River runners

A lazy morning. All we had to do was catch the slow boat 5 mins walk away...

There seemed to be 20 spaces on the boat and we put our names down on a list when we purchased our tickets. However, there were many more people waiting at the boat landing! Many locals turned up too with jerry cans of oil, bags of clothes and food. We spotted a boat made from the carcas of a bomb dropped on Laos by the American's in the 70's.

Luckily there were many boats travelling the Nam Oh River to Muang Ngoi. Time of departure was 11am but it took a while to load the boats and we were in the last boat which left at 11.45. Even then we turned back after 10 minutes as the driver had forgotten something ..... to put more oil in the engine!

The scenery was jaw dropping with jungle and limestone karsts on both sides. We saw herds of water buffalo taking a bath in the river and locals paddling along in their boats.

We arrived in Muang Ngoi and found a nice guesthouse by the river, then went in search of food. A local lady called us over and asked if we would like eggs, so we said yes. She made us a fantastic omlette stuffed with greens and served with a crispy chapati and a sweet chilli and peanut dip. Unusual but very tasty. We wandered on through the pretty little village and saw lots of people around a stall. They were all eating a type of rice flour pancake stuffed with something, so we thought we would try that too, it was so nice we went back for seconds!

We walked through the back of the village and saw lots of houses with weaving looms outside and beautiful coloured scarves with intricate patterns for sale. We continued on past the last house of the village towards a series of caves. However, as it was getting late we decided not to enter but will visit other caves tomorrow.

Darkness arrived, so we scuttled off to a little restaurant for pumpkin curry! A good food day ... ;-)

Top of the hill

This morning we first waved off the motorbike honeymooners, before taking on the hill! We were told one of the hills in the village has a view point we should check out, so we donned our boots for a short trek through the jungle.

The climb was wonderful but steep. Small steps cut into the hill took us up the one and a half hours climb to the top. The view from the top was ... UNBELIEVABLE! You could see the beautiful river snaking into the distance in both directions. This has to be one of the most scenic spots in Asia and certainly the most beautiful place so far in Laos. We rested at the top, enjoying the panorama before making the decision to head back down. Lunch was calling ;-) The way down seemed trickier but we both managed to stay upright, without slipping over on the loose soil.

We ate a well deserved lunch at the fantastic Indian restaurant opposite our guesthouse, before flopping in our room and hiding from the midday sun.

After a short rest we strolled across the bridge, where local families were swimming in the river and walked a short loop around the village. It was a really gentle stroll after this morning's climb. Locals were going about their daily routines, women working, men playing petanque and drinking Beer Lao. We noticed one lady sitting outside her house with a roaring fire burning. She had a basket by her side, so we took a closer look. As we approached, she pulled a dead rat from the basket, gutted it and grilled it for eating. In the basket lay some other culinary treats. There was a bird a little like a pheasant, a squirrel and in a second basket ... a very unfamiliar animal! It had not yet succumbed to the fate of the others. We have no idea what it was but it looked like a very large, fat guinea pig. We live in hope that this cute little fella is not next on the menu but something tells us the odds are stacked against him. In Laos, they eat everything!

After devouring a vegetarian meal, we did a little further investigation for our departure tomorrow by boat.

Leaving Pak Mon

Bright and early, we tried to get to Nong Khiaw. However, it appears the songthew doesn't leave until 9 o'clock so we went back to our hotel room to wait. At 9, we caught the songthew accompanied by some friendly American girls and chatted most the way to Nong Khiaw.

We checked out a few places to stay when Christine remembered reading that most guesthouses were over the river. We crossed the bridge and there they were. The setting of the village is awesome! Huge mountain backdrops, beautiful river flowing through. A very relaxing place...

There is a few 'adventure' tour shops in town, as budding rock climbers can scale the nearby peaks. There are boat and kayak trips down the river which we may be tempted by....

We ate lunch at a quaint little Indian restautant which was so good, then went for a relaxing stroll as we had eaten too much. We played with a cute puppy in the street but he was too bitey (real made up word). We chatted to Oli and Charli who are travelling on their honeymoon by motorbike. Oh, yes ... we ate again at the Indian restaurant as it was irresistable...

Heading Down

Last time we caught a bus, we discovered the locals get their early to grab a seat. So, we did too! We collected bus tickets and mandatory doughnuts before we both climbed aboard. And waited, and waited... The bus filled up about half an hour before it was due to leave, so we were glad we arrived very early!

We left the bus station on time but reached the opposite end of town half an hour later. The town only consisted of a few streets but the driver kept stopping to collect passengers. The journey down was just as tranquil as the way up as it passed through the famous national park. 2 hours later, we arrived at our destination. Our next job to try to leave as quickly as we could to visit another town.

The bus stop we needed was 11km out of town so we bought out ticket through a travel agent and they would transfer us to the bus station. The bus left in 2 hours, so we had time for lunch and time to visit the market for snacks for the journey.

On our return to the travel agent, they told us the local bus had broken down, so we would need to pay extra to take a VIP bus. Not knowing if this was one of the usual scams or the truth we stood our ground. After only a few minutes we were taken to the bus station, where a VIP bus was waiting... We will never know if they were telling the truth but possibly. We spent the next 6 hours on VIP sleeper seats.

The bus journey went quite quickly. Only one screaming child and one man being sick. All the chickens behaved admirably, locked in the luggage compartment below! We arrived in a 'transport' town at a junction. There were many restaurants but that seemed to be it. Maybe the light of tomorrow morning will reveal more.

We ate, found a hotel, which wasn't too tricky as there was only one. Tomorrow, we move on ...

