Kipping rough in Northern Thailand
In Chiang Rai I ended up on a ludicrous drinking binge. It was only after sleeping on the street for 2 nights that I thought ‘enough is enough’ and vowed to have a break from smoking/drinking. I hired a bike and drove up to Mae Sai, Thailand’s most Northerly town on the Burmese border. I strolled around the markets feasting on local delights and observing the many races that seemed to fill this town. Local women had some kind of white paint smeared all over their faces. I never got to the bottom of that.
Next I headed to Mae Se Long which is an Aka tribal village in the middle of the mountains NW of Chiang Rai. It was an amazing hilly and windy ride out here. This place has a very Chinese feel to it. The Aka people originally came to Thailand from Yunnan province in China and you can see that they resemble the Chinese more than the Thai people. I had a laugh with 3 Aka girls selling tribal bollicks.
They say: “Helllooooo hansum man, you buy from me?”
I laugh “Na ge piaulian, wo meiyou chien” (It’s beautiful but I have no money).
They invite me to sit with them amazed that a Farang (especially an Englishman) can speak another language. Before long there are loads of men and kids surrounding us and a real good few hours ensued. I ended up staying there for the night hanging out with these intriguing folk. The women wore really dazzling traditional clothing and I was fascinated to hear their tales. I drove up to a mountain peak housing yet another highly glamorous Buddhist temple. I headed back to Chiang Rai and decided to test out my no drinking/smoking policy by going to a local trendy nightclub beneath a posh Hotel. I passed with flying colours despite the peer pressure from the drinking lads.
I went to Chiang Mai where I had previously spent one month in October. I walked around some old familiar territory and attended a famous disco called ‘Spicy’. Again I didn’t drink or smoke which was quite a feat, giving the three Danes shoving full bottles of Chang and tabs in front of me every five minutes. I met Charlie, an old mate from Hull who I first met in Kunming. He runs a bar in Jinghong with his lass Lena who is 8 months pregnant. He was in Chiang Mai to renew his Chinese visa and he is no less mental now than he was back in September.
I met my first bonafide Geordie last week. I went to a bar looking to hire a moto for 1 week. I was talking to this bloke and on further questioning he was an 85yr old gadgie from the Toon – Wahey – my first Geordie! However, he has lievd away for years and has only trace elements of his accent remaining.
Nevermind though, you know what they say “You wait all day for a bus and then 2 come along at once”. Indeed, this is the perfect cliché to express what happened the evry next day. I had biked about 135km from Chiang Mai to Pai when I thought an afternoon swim was in order. I noticed a massive lump on my back and I asked this lad to have a look. The bloke said I had a huge insect bite. I thought his accent sounded familiar and it turns out he is a 23yr old from Fenham going by the name of Mick. Wahey – 2 Geordies in 2 days after a whole year of none!
Pai is an up and coming destination but presently still full of hippy types. I met Vinnie from Ireland here. I saw him in February, he was one of the clinic boys. In fact he is the musician/boxer bloke. He has been in Pai for 3 months and seems to have become a permanent feature there. He invited me to his old Thai mates home where they all took turns playing instruments going from Irish music to Thai music. It was great crack.
I slept in a wooden hut with a mattress for 1gbp/night right next to the Pai river. I bought ‘Kane and Abel’ by Geoffrey Archer and lounged by the jungle river, reading all day and eating sumptuous tropical fruit from the local market – luxury. I kept thinking ‘Christ Steve, you could be sitting in some crappy job in the UK right now!’ I felt very lucky.
Today, I drove from Pai to Mae Hong Son. I bought an Army jacket for 1gbp as it is cold when it rains here (especially on the bike) and it happens to be right smack bang in the middle of the rainy season.
I procured my flight from BKK to Yangon, Burma for 35gbp on the 20th June. I plan to visit Mae Saring, Chiang Mai, Sukhothai and Bangkok before leaving for Burma. I have also started applying for teaching jobs in Taiwan as I fancy a short break from traveling. Hope you are all well.
Aloy mac mac (Thai for ‘my dinner was lush’)
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