Friends in many places

Took a quick flight back to Bangkok and made my way back to the infamous Khoa San road. 

Khoa San road is one of those places that just never changes. Buckets of alcohol, fries insects, aggressive tuk tuk drivers and custom suit makers, horrible pad thai and extremely vulgar clothing. Might as well get a little bit of everything in. It's main purpose is to serve as a via point to spend a night before flying or taking a bus somewhere nicer.

While walking the street stopping at each store for a beer, I decided to get a foot massage after a long day. You seem to meet the nicest people that sit down beside you for a massage. Ended up having a nice chat with an Asian man and his wife from Paris. An engineer for Intel computer chip company, he fluently spoke 6 different languages. Turns out everyone in Europe gets something crazy like 5 weeks mandatory vacation... Get with it Canada!

So while sitting there getting a foot massage with my new buddy, Singah beers in hand, I recognize two boys from home walk by. Next thing we know it was  another night on Khoa San, a BBQ 'd scorpion and a few buckets later, and I may or may not have missed my bus to Cambodia the next morning..... Not even mad. Flying out that night would be far less painful, and allowed a full day to hang out in a lively city in the state of emergency. 

Went to MBK shopping centre which is the heart of the protests. Inside is a regular shopping mall selling high end camera gear and clothing, then step outside into a crowd of Bangkok residents mid protest, sleeping on concrete, singing, and standing up for there political opinion. 

Traffic is Bangkok is painfully slow at times, and leads to some anxiety when catching a flight into Cambodia..

Back to The Land of Smiles

Back in the early summer of last year I started thinking about how much overtime and vacation days I had mustered up with the intention of going somewhere really far, again. 

Ideally wherever it was had to be warm,  adventurous, and a major differentiation in culture. I felt like eating weird food, getting a tan, seeing how differently people live outside our bubble at home and do some cool shit.

$1000 flight into Bangkok. Can't be that, other than the Thai Government declaring a state of emergency the day before my flight, do to ongoing civil unrest with an election coming up. 

After spending a couple weeks in 

northern Thailand in 2011 and talking to backpackers while in Costa Rica early last year, I knew there was more to Southeast Asia I must see. Having 5 weeks to spare, there will still be so much of this part of the world left unseen, which is still saddening. 

Thought it would be best to get out of the bitching cold back home for a bit more spoiled back packing for a couple days in Southern Thailand, with some white sand and turquoise water. 

Nearly 40 hours of flights, connections, taxis and tuk-tusks later...

Krabi- Less touristy (I hoped) and with nearby access to some of the best rock climbing in the world. Night markets and good food at night, island hoping and rock climbing by day.

I've found this part of Thailand to be slightly more expensive, but still; 400 Baht ($12) to get picked up at the hostel, driven to Ao Nang, and taking a boat around to four different islands, lunch included, for an entire day. Also, snorkelling, topless Europeans and caves, how cool?

A couple days of travel and it's not hard to get into the swing of it

British Columbia 2

Costa Rica

Febuary 2013

Montezuma

That time Mike nearly got killed by a bull...

Surfs up in Jaco

      

Tamarindo

Calgary

Mount Indefatigable

British Columbia 2011

Grouse Grind!

Bangkok Finale

December 2011

All good things must come to an end, and in this case Bangkok was that end. Khaosan Road seemed like a place every local would hate due to the western tourists, but was it ever a good time.

The infamous Khaosan Road

Bug Grub cart

Best group of people possible to end a trip off

The END......for now

You have to see this place

December 2011

White Temple, Chiang Rai
                         
                          

You simply just have to see this place with your own eyes to appreciate it. It wasn't your traditional ancient religious temple. For example, inside there was a large mural over the door with the devils eyes. George Bush in one, Osama Bin Laden in the other...

If you looked closer, you could spot Kung Fu Panda, or the burning Twin Towers with fuel pumps coming out of the flames, dripping gas into Satans mouth. Deep shit.

Pai

(Yes, I'm finishing this 2 years after the fact, but I guess thats the way its's going to work)

The next 2 weeks after meeting my new travel buddies really proved that the people you meet along the journey certainly can make the trip.