Bone Shakers

We set the alarm clock to wake us, so we could head to the morning market. We walked to where we thought it was but that was the night market. We found the bustling morning market opposite our hotel!

Next we hired bikes to explore the local area. They were twice the price of the last ones and these were real bone shakers. We headed off into the distance after receiving a 'great looking' hand drawn map and instructions. We were heading towards the Chinese border... how hard could it be!

It wasn't long before we were lost. The roads were terrible, so many stones and ruts! There were many forks in the road to choose between too. Luckily lots of villagers helped point us in the right direction after we tried a number of times to pronounce the name of the village we were heading for.

We saw lots of interesting sights. Amongst them, an Akha swing, many animals, traditional dress and the local crops. The area has been forced to replace poppies grown for opium with other plants and trees. Banana, sugarcane, rubber...

We stopped at a small cafe to grab some food and water, before setting off in the opposite direction. We headed through a huge banana plantation. They appear to grow 2 plants next to each other but one has been cut in half, so the other can grow. Then as that tree grows they cut the other down to half size. There was a lot of plastic thrown on the ground that was used to cover the bananas before they were picked.

After arriving back in Muang Singh we rested our weary bones before handing our bikes back. Next, we ate at the market but it was difficult to choose what to buy; a live chicken, noodle soup, oranges or RAT!

Muang Singh

We left our hotel this morning and headed straight to the market to pick up some donughts for our journey. The bus to Muang Singh was due to leave at 11am and fortunately we were early, as the bus left at 10.45! What we failed to notice was at around 10.30 the locals were boarding the mini bus with their children. Although we had purchased tickets, the bus was rammed and there was only one single seat left, for both of us to share. Thankfully, the journey was only 2 hours.

We are not certain if people from Asia are more prone to travel sickness, but there are always plastic bags available and someone is always sick. Mind you, the road was terrible!

2 hours later we arrived in Muang Singh after travelling through some spectacular scenery. The bus station was less spectacular. Just a large dusty area but in the centre of town
We didn't see anywhere to stay as the bus drove through town, but opposite the bus station there appeared to be a Chinese owned hotel. We are only 10 km from the Chinese border, so it feels a little like China once again. The hotel owner was really friendy, good fun and smiled a lot even though we couldn't really understand each other!

We explored the town and discovered a market. Here we ate lunch and we also found few more guesthouses. There was a trekking company too with bikes for hire and many local shops, selling the usual 'bits and pieces'. We discovered a pretty temple but it was closed.

Everything looked as though it would close when it got dark and the temperature dropped, so we bought our dinner early. A girl at the market let us try the burgers she was selling and they were so good we just had to have some!

We retired to our room early, ready for an early start at the morning market. We watched TV in Chinese and the show seemed to be called Song. 3 judges sat on throne like chairs. A contestant was bought to the stage. The judges view was blocked by screens whilst the contestant sang. If a judge liked what they were hearing, they pulled a lever and their screen disappeard. We assume the contestant then ended up with that judge as a singing coach. Sound vaguely familiar? The judges even seemed to posess the same character traits...

Rural Adventures

Having had 2 enjoyable days exploring by bike, we decided it was such a wonderful experience that we would do it again!

After it began to warm up a little (still hats and gloves weather), we set off on the main road, heading for another cluster of villages on the map.

We took a route that led us through a couple of villages near the river. As we crossed a bridge, we saw a small wooden canoe with 4 young boys casting their nets trying to catch fish. We watched for a while before continuing our mini adventure.

We came to a sign post showing 2 villages to the right. They were off our map but the first was not too far away, so we changed route and headed towards it. 2km later we arrived. It was a quiet little place and very welcoming. We decided we would try to reach the next village 6km away...

After having to walk uphill, pushing the single speed bikes for 1km, we decided at the top of the hill, we'd turn around! It was fun cycling back down but slippery. Although it hasn't rained for a long time, the parts of the track in the shade were muddy and deeply rutted. Fairly hard to handle on our city shopper bikes!

We ate lunch at a tiny cafe, where a friendly man who couldn't speak English, taught us about the Lao bank note values. He was so sweet! Next, we continued our journey across a rickety bamboo bridge, very carefully... and onto a larger river, where there was no bridge. We could either try to cross barefoot (wasn't too deep in parts) with the bikes or turn back. We opted for the more sensible option and turned around. There appeared to be another route on the map, so we tried to follow it. The track got thinner and thinner the further we went. It started to look like we were heading the wrong way. A snake was lying across the thin track, dead and with no head. It looked as though it had been killed by a local with a machete. We decided to turn back once more.... We stayed on the main road, away from the snakes most of the way home.

In the evening we attended the night market and decided to eat in style.We ordered a roast duck to share off the rotisserie. It was so good, the flavour incredible!

Village visitors

First thing we visited the bank and now we are officially Laos Kip millionaires! We have a great big stash of Laos Kip filling our pockets. In the bank, clerks were counting out masses of money without security screens or any guards. It felt weird to see so much money...

Today, we took to the tracks on the bikes again. Yesterday was a wonderful trip to a Lanten tribal village. Today we visited many other tribal villages including Akha, Youne and Tai Dem. We cycled through paddy fields full of ladies harvesting their crops and through herds of cows.

We saw many weaving looms and spinning wheels for cotton, outside houses. As we passed one village a cock fight was taking place. We met villagers walking with their hunting crossbows, others with spearguns and diving masks for fishing in the streams. As we passed a river, people washed their clothes and themselves ...

We got disorientated (lost!) and asked directions many times to the next village. Most villagers were friendly and welcoming, even if they didn't speak any English.

