Pai, Thailand

Pai is a hippy backpacker haven. Pai is awesome. Even if you don't love chillin' out, you will learn to appreciate it here. Pai is full of fun coffee shops, vegan/vegetarian thai food, meaty goodness (if that's what you're looking for), river side bungalows, and fun. That's right - fun. Pai has fun if your idea of fun is wandering around a street market looking for a police man singing to guitar tunes, or if your idea of fun is wandering around eating random street food (that could be rat), or if it's sweet t-shirts, or a ton of mosquitos, you've got that in Pai. Your bungalow neighbor might be playing at the rasta bar across town (ours was), and you'll be happy for it. He'll be tired and quiet by the time he gets home at 4am. You know you're not missing anything, because a quiet night in Pai is a good night.

And then there was Thanksgiving...

Instead of our annual Turkey Trot, Jeff and I decided to take an "easy bike ride" (according to Lonely Planet - we will never trust them again) up to Mohr Phaeng. Mohr Paeng is a waterfall. We thought it would be fun to visit it while we were lounging about Pai. So here's the thing...the Lonely Planet guide said it was an "easy" ride, but he failed to mention that the entire 8km ride was uphill. UPHILL. That's a long uphill ride. Seriously. And we are not in shape. So...we did it. We rode uphill for 8 freaking kilometeres. 8 freaking kilometeres. And when we were done we were so proud of each other and ourselves. We were really proud. It was all worth it. Go us!

We rewarded ourselves with delicious street food. What else is there in Thailand?!?!

Hanging Out at Don't Cry Ragaee Bar in Pai

River in Pai

River in Pai

Breakfast in Pai

Field Outside of Pai 

Street Cafe Outside of Pai

Gas Station Outside of Pai

Thanksgiving Breakfast!!!

Road Trip to Mhor Paeng

Road Trip to Mhor Paeng

On the way to Mhor Paeng

View in Pai

View in Pai - We're  Pretending We're Not Miserable :)

We've Finally Reached the Waterfall!!!

Mhor Paeng

Papaya Salad (aka Thanksgiving Dinner)

Black Sticky Rice

Street Tea 

Thanksgiving Dinner pt. 2

Thanksgiving Dumplings!!! We Feasted :)

Thanksgiving Reggae

Chiang Mai, Thailand

Our first "guest house"/hostel was our most expensive one. We stayed in an airport hostel in Bangkok for one night before leaving for Chiang Mai. The place was nice, and after two weeks, we have only stayed in one place that we could call "nicer". Chiang Mai is a pretty big city. Everything you could want you can find there - toilet paper, cheap massages, cheap hotel rooms, and delicious food. As for the cheap massages, Jeff and I indulged at the Thai Women's Prison where massages were amazing at 150 baht (about $5) per hour. We indulged, and we liked. It was awesome. All we had to do was slip on some sweet fisherman's pants and a loose cotton t-shirt, and we were set for an hour of relaxation + tea.

Chiang Mai was also great for the wealth of activities to enjoy. Inmate massages aside, we were able to spend an entire day visiting an orchid and butterfly garden, take an elepant ride through the jungle, take a bamboo raft downstream, hike through the jungle, and whitewater raft further downstream. That was all in one day!
Chiang Mai also had plenty of opportunities to take cooking classes, and Jeff and I love cooking classes. We love to cook, and we love to eat. We indulged in cooking and eating at the Asia Scenic Cooking School. Our instructor, Ma'am, was funny and we met some great people there.
As a side note, if you ever plan on visiting Chiang Mai, I would definitely recommend Junior House and Asia Scenic Cookery School!!!

Week 1 (Thailand)



Outside the Cultural Center in Chiang Mai

Woke up in Bangkok, boarded a plane to Chiang Mai, got a Thai massage at the Women's Prison, toured a Wat, took a full-day Thai cooking class (and ate my face off), went to a Long Neck village, took an elephant ride through the jungle (and down the river - I guess the elephant was hot), went further down river on a bamboo raft, hiked through the jungle, went white water rafting, sailed kratongs down the river (for the Loi Kratong festival), floated rice paper lanterns into the air and wished on them (during the Loi Kratong festival), took a mini bus up a mountain with 762 grueling turns to Pai, made it about 700 of those turns before losing my breakfast, and now we're celebrating Thanksgiving in Pai with vegan Thai food. It's been a good week! 

 


Breakfast in Bangkok



Outside Wat Chiang Man, Chiang Mai

 

On the Grounds of Wat Chiang Man, Chiang Mai



Ma'am In the Garden at Asia Scenic Cooking School



Making Papaya Salad at Asia Scenic Cooking School



Jeff About to Enjoy his Papaya Salad

Cashew Chicken, Kow Soi Curry, and Sao Tab

Jeff and I with Ma'am

 

Loi Kratong, Chiang Mai

Butterfly and Orchid Garden, Chiang Mai

Long Neck Refugee from Burma

Scary Bridge to Elephant Park 

Jeff and I on our Elephant

Feeding our Elephant

This One's for You, Will Koo

Mahouts Playing with the Baby Elephant

The S.S. Elephant Takes us Downstream

Waterfall in Chiang Mai

This Bar was Literally on the Side of the Road in Chiang Mai

Our Guest House Friends

Who Doesn't Love Sparkler/Chang Time?!

Our Favorite Ladies in Chiang Mai - They Know How to Party!

Staff at Junior House - They Rock!



 



Day 3: Loi Kratong

Loi Kratong Festival, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Thailand is amazing. Chiang Mai is amazing. Let me start by saying that Jeff and I jumped on a plane to Chiang Mai our first day/few hours in Thailand to make it here for the Loi Kratong Festival. During the 12th Lunar month each year, the people of Thailand sail "kratongs," boats made from banana trees and flowers, down the rivers. It is also tradition to launch huge rice paper lanterns into the sky. It is really an incredible experience, and we are so happy to have had the opportunity to be here for this festival. I'm pretty sure we have found the best $10/night guest house in town. The staff has been wonderful. Not only did they teach us how to make the kratongs, they threw a party for us complete with Thai barbeque, they drove everyone staying at the guest house to the river, and they showed us how to sail our kratongs and launch our rice paper lanterns.

Jeff Making his Kratong

Making My Kratong

On the Bus Headed to the River to Sail our Kratongs

Man Praying to the River Before Sailing His Kratong

Man Sailing his Kratong

Lighting the Lantern

Guest House Staff Help Launch the Lanterns

Away They Go...