A Little Bit of Pai
10/29 - 11/2
From Chiang Mai we took a mini van to Pai. In general, mini vans offer a quicker and more convenient service in Northern Thailand. It is a little more expensive than a local bus, but it is direct. It can be booked through any hostel or travel agency. So in 3 hours we were in Pai.
Pai is a wonderful relaxed city. It is a getaway for locals as well as 'farangs'. Apparently it has become more popular among the locals after it was featured in a romantic Thai film. It offers a ton of cafes, restaurants, bars, book stores and markets. There is no shortage of ways to spend money here. It is also set in a picturesque valley North of Chiang Mai. So there are a ton of sites around if you choose to get out of the city.
The hostel that we booked was Darling View Point. It's a little off the center, uphill and has a wonderful view. The owner promised to pick us up so we don't have to walk uphill with the bags. We were quite amused when he came on his motorcycle. 3 people, 2 large bags, 1 motorcycle... So we rented our own bike and let him take our bags. Apparently he gives these kinds of rides to town every day and we saw him going up and down the hill many times carrying bags, people or both.
The guesthouse was pretty cool. The bungalow was huge. It had two king size beds in it and 2 bathrooms and a veranda. It's made to be rented out by families. Since the season hasn't started, we got it all to ourselves. The only down side is that stuff kept going wrong or breaking in that house. First we were attacked by ants. We had to borrow a chalk and draw lines around our bed in hopes that the ants don't reach it. But they still did. Then the next day Levka managed to break one of the faucets. It was leaking and he might have used too much force in an attempt to close it. And the water started gashing straight out across the bathroom and hitting the opposite side. We had quite a task trying to explain to an Thai grandma about what happened. She was the sweetest lady but spoke no English. Half hour later, her and Levka figured out how to shut down the water and the pump from the outside. At this time we were hoping that we shut down the water only in our bungalow. Luckily the owner came back and took care of everything while we were out for dinner.
Upon arrival to Pai, we met these people:
Yasha and Yulya are friends of friends from NY. And Katya is another friend of theirs. They spent a few days in Pai before we arrived and gave us great advice. We followed the plan that they outlined to the tee:
Day 1:
We explored the city, the night market and met our new friends for drinks.
Day 2:
We took our scooter and explored the area. The only available map of the area has a big disclaimer on it that states "map not to scale" so sometimes it was hard to find things. But we managed and had quite an adventure. Started the day exploring the area north of the city; Yun Lai viewpoint, Mar Paeng waterfall and a bunch of little villages. The most impressive part was the road itself and not the points of interest. It was the most beautiful countryside with rice fields, little huts, and locals working those fields. It looked like something out of a different century or out of a movie.
Since the map was not clear, we "missed" some of the villages. We physically drove past them without ever being able to identify which village is which. But we stopped to take pictures along the way at all the pretty places. Until we accidentally ended up back in the center of town in time for lunch.
In the afternoon we went to the Pai canyon. Here are some pictures of the hike around the canyon:
Looking back at these, we now think that the hike was not the smartest thing to do, but it seemed like a good idea at the time. And we had a blast and survived!
We watched sunset at the canyon and headed to a local spa. Note to self to avoid all water related activities around sunrise and sunset. We were literally eaten alive by a swarm of mosquitos. Aside from that a wonderful day where we felt like we accomplished a ton and could spent the rest of the time at Pai doing nothing.
Day 3:
We scratch the plan to do nothing and instead take a 40 km ride to the Lod Cave.
We went caving in Hungary, so I didn't expect anything special from these caves.
We get to the park, negotiate a price with one of the guides (a very old Thai lady) and she leads the way to the cave. We walk through the park and enter the first part of the cave. She sits down to light the oil lamp that she was carrying while we wait for the boat to take us through the cave. The boat is thin and long, made out of bamboo. It sits only one person per row on a tiny stool and is operated by a local barefoot kid, who uses a long bamboo stick to push the boat forward.
And this is when I feel like I'm in an Indiana Jones movie. Only the theme song was missing. But I assure you that it was playing in my head the entire time :)
So this kid takes us through the cave and at some point we exit deep in the cave and go up some sketchy stairs... Indiana Jones theme song still playing...
Anyway, the tour of the cave was really cool. And it ended too quickly. But we didn't have enough money with us to buy a tour to other caves. The closest ATM was 10 km away. And no, they don't accept credit cards :)
Day 4:
This was a day of R&R. And getting ready to go to Chiang Rai the next day.
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| 2011.10.29 Pai |