Running out of daylight we took the main road back. Half way we saw the remains of a bicycle accident. Many markings on the road made by the police...

We shared dinner, chatting with many people staying at our guesthouse and then retired to our room as the temperature got the better of us.

Our Adventure into the Hills

Up at 7.30am to grab coffee before the tight breakfast slot comes to an end... Next, we hired a couple of bikes for the day and headed out of Luang Nam Tha. It is pretty cold until 11am so we stopped along the road and treated ourselves to hats and gloves.

We cycled along dirt tracks towards a village called Nam Dee. The route led us through beautiful countryside and we passed many small rural homes. We saw lots of animals roaming around from dogs and chickens with their chicks to every size of pig you can imagine! The children we saw all waved and called out, "Sawadee" (hello)... In Nam Dee in one yard a lady spun cotton and another died cloth indigo standing in the stream. Collecting firewood in a basket on her back, another girl completed one of her daily tasks. A lady stood beating bamboo into small strands against a rock to make paper. She showed us some that she had made. Bamboo has to be the most versatile material known to man, truly incredible what can be produced!

We continued through the village to a waterfall. It is dry season now, so there wasn't a huge volume of water but it was a beautiful spot. We parked the bikes and took some pictures.

Next, we followed a meandering dirt track, uphill then downhill . The scenery was truly breathtaking. We came to a dead end and sat by a small stream. It was nice to just sit and listen to the water and the birds. The sun was now nice and warm on our backs.

As we headed back, a man was tending his goats in the fields below and many people were tending their fields. We stopped at a village house with a table and chairs outside. Was it a restaurant, no prices or menus? We mimed to the lady in the house that we would like to eat and she beckoned us to sit. She washed a few dishes and served us a bowl of noodles each. We attracted the attention or the local children, who stood to watch us eat. Suddenly, Christine spotted something and drew back from the table. In the centre of the table was the salt, chilli sauce and a moving plastic bag! What was in the bag? It looked from where we were sitting to be a tarantula, crawling and trying to escape from the bag. We signalled the girl and used our hands like a spider to explain what we saw. She leaned over and picked up the bag... Christine backed off in her chair expecting a rather close look at the giant spider! However, it turned out to be a giant insect that looked a bit like a cicada. But, really big... and they must eat these! We ate up, paid the 30p she asked for the 2 meals and left before any delightful bugs were served to us.

We followed the dirt tracks back to the main road. When we reached the main town, we headed up to a temple on the hill. The monks were sitting on the bank with a great view of the football match below. After the temple we stopped by the local market to grab a snack or two. One was a dessert consisting of a number of pea sized balls in many different colours; red, mauve, green, orange, pink ... They were soaked in coconut milk and it tasted good. We tried to figure out what it was made from and tried to ask the stall holder. She understood us, though couldn't really explain. However, she disappeard across the isle and returned with a bag, full of tiny balls. On the bag read, made in Thailand ... tapioca. So, now we knew what we were eating.

Next, we headed out of town and saw the local hospital. It looked a bit like a holiday village, all single storey, immaculate, white buildings set in pretty gardens. We didn't go too close when we saw the sign in English over a ward stating ... infectious ward SARS!

The evening was spent at the night market sharing stories with a German couple we had met waiting for the bus and a young Austrian. We sampled the local drinks together. Lime and mint, 9 dragons and 7 scorpions!

On Parade

Coffee is served in our guesthouse from 7am to 8am, so up early to start our day. It is freezing in the mornings and emerging from a nice cosy bed takes courage!

We walked around town to see what we could discover. Many people huddled around little wood burning fires keeping warm. A beautiful river running behind the houses with ladies doing their washing. A museum, but little on display. A traditional market, selling everything from live fish to popcorn! We ate lunch at the market and saw what looked like a film crew filming every move a group tour.

After the market we trolled the streets and came across a military parade of some kind. There seemed to be different brigades marching, watched by a fairly large crowd. There were small stalls selling snacks, a gun display of old American weapons and what seemed to be 2 ladies football teams waiting to play. In the street next door were little fairground games. You had to try to hit a wall, full of balloons, with 3 darts. If all 3 darts popped a balloon, you won a prize! We watched as people walked away from the stall with numerous prizes. We fancied our chances, so each had a go. Christine threw first and straight away hit a balloon, the crowd roared! She steadied herself for the second shot... missed, game over! Darryl took to the oche, sweating due to the pressure of the moment. He fired his dart, hit a balloon and the strength of the throw was so wimpy, that it didn't pop! The stall holder laughed,felt sorry for Darryl and let him have another try. He popped a balloon but of course no prize could be claimed. We left, tail between our legs and disappointed with our performance :-)

The afternoon was spent battling with mobile technology and sorting out a certain visa we will be needing not too far in the future!

This evening we returned to the night market and ate noodles soup to keep is warm. Next, we headed off in search of the loud bangs we could here. Fireworks, near where we had watched the marching, great!

Border Patrol

Up at 6.30am to catch a bus to Chiang Khong. This is one of the land border crossings into Laos. The bus driver took us through lovely villages and countryside at a very sedate pace. He even helped us with where to get off. There used to be a boat to catch but this is currently not running, so he showed us where to catch a tuk tuk on his little hand drawn map!

The tuk tuk dropped us at the border where we filled out the relevant forms for our visa on arrival. A fairly easy process and $35 each, saw us through immigration. On the other side, there was not much! Everyone else was on package tours getting into their buses, we were told to take a tuk tuk, but couldn't see any. We enquired at the information desk and were told two other people were heading to the same place, so we should share their taxi. So we did!

