Pai

We have been staying the past four days in a beautiful green valley high in the mountains in the small town of Pai.  We drove up with our friends Ricardo and Plaa in a wonderful truck they rented for the four hour journey.  There are hundreds of turns and curves as you head through the countryside with the last 20 K or so quite scary as you shift into one hairpin turn after another.   Lots of coffee spots along the way as coffee beans are grown up in the higher elevation.  Strawberries too.  We detoured several miles down a narrow road to a natural geyser which is a state park.  Entrance fee for tourist was 200 baht and for locals 40 baht.  That's about $6 for us.  I think Plaa bargained and got us a special rate!  There we bought a bamboo basket of eggs which we then lowered in the boiling waters of the geyser.  Ricardo reported the next day they tasted perfectly delicious!  We arrived in the early evening at Bueng Pai Farms, our destination, about two miles out of town.  A  beautiful garden created by a Thai couple.  A small slice of nirvana.  There are about a dozen rustic cabins around a large fish pond and several open air buildings where they have cushions to relax on, a small library extended on stilts over the water, and several sitting areas.  Breakfast is served out of doors.  It is the only meal they make but it is incredible.  Amazing how many things are offered. Eggs in many styles, home made yogurt, fruit and muesli, French toast, press pots of coffee, lemongrass tea... Fresh bananas hang from hooks for your pleasure and endless cups of tea provided all day.  Best, everything is served with colorful flowers dressing up the pretty dishes and cooked with a loving heart.  It is so quiet out here, just the birds, the fountains, the fish jumping and splashing. Occasionally there is music in the distance, and very softly I can hear the monks chanting from the nearby Wat across the valley.  Of course the ambiguous motorcycle sounds...  Pai is a mecca for young hippie travelers, and sadly, to many Chinese tourists.  They are like a small invasion.  There is a walking street each night with locals selling all kinds of foods, clothing, mementos, tea served in tall bamboo sections, rice grilled on a stick,  pad Thai, nuts, cookies and fruit shakes. The streets are alive with lights, music, and a party atmosphere.  Many excellent restaurants.  We dined the first night at Charlie and Lek's, which is a very popular place.   We got the last table available and ordered spicy curries, noodle salads, coconut soup, and Thai dishes you've never heard of. The black rice was the best I have ever had.  Sated we rode back to the cabins down the narrowest road which proved to be a challenge in the big truck. Two cars can not pass side by side and of course we encountered two on the way.  They were smaller so they had to back up.  One area was so tight a motorcycle rider had to stop and help the driver maneuver into a small side drive which was bordered on either side by a drop off of several feet into a waterway sluicing by.  Scary!  That night it was freezing cold in our little cabin with bamboo walls.  No glass in the screened bathroom.  Ronnie slept in his down vest and long sleeve shirt.  I slept in my long sleeve shirt that I wore all day and have worn every day since we came.  Oh well, this isn't really a fashion kind of place.  We woke to heavy mist over the pond.  You couldn't see the surrounding mountains.  Ricardo and Plaa were already up and eating breakfast as they had to drive all the way back down the mountain, and catch their afternoon flight home to Koh Samui.  We drank small cups of coffee around a fire and warmed up. It was 44 degrees. Ronnie and I bought woolen hats from the owners.  We ate as the sun was emerging around 10 am and the mist burned off.  Afternoons are quite hot.  We walked into town.  Cruised around, saw a small motorcycle accident, ate some lunch and walked back home.  Rested and read on our deck over the pond.  Then we walked back before sunset and ate dinner.  We hoped to find some form of taxi, either motorcycle driver or car, but there didn't seem to be any form of transport.  We went into a tour company and begged the guys in there to find us transport.  Happily one of the guys offered to drive us home.   Yesterday I paid one of the workers here to take us in to town.  He has a motorcycle with a type of metal cage sidecar attached.  He took the huge black hairy sheepdog and me in the sidecar and Ronnie rode on the back of the motorcycle with him.  We were a sight!  The dog liked it better than me!  Now we have a motorcycle.  This morning we took a ride down some small country roads.  Saw some elephants and fed them bananas.  Took a circuitous ride back to the cabin.  Now Ron's asleep in the hammock and I am enjoying the solitude.  We've booked our transport back to Chiang Mai for tomorrow.  For $5@ they load you into a big modern van with a dozen people and make the four hour drive back to town.  At least going down the mountain the worst 20 K is in the beginning of the ride and it gets easier as you get further down.  Tomorrow night is the big weekend market in Chiang Mai.  After we rest up we can go over there and take a look around.  It will be hard to leave the tranquility and fresh air of Pai, but that's part of the trip.....

