelle who is Thai, you can decide)

posted by Mai-Lan @ 18:23