We waited at the bus station for about an hour and then caught the local bus to the north, to Luang Nam Tha. The bus didn't look too great, a little rickety but it took us through lots of pretty villages and we arrived in good time. On the way we saw ladies weaving on old looms and a lorry that had cornered too quickly, lying on its side!

The bus station was miles away from the centre. We caught a little open mini bus with 10 others and 15 minutes later we'd arrived. We booked into a guesthouse and went to see what was in town. Not a lot, one street full of guesthouses, trekking companies and restaurants. There was a small market area selling food and local ladies in their tribal clothes selling bracelets. We spotted something unusual to eat, so sat down and enjoyed what looked like a spinach parcel with a peanut flavoured soup. Really good. We also tried some local sweets and finished off with hot soya milk, which was great!

It was starting to get dark and cold, so we headed back to our guest house which seems to have a 10pm curfew....!

Temple Tour

A lazy morning in the garden! We learnt about off road motorbikes and the exciting places in Thailand you can reach, courtesy of our Swiss neighbour.

As it turned midday, we thought we had better make a move and explore Chiang Rai. First stop, lunch, before having a look around a beautiful mosque and then a Buddhist temple virtually next door. The temple complex was really interesting with one building guarded by dragons that seemed to be eating elephants... unusual! We continued our temple tour and returned to a temple we had passed last night in the dark. It was very pretty with elaborate gold decor at every corner! There was so many donation boxes.... one for the electricity, one for the monks, one for children's education. There seemed to be about 10!

We spent some of the afternoon deciding our next destination. Stay a little longer and visit some more remote villages in Thailand or cross the border into Laos...

Still undecided, we headed over to visit the night bizarre. There was singing and dancing, as well as the usual souvenirs and food. The Thai dancers on stage were beautifully dressed in their traditional outfits and performed a number of local dances!

Chiang Rai

We are staying in a beautiful little bungalow with a small garden. Free morning coffee is provided. So, we sat first thing morning sipping coffee in the sunshine and playing on the double swing seat!

We set off towards the centre to investigate and stopped off for the most wonderful lunch on the way. First stop, the hill tribe museum.

Interestingly, last night at the walking street market we saw thousands of tourists. At the hill tribe museum, we saw 2! There was us thinking people came to northern Thailand to learn about traditional hill tribe culture...

The museum gave us a wonderful insight into the different hill tribes and their activities. We spent quite a while admiring their traditional skills and learning about their beliefs.

Following our lesson, we headed to the river for a romantic walk with the local joggers for company. It was a lovely area, packed with tennis courts and 'posh' houses!

Our evening adventure took us to a less well known night market. We looked up the location and went to find it. We arrived, nothing there! So, we asked a local, who wasn't quite sure and another chap, who assured us it was 'that way' .... only 1km. We set off walking. After a while we asked directions again. At first the lady had no idea but eventually she remembered and wrote some Thai down for us to show people. Eventually, we arrived! We ate some tiny leaves stuffed with herbs and spices, yummy, and had a good look around.

It appears we had walked in a huge square to find the market and it was just behind where we had started!

The Long and Winding Road

Up early this morning to catch the bus back to Chiang Mai. The bus left on time at 7am but we were staying really close to the station so not far too walk...

The bus journey was comfortable, even though it was a local bus. The benefit of the local bus is ... it is a big old 'machine' that can't go too fast, especially up hill. In fact it only just makes it up any hill! Plus, you get lots more time to admire the beautiful view, it costs less and is always far more fun! The entertainment today was provided by the young 'bus boy - deck hand'. It must have been his first time on a bus, as he didn't really know what to do. Usually when the bus stops for a passenger, he would have opened the door for them to get on. Nope. When the bus left the stop, he was the first to his seat, leaving the door wide open! It was really funny but the best bit was when the door had to be pushed really hard to shut and it only stayed shut for 30 seconds before opening again. Once he spent 5 minutes persuading the door to stay closed, only for the driver to stop and pick up another passenger as soon as he sat down. The whole bus erupted with laughter!

We arrived safely in Chiang Mai, had lunch and waited at the bus station for a bus to Chiang Rai. It appears that there are many buses to Chiang Rai of varying standards and prices. There are VIP, first class, 2nd class and the local bus. We ended up on the 2nd class.

The driver sure wasn't hanging around. We arrived early, after a rather rapid journey. Our first impressions of Chiang Rai, dirty! We looked for a hotel. Full... full... full ...

After a while we found a nice bungalow down a quiet back street. We unloaded and headed out. We passed a beautifully lit clock tower right in the centre, then a really long walking street, night market. It was packed! We found the usual items for sale and a few 'new' foods to try. There were some delightful gardens, all lit up with exquisite lilies everywhere! In a big square music accompanied a singer and so did hundreds of local people, dancing. It was a little like line dancing. Very funny to watch and one elderly fellow even wore his cowboy clobber for the occasion!

Crazy Bikers

Last night we discovered our hotel has free bikes for guests, so today we borrowed them! We set off fairly early during the morning mist. It's a lot cooler, jumper weather, in the morning but soon heats up to boiling hot by the afternoon.

We set off towards the countryside to see what we could find. We came across a group of friendly ladies. They were selling sausages at the side of the road and all crowding round, carefully disecting something on the floor. It was a huge jack fruit! They showed us what they were doing and let is try a few pieces. Next, they picked some other fruits from the garden and let us try these too! In return for their entertainment we bought a few things from their stall.

The view of the countryside was wonderful and we cycled to a temple on a hilltop to admire it further. The route to the top was very steep but we just about made it. When we came back down the people at the bottom gave us a round of applause!

