We took the 3 hour minibus journey through the mountains of Northern Thailand from Chiang Mai to the hippy mecca of Pai. Most of the passengers were nauseous throughout as it has so many bends (don't quote me on this but i believe there are about 1,800) !!
As we hit the home straight and finally came off the mountains we saw Pai in the distance and the scenery immediately made the journey worthwhile - this is probably one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. The village is surrounded by absolutely stunning mountains and countryside and the village itself is charming!
Reading about Pai beforehand we realised that it attracted a lot of hippies and you can immediately see why many arrive in Pai for a short holiday and end up staying indefinitely. We got the impression that it is the kind of place where anything goes and you could happily spend all day doing absolutely nothing except staring at the scenery - so we did just that for most of our stay.
The scenery is a welcome distraction and I was lucky enough to sit on the back seat next to a Switz couple who were really lovely to chat to and practise my German on...Nat got the short straw as she was sat on the front seat sandwiched between the driver and a girl from Hong Kong and I think she witnessed the worst of the drivers manouvers! Having said this considering the number of bends overall the journey was fine.
As we hit the home straight and finally came off the mountains we saw Pai in the distance and the scenery immediately made the journey worthwhile - this is probably one of the most beautiful places I have ever been to. The village is surrounded by absolutely stunning mountains and countryside and the village itself is charming!
Reading about Pai beforehand we realised that it attracted a lot of hippies and you can immediately see why many arrive in Pai for a short holiday and end up staying indefinitely. We got the impression that it is the kind of place where anything goes and you could happily spend all day doing absolutely nothing except staring at the scenery - so we did just that for most of our stay.
We were staying in Baan Pai Village along the riverside in a very authentic hut. The guesthouse was surrounded by beds and water features and it was so relaxing that we just went for walks along the riverside, read our books and relaxed. I think it is at this point that we really relaxed into travelling and started to really really enjoy ourselves.
Our hut by the river:
On one of the days we signed up for a Thai Cookery Course which started at 9:30am with a trip to the local market to source ingredients , followed by a lesson in how to cook at least 6 Thai courses.
This was probably the best day of our trip so far as we were learning alongside three Italian men who made the whole experience very entertaining. Our teacher was brilliant too. After finishing each course you sit down and tuck in so by the end of the day we were absolutely stuffed! It was delicious though.
This was probably the best day of our trip so far as we were learning alongside three Italian men who made the whole experience very entertaining. Our teacher was brilliant too. After finishing each course you sit down and tuck in so by the end of the day we were absolutely stuffed! It was delicious though.
Evidence of the skills we learnt:
The only thing we didn't enjoy about Pai was the mosquitos - which are everywhere because of the river. Despite drowning ourselves in deet, having a mosquito net in the room and avoiding sitting by the riverside at night we still got bitten to death - although not until the final evening when we sat in a restaurant with water features listening to live music. ..... we didn't think much of it at the time but Nat came away with around 24 bites and I was the lucky one with just 8 (this was increased the next day when i stood in a fire ant farm and got 6 bites off them - i have to say that being bitten by these ant feels a lot like being mildy electrocuted like on the day in Chiang Mai ;) - it was dark what can i say)
Sadly we left Pai after three days and got the lovely bus journey back to Chiang Mai. It was a lot smoother this time although one girl was sick all the way.
We stayed just one night in Chiang Mai and went over to the wealthy student area of Nimmenheim Rd for drinks in the evening which was full of trendies and really cool (sam your vintage stuff would do so well here, it's all the rage!)
From Chiang Mai we took the five hour bus journey to Chiang Khong which once again was such a beautiful route and thankfully not as bendy!! From here we bid farewell to the land of smiles and crossed the border into Laos!
Sadly we left Pai after three days and got the lovely bus journey back to Chiang Mai. It was a lot smoother this time although one girl was sick all the way.
We stayed just one night in Chiang Mai and went over to the wealthy student area of Nimmenheim Rd for drinks in the evening which was full of trendies and really cool (sam your vintage stuff would do so well here, it's all the rage!)
From Chiang Mai we took the five hour bus journey to Chiang Khong which once again was such a beautiful route and thankfully not as bendy!! From here we bid farewell to the land of smiles and crossed the border into Laos!
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