Our room and breakfast in the morning mist....Pai

Chiang Mai

We arrived at our small heritage hotel, Baan Orapin, and were so delighted to find such a jewel.  From the noise and traffic on the  street I was totally unprepared for the peace and serenity we found the moment we walked through the gates.  The original house is over a hundred years old, built in the Lanna style of northern Thailand.  The owners have created new buildings in its style and a pool and cement stepping stones throughout the gardens.  Large trees and flowering bushes fill the space.  Our room had a four poster bed and a sitting room with large reclining sofa and chairs.  All very pretty and comfortable.  The street noise completely disappeared and the only sounds came from the cooing of the many doves.  Breakfast was served beside the pool and basically the workers spoke about ten words of English so you were pretty much on your own.  Very quaint.  This was a wonderful place to heal.  Ron and I took it easy, relaxed by the pool and walked just down the busy street to one of the riverside restaurants for dinner.  As the sun set and the candles on each table glowed, we enjoyed watching the river change colors as the day slipped into night.  The evening of our third day, Ricardo and Plaa flew in from Koh  Samui and arrived at our hotel in a taxi and whisked us away to a very unique restaurant.  Nearby, in another equally old wooden house, was a surprising Osaka style Japanese restaurant.  Very beautiful and lovely inside.  We ordered much too much food, including a large pot of cooking soup in which we put vegetables and fish and chicken, mushrooms, cabbages, leaks and tofu.  As it boiled we ladled out all the goodies into our bowls which were filled with udon noodles.  After a couple of large beers, fresh sashimi, and many bowls of soup we were given small glasses of chopped flavored ice each with a tiny little red berry inside.  Just two minature spoonfuls of delightfully sweet, melt in your mouth flavor.  What a beautiful dinner with friends.  The next day, Ron joined them for a long ride out to see their property and I stayed home to try and recover from my raging cough.  I managed a short walk and found a beautiful Wat nearby, which is the Thai term for temple.  I cruised through and no one was there.  I took photos and listened to the birds, a few dogs lay lifeless in the sun.  It was so nice to have all to myself for that brief moment.  That night after they all returned tired and hungry, R and P went to see a friend and we walked to the old part of town where the night market was.  Not much good happening there these days.  Disappointment.  My favorite vendors are all gone to newer and better parts of town.  I really don't need to go there anymore.  We walked home and were glad to return to our serene room.

Hideaway in Chiang Mai and mango delight

Bangkok

I haven't written in quite some time due to getting sick and feeling just too run down and weak.  The air quality in town, the many sick and ailing travelers, the air con and heat...I don't know.  It all added up to getting a deep chest cough, achy muscles, body aches and dizziness.  We still managed to enjoy ourselves.  Didn't do the usual water taxi trips to any sights. Just stayed in our little hood, ate great pad Thai from the little lady street vendor.  Three dollars bought us two large plates of delicious food.  One night we went to an old favorite, Ranee's.  They moved to a new space on the same small street and were making excellent food as always.  A hidden gem.  The only drawback is all the tourist that smoke endlessly, adding to all the air pollution.  After four nights in BKK, we traveled up to Chiang Mai.  Amazingly there was so little traffic even with all the warnings of demonstrations, that we made it to the airport in less than an hour, record time.  Sat around for several hours and then had a very comfortable one hour flight.  It takes longer to get to the airport and wait for the flight than the flight time.   I call these the "hurry and wait" days.

Offerings and pad thai

Nice and Easy

Finally, after months of planning, we are in Thailand.   There was much drama and indecision the last few days before we left because of the political demonstrations going on here. There was a huge surge planned for "shutting down" Bangkok and no one really knew what to expect.  Friends in Thailand suggested we not come into the city, but change our plans and fly directly north to Chiang Mai.  Others just admitted they had no idea what the increase in political tensions would create.  We had a few nervous days, but decided to surrender and not detour from our plan.  We felt confident in our ability to adapt to the situation and would adjust if the need arose.  So here we are and very very happy we kept to the plan.  It is lovely here.  Not crowded at all.  Weather delightful.  Our flight from HongKong was 2/3 empty.  All the airport workers seemed grateful we actually came and were most helpful.  Went through customs, bought a 4G SIM card.  Changed money and went outside to the taxi stand and got a driver who smiled happily with his only remaining two front teeth, missing right ear, and a dozen Buddhist amulets around his neck.  What everyone warned us about, impossible traffic due to the road blockage from the demonstrations, just did not have that much of an effect.  We reached our hotel on the river in one hour, which is about normal.  And so here we are!  The start of another wonderful adventure.  First things first we went for a swim to clear our heads from the 15 hour flight from LAX to Hong Kong.  The three hour layover, and the very bumpy 2.5 hour flight to BKK.  Then we wandered down the street and found our favorite street vendor.  She has a small cart, a few plastic chairs and tables set up, and makes the best Pad Thai noodles that I have ever eaten.  Delicious!  So for now life is good.

Back in Bangkok

Here we go again

Well friends, it's that time. We are hitting the road.  Rice is Sacred is up and running.  Keep an eye for the blog.  Starting the trip in our beloved Thailand then cruising on to Laos, Malaysia and Bali.  We are delighted and excited to share our travels with all of you.  Namaste and Om Shanti,  Lena/Ronnie