We cycled through an arboretum which was pretty, before looping back to our hotel to refill on water! Soon we were off again. More temples, little villages and what we thought was the local hilltribe museum.... maybe once, but there is nothing to see now! We stopped at a small stall to grab lunch and the kind lady threw in dessert as a gift!

Later in the day we discovered a great street market selling predominately food. It was wonderful! So many different, delicious dishes to try. We ate some tiny tofu squares with something on top that we failed to recognise. Next, was a brown squidgy paste in a bag with grated ginger, which came with a type of poppadum. Following this, we tried some spinach squares that tasted divine. For dessert, we ate a cake each, which was so moist and tasted like coconut. Wow! Just to make sure Christine didn't go hungry, we took home a few delicious snacks too....

Signing off... the Crazy Bikers food diary from Thailand!

Mae Son Lap

The market starts bright and early. We didn't want to be first in, so we arrived about 7 am. We had a delicious roti for breakfast and tried a few new things, like a type of sweet rice porridge with green balls! It was so sickly sweet and we have no idea what the balls were made from. We enjoyed some hot soya milk whilst waiting for the songthew to take us to a remote village named Mae Son Lap.

The journey was great. The road rather bumby but we passed lots of beautiful scenery as we travelled through the valley. It was misty and freezing cold as we left but soon the sun tore through the mist and it became blazing hot.

We passed lots of Karen houses amongst the hills, all standing tall on stilts. When we arrived we could see the picture perfect river passing through. One side Thailand, the other Myanmar (Burma). We could see across on the other riverbank the Myanmar flag flapping in the breeze. We walked around the tiny village and had lunch in a new restaurant, that had only been open a few days. The owners were really friendly!

After a lot of interesting negotiation with the local boatmen, we took a boat trip down the river and spent some time enjoying the view. We stopped to watch a local man panning for gold on the river bank but he didn't offer us any...

Unfortunately all too soon we had to leave and caught a Songthew back to Mae Sariang...

Mae Sariang

Today we were up before 6 to visit the market in the hope of spotting some visitors from the local hill tribes. We didn't get to see any but had a great breakfast.

We collected our bags and hiked to the bus station. Today, the bus will take us to Mae Sariang. At 8.00am the big orange bus picked us up and off we went!

The journey was wonderful. Amazing scenery all the way but the highlight being the driver. He was awesome. He swung the big, old bus gracefully around every bend. He played his music,which was pretty good, at full blast. He tweaked the volume at every corner to keep his customers happy. He danced enthusiastically to the beat! He cleaned his dashboard with a little sponge. He cleaned his steering wheel with a cloth. He had a smart pair of socks (we know that as he drove without shoes). He did all of the above whilst driving!

We stopped in a quaint little village for a comfort break, where Christine befriended a local puppy. Our next stop .... Mae Sariang.

The bus stopped right in the centre where we found a nice hotel only 2 min walk. It was nicely decorated for Christmas and still is. Food was calling, so we found a restaurant to enjoy some noodle soup.

Next, we walked around the town and stumbled across a tiny market. It was selling mostly food, which of course we sampled, but also multicoloured live chicks! There was pink, green, orange and bright yellow.

We checked the bus times back to Chiang Mai and enquired about hiring some bikes to see the countryside. A kind man in the bike shop gave us a map, which unfortunately was in Thai. We tried to find some information about kayaking and trekking but we didn't discover a lot. Most of the guides were out and no one else knew much about the trips, or spoke English.

After a short rest back at the hotel, dinner was served.

Mae Hong Son

We left Pai behind this morning and caught the early bus to Mae Hong Son. We had breakfast before boarding, hot soya milk and Chinese doughnuts! The bus journey was about 3 hours and in total we think there may be about 1864 bends in the road between Mae Hong Son and Chiang Mai! A few of the locals were travel sick. They were very discretely sick into bags but the bus didn't smell too good.

After a brief stop in Soppong, we were on our way up into the mountains again. Eventually we arrived on Mae Hong Son. The bus stop was 1km out of town, so we walked. This gave us the chance to explore accommodation for the night. We headed to the lake and found a cheap, clean guesthouse with views over the lake.

After lunch we visited a temple on the lake which had an amazing wicker Buddha. This was a first as they are usually gold statues...

We continued on our temple trail. This time to a hill high above the town. There were a lot of steps to climb but the views, totally worth it!

When we arrived back in town a night market was in full flow. There was mostly local food stalls with lots of new things to try, so we did. Ginger tea, sesame seed sticks, rice sausage and a really hot, spicy dish that set our mouths on fire. We even tried soya milk with what looked like frog spawn but it must have come from a fruit!

Pai

We stepped out of our hotel, put our hand out and a songthew stopped, picked us up and whisked us off to the bus station. Today we are heading to Pai!

Next to the bus station was a really nice shopping mall. We had a quick look around whilst waiting for our bus and it was deserted. We bought a coffee made with real milk rather than the condensed variety that we are beginning to become accustomed to.

The bus journey took about 4 hours and the road was winding to say the least. We climbed up into the hills and the view was magnificent! When we arrived in Pai, we walked straight across the road and found a vacant room.

Next, we took a walk on the outskirts of town to admire the scenery. There was a picturesque river with a waterwheel and bamboo pipes used for irrigation. We passed lots of small nipa bungalows for rent within beautiful settings. Pai has a population of only 2000, so is a tiny little town. However, there are about 300 guest houses which means thousands of tourists, far greater than the Thai population of Pai!

The evening was filled with exploring the night market which sold the usual souvenirs; scarves, t-shirt and postcards. Oh, and woolly hats. Yep, it's cold here at night!

Why rush?