Once back in Chiang Mai we made some plans to get out together and see more of Northern Thailand. Not before a night out with almost everyone in the hostel to a neat little rooftop bar and a bunch of cold Changs.

Groovy rooftop bar, Chiang Mai

We headed up to Pai, a small town near the Myanmar border, with the reputation as being a nice quiet little hippy village.  The 3 hour ride, whilst a tad hungover was hands down the craziest vehicle ride of our lives. The driver was, INSANE, and the roads were sick and twisted. With no exaggeration, he had the tires chirping around nearly every corner on the twisted mountainside roads, whilst trying to pass 4 vehicles going into a hairpin corner. Yeah.

The drive took a toll on us

Pai had some nice night markets in the streets and we found a cool bamboo shanty hostel down by the river to stay in.

This will do for a night 

We heard about hot springs nearby so we all grabbed scooters and headed for the hills.

A convoy of scooters with my new travel buddies on sunny day through the foreign country side was just another one of those things I soon won't forget.

Sharing the road with an elephant

Hot Springs were hot enough to boil an egg

My UK buddies suggested I tag along with them for the rest of my trip, and being a solo traveller its as easy as saying "Sure, why not". And that was that, Back to Chiang Mai we go!

Sunny day by the river, doesn't get much better

2 Day adventure to the Lahu Tribe Village

For for the few days in Thailand I had been there, I mostly stuck to myself. That's nice and all, but it gets lonely at points.
The best decision I could have made while in Thailand (aside from not befriending any ladyboys of course) was go on a 2 day mountain trek North of Chiang Mai.

An hour long trip in the back of a pickup truck with 8 or so new friends, with a pit stop at a local food market, and we were headed up the hills on a road covered in elephant dung in a truck reeking of burnt clutch struggling to get us up the hills.
First highlight of this 2 day adventure: Elephants. Grabbed some bananas to satisfy them as we all rode a group of 5-6 elephants along a walking trail to the water and along a hillside. The guide on my elephant jumped off at one point and asked if i wanted to sit on its neck/head to ride it instead of the the standard (and safer) seat fastened on its back..... HECK YEAH? . It was a bit sketchy, a little hairy, and a lot dirty, but still a very unique and great experience. GoPro footage, as per always to prove it. I thought some of my friends passed gas in a serious way, but these elephants, they can sound like a brass band at times. Careful where you stand.

2+ hour hike up the mountain with a refreshing stop to slide down a natural rock waterfall, and we arrived at the very top to the Lahu Tribe Village. No running water, no electricity, just a small village of people living off the land with an incredible view from the top.
Standing on the bamboo balcony of our bambo hut on stilts looking out into the valley, and the sun set over the mountain and hills in the distance was another one of those, well, you know how it goes by now, kind of moments. Ah, the good life.

"You want maaaaasage?"

Our tour guid Nuun cooked a stellar pumpkin type curry among other curry dishes for us all, as well as a few cold Chang beers. Changs, guitar, and drinking games around the firepit inside the hut all night long with a group of new friends set the stage for the following week with the new group of Brits I stuck around with. "Absolutely brilliant".

Breakfast laid out ready to go after to coldest semi-sleep of my life under a bug net beside my UK buddy Scooter, and we were back down the mountain the next morning. Pit stop at another incredibly cold fun waterfall and then headed along the riverside for a while towards the white water rafting adventure ahead of us. Ever gone floating down a rapids with elephants on the riverside to your left, and a tour guide at your rear yelling at you to stop paddling like Ladyboys? Again, the GoPro was there to prove it all.
A few km down the river we switched gears and hopped on shady bamboo rafts and went a bit farther. Hardly impressive, but another check in life's TO DO box. Pad Thai spread laid out for us on shore and a little slingshot fun and it was time to head back to Chiang Mai.
Curious how much 4 meals, an elephant ride, night in a tribe village, 2 waterfalls, white water rafting, bamboo rafting, 2.5 hours travel by truck and meeting 6 of my best new travel buddies cost?






............All of $35