We leisurely made our way to the market for breakfast and stocked up on bananas for the day. We searched the city for a few items we needed then deserved a rest, so enjoyed a great papaya shake in a local cafe.

We watched as a street seller made a delicious meal and couldn't resist getting one too! It was a Thai salad made from green papaya and chilli. It was really tasty though super spicy...

The Sunday walking street night market was huge. It went from one side of the old city all the way across to the other side! One of the unusual items we tried was a cute little fish shaped sweet, that was cooked fresh and filled with chocolate sauce! In the distance we could hear music, so we took a look. Standing on a small stage supported by a group of young dancers, was a little girl singing. Such confidence ... aged about 5 years old!

Chiang Mai

It was pretty cool last night in Chiang Mai. Sleeping in a cold room without the need for a fan or air conditioning is a novelty!

We headed out and explored a local market, where we tried a number of tasty snacks for breakfast. One was a gooey, brown sweet rice covered in peanuts and really sweet but so delicious. Next, we tried these little sweet balls that were harder on the top but a different, softer consistency on the bottom. They were really nice too!

After our 'healthy' breakfast (?)', we went in search of various temples in Chiang Mai. There seemed to be so many but one stood out from the rest. It was really pretty, decorated in gold. As you entered a Buddha statue stood in the entrance, adorned in gold leaf. From the ceiling hung beautiful prayer banners from wire strung between the pillars. We looked around, so peaceful inside and a great place to rest from the relentless heat that awaited us back outside!

Next, we made our way to the womens prison. Strange tourist attraction you may think, but the inmates offer a massage service. They are training the inmates in massage therapy as part of their rehabilitation!

We continued back to our hotel for a rest before hitting the Saturday night walking street. It was one long street packed full of market traders selling lots of beautiful souvenirs, many clothes stalls, interesting snacks and some talented musicians. Oh, and there were thousands of tourists too. You could hardly move!

12 Hours North

Woken by the alarm clock, we prepared ourselves for the day ahead before leaving the guesthouse behind. Breakfast was purchased en route to the train station. Not your average mix of museli and summer fruit, but soup containing a mix of animal parts. Liver, pork skin, tripe and other unrecognisable additions. Tasted fairly good, though difficult to stomach at 7.30 am!

We reached the train in time after stocking up on snacks. We looked on the side for our carriage and seat numbers then got on. Only to find the number on the side was the class (1st and 2nd) not the carriage number. We were in the wrong seats! Battling the hoard of tourists trying to get on, we got off and found our real seats in a rather less luxurious carriage. This has to be the first time we have seen so many western looking people since leaving England!

At 10.30am, to our surprise, the hostess came round with coffee and cake for everyone. Totally unexpected but could explain the price of the ticket!

2 hours into the journey, Darryl put his hand into his pocket to get his phone. To his horror, it had gone! He had been using it earlier. He hadn't moved from his seat so coudn't have dropped it. He checked his pockets again. No phone. We were sitting next to the guard's carriage in the last seat. No one had walked passed as there was nowhere to go. The only people moving passed were the guard and the hostess. Could or would they have taken it from his pocket? Surely not! We notified the guard on the next seat, who helped us look for it. He removed the seats, not under there. It really was missing. The guard suggested we try and ring it. Good idea. Christine called it, we waited patiently expecting to hear nothing. It rang, we could hear it, but where? It sounded like it was coming from Darryl. He checked his pockets again, no phone. By now we had tried ringing it 3 times and checked everywhere. People were turning to look at the crazy people at the back of the train, turning it upside down! Eventually, after a fraught 5 minutes of searching everywhere, Darryl stood up, reached onto the shelf above and lying next to his bag was his phone. HOW DID IT GET THERE? He had put his bag on the shelf as we got on the train. He had been using the phone in his seat. He had not stood up or moved from his seat. This remains a mystery ... but thankfully we have the phone back!

Our next surprise was at 11.30am when the hostess appeared again, this time with a tray of soup, rice and curry each! Perhaps we are in the luxury car after all!!

Beautiful scenery along the way consisting of pretty little villages, rice fields, temples and Buddhas. The further north we travelled, the more mountainous the scenery became.

4.30 along comes the hostess with more coffee and another cake! As it grew darker, the wonderful view turned to darkness but we were treated to a beautiful orange sunset!

We arrived in Chaing Mai only 5 minutes late. Pretty impressive considering the distance covered. We hopped in the back of a songthew (pickup) and headed for the old part of town where most of the accomodation can be found. We tried a few options but they were either full or expensive. Eventually, we found a large, very clean hotel. We dropped our bags in our room and had a quick look around Chaing Mai!

Cebu City

Leaving Moalboal was a little sad. No more snorkelling or swimming in the bath like sea! We caught a tricycle to the bus stop and then waited for the big yellow Ceres bus. The first bus that pulled in was packed with no spare seats, so we waited. The next bus was empty, great, as we had a 3 hour journey to Cebu City!

The journey went quickly and before we knew it, we pulled into the south bus station. Cebu City looked very uninviting after spending time in much smaller, friendlier places. It was big, dirty and looked a little scary! We spent our time there in a large shopping centre stocking up on snacks for the airport.

The transport to the airport was by taxi, the driver a little crazy. He sure could fit his taxi into some tight spots! Flight was on time and we're off to Bangkok...

Travelling from the airport was easy using the airport rail link. We found a cheap guest house, with a cute cat playing lookout at the window and ate some very peppery food. Next we bought our train tickets for the 12 hour journey north to Chiang Mai! We wanted 3rd class seats but the early train was 'tourist class' only. The sleepers for today and the following evening were fully booked by tour groups. We had a choice. Pay double for the tourist train that left and arrived at a reasonable hour or get the later local train, that arrived at 4am taking 15 hours! We could get the bus for a little less but the scenery from the train is supposed to be spectacular! We paid up and had 2 tickets for the 8.30am tourist train.

Latest Bangkok protest news. On 13th January the protesters will aim to shutdown the city. They intend to block major road junctions throughout the city to try and force the Government to stand down.

And... finally, exhausted ... we slept.

Back to civilisation

This morning it was time to leave our island paradise and head back to Dumaguete. We walked to the road junction where we were dropped off by the jeepney on our arrival. However, common sense did not prevail and a friendly lady explained that although the jeepney came that way, they only travel back to the ferry from the 'main highway', the one we had just walked from! In the end, we caught a tricycle to the port just in time to catch the next ferry leaving.

We secured a bed for the night and went into town for lunch. After eating the most delicious meal, Christine chose to look for a hairdresser. After checking out a few, she decided on the one that she liked the look of the most and it also helped when the salon manager claimed he could make Christine look like Angelina Jolie! Many helpers later, one with a cool gecko shaved on his head, the hairstyle was complete. Satisfied with the results, though a little disappointed with the promised transformation to Angelina, we went for a well deserved ice cream!

In the evening we treated ourselves to pizza, again and ordered a nice big salad to go with it. After eating half the pizza, the waitress returned to the table. She informed us there was no salad left. No problem. We finished off the pizza, paid up and decided to get a dessert instead, from the small cafe opposite. At the cafe, we asked for a halo halo, which is a dessert we have taken rather a liking to. The reply from the girl behind the counter, "Sorry, sold out!"

We left hungry and retired for the night, beat .... ;-)

R & R

A really lazy day! Nothing to do but take it easy...

We did spot an unusual brown moray eel and some little anemone crabs whilst snorkelling today, which we had not seen before.

We also returned our glass coke bottle to the market for recycling (interesting aren't we?!). Christine a little sheepish as the store owner was one of the men she danced with at the party last night. Many of the locals recognised us and in jest asked us to dance!

Every evening we have been lucky enough to watch the most incredible sunsets from our balcony. The colours are beautiful and every night is different! We spent the rest of the evening chatting to a friendly American and his lovely wife on the balcony. He runs concessions in the States and one of his stalls sells strawberry lemonade. His stand is a huge lemon with the top half being a strawberry. He showed us a picture, very cool!

Party hard

We both headed out to sea for our early morning snorkel and saw a 'real' clown fish, which was so pretty! Everyday we spot something new and today whilst heading for home we spotted some tiny little upside down jellyfish on a sandy area. They were really quaint!

After we had dried out, we spent the morning collecting shells with holes on the beach. We were helping the little girl who lives here make a necklace, so the holes were important to thread the fishing line through! We also collected dead sea urchins in loads of different colours and made a musical instrument.

Many places were closed today but we managed to find some food at the local springs. It was 'buy one, take one' (BOGOF) on hamburgers so we tried them out. They were really nice, with a choice of cheese or egg topping. We decided we could eat more so tried fried bananas in sugar, followed by cheesy popcorn! Still not content with our peculiar combination, Darryl went for an ice cream. The choice of flavours; cookies and cream or .... cheese! Easy decision.

The afternoon was spent playing games with the little girl. An interesting version of scrabble materialised. When you're age 6 and your 2nd language is English, spelling tends to be rather tricky but making animal shapes with the letters is great! Please see photo below of man riding a dog?! Tiring of 'Scrabble', the little girl wanted to swim, so donned her life jacket and off we went! Darryl lent her his mask and snorkel and she searched for fish and shells without a care in the world!

Earlier in the day we had spent some time talking to a friendly lady who has a stall at the market where we buy mangos. Today she had no mangos and explained that they were out of season but she is expecting a delivery from Mindano island tomorrow. She also happened to mention that tonight is her market's Christmas party for all stall holders, of which there are about 10. How interesting, we thought, tonight we'll take a little peek at the party. As we walked on we saw the local men preparing a pig for roasting at the party.

After dark we walked into town and stood a little way back, watching the party unfold. They were having such fun, everyone was laughing together and they played some great party games which they all found hilarious! One was a caterpillar relay around your team mates. Each time you returned to the start, another person joined the caterpillar. A second game was a jumping game. A lady called out 'jump left' or 'jump right' and they had to follow the instructions. Make a mistake and you were out!

All was going well and we were having so much fun watching the laughter, when the lady from the market spotted us spying on the party. She took us over to where the action was taking place, sat us down, uncovered all the party food from earlier, armed us with plates and glasses and we were told to tuck in! We were now gate crashing the San Juan market Christmas party. The games stopped and they handed everyone a Christmas present. On a countdown from 10, everyone opened their presents. They were laughing so much it was totally contagious.

On came the dance music and off they went. Dancing their hearts out. Christine was beckoned to the dance floor by a lovely older gentlemen and did England proud with her slick chicken like dance moves! Darryl ended up dancing with a young fellow of about 7, who had all the moves. They faced each other in what looked like a serious dance off but Darryl had no chance against this little dude. The music changed from English songs to local dialect and a cheer came from the crowd as they all started a rather obscure dance! The little boy tried to teach Darryl how to do the moves. You bring your knees together, bend forward and gyrate your hips! Christine was sitting out for this one, crying with laughter at Darryl, now being helped by various other members of the party to perfect the moves!

Time for karaoke. The Filopino's love karaoke! Once they get the mic they sing so loudly and proudly. It is amazing to see. Even if they are incredible singers or totally off key the crowd roars with encouragement. Whilst happily trying to sing along to himself to Lady GaGa, Darryl was passed the mic. Oh, oh ... not doing a great job for the English contigent, he tried his best, before running to the sideline for a rest. Ever popular Christine was up again dancing her socks off. The local police had popped in and one of them asked for a dance with Christine too. Heavily armed, how could she possibly refuse. When you see Christine you must ask her about her police dancing experience, though she may be a little shy!

Picture this ... a huge purpose made karaoke machine, with a money slot at the front and a contender for the world's largest speaker below, full volume blaring. The words on the small screen in local dialect (possibly Visaya). 2 gangly English backpackers (us) dancing wildly, the song playing ... Gangnam style! Boy, did we show 'em!

What a night. What incredible kindness and selfless hospitality. All we did was ask to buy a mango! Next time your boss tells you, "We won't be holding a Christmas party this year, there's no money!" Remind him of these people. The local market traders in San Juan who haven't a penny between them. How their community spirit is awe inspiring. How they laugh and joke together, not at each other, but together! Smiles and laughter are free, we can all have a party!

A true lesson learned for us...

Paradise

Snorkelling first thing before breakfast, then freshly sliced mango followed by coffee to wash it down! This is the life!

We walked the opposite way today to check out a few local resorts. We came across one place that we researched on the Internet but their own website said they were closed. They looked very much open to us, strange?!

Lunch was really good today. Not only did we know what we were eating but it tasted great and it wasn't pork, but chicken! Dessert was a small 'ice candy' which was like an ice Lolly but homemade and made from fresh fruit. Yummy, first time we have seen them.

After lunch we stocked up on mangos and bananas for the next few days at the market. Then we walked back to our accommodation in the blazing sun. Today is HOT!

When it got dark we accompanied the girls next door to the local BBQ. Hot off the grill was chicken intestines on a skewer. Darryl thought it tasted just like chicken but Christine wasn't quite so sure. We talked about this and that before retiring to bed!

Filipino style

Darryl woke up early and it was low tide on the beach. He braved the millions of sea urchins with their needle like spines to go for a snorkel. Once reaching the sea the snorkelling was great with many uneven channels to swim around. He made it back without treading on a sea urchin! He spoke to a friendly lady who was collecting sea urchins. She was scraping out the insides and adding them to a small clear bottle. It looked disgusting, though she offered the contents of the bottle to Darryl for 30 pesos (50p), he declined!

After, we headed into the town to look for something to eat. We stopped on the way to enjoy an egg and cheese bun. Not exactly what we expected but nice nevertheless! Some natural springs caught our attention but unfortunately they were cold.

We found a small shop testing their new karaoke machine. They were playing Bon Jovi so we had to stop and listen! The owner demonstrated some great air guitar and hip swinging to the music. Very entertaining! We ate on the way back to our beach house and ordered 3 portions of rice, instead of 2, as they are usually pretty small. To our surprise each portion was super size and we struggled to devour the lot!

The afternoon was spent snorkelling at high tide, washing our clothes and playing games on Darryl's phone with the hotel owner's little girl.

We took a short walk before retiring to our balcony overlooking the sea. Staying next door were a group of Filipino girls. They introduced themselves and showed us a video they had made.

The video was of them on a small island near their home. They had seen the devastation caused by the super typhoon to the island and taken action themselves. They raised funds from friends far and wide. They procured the materials to build houses. They went to the island and they helped rebuild 51 houses! Truly an inspiration.

Here is a YouTube video they showed us....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5J1J9FPwkB8

WARNING: WE HAVE NO CONTROL OVER THE COMMENTS SHOWN ON YOUTUBE VIDEOS, SO USE WITH CAUTION! SOME COMMENTS MAY BE INAPPROPRIATE FOR CHILDREN. ASK AN ADULT FIRST!

Siquijor

Travel day today and unfortunately we have to back track as we chose to spend New Year in Moalboal.

We caught a tricycle to the centre from the beach. Then a bus to Bato where we transferred to a ferry which went to Tampi. From here we caught another bus to the ferry port in Dumagete. Next, we had a choice.
Catch the fast expensive ferry at 1.30 or the slow cheap ferry at 2.15. We chose the slow one so had time to grab lunch in the centre. We returned to the port and the ferry left on time. Unlike the fast ferry which still hadn't departed! Our boat actually arrived at the same time as the fast one, which felt good as we had gone for the cheap option!

There were loads of tricycles waiting to take passengers to different beaches in Siquijor but we tried to find a jeepney, that would be cheaper. Christine asked the driver the price to San Juan but out came the charter price list.... 400 pesos! We moved on and found another, jumped in the back with the locals and paid 30 pesos each to San Juan. When we arrived we asked "Where can we stay tonight?" and were directed to a motorbike. We jumped on the back with our 'big bags' and off we sped. 3 people, 2 big bags and 2 small rucksacks on a scooter! Scary!

Eventually we arrived at some beachside huts with a beautiful view of the sea. We left our bags and walked 5 minutes to town. It was tiny with a few small places to buy 'things' and a very quaint park. It was getting late and the sun was setting so we headed back to catch the sunset from our room.

New Year's Day

We were probably some of the earliest risers at our hostel. Many of the other resident's asleep after turning in for bed a little later than usual!

Some places were closed today for the holiday including the bakery, so no cakes today! But, we did eat lunch in the small local cafe opposite the bakery which was open as usual.

We spent some time walking along the beach and Darryl went in for a snorkel. Today was a little colder and windier than usual so he didn't stay in the water too long.

We went to bed fairly early as tomorrow we are travelling to Siquijour Island, so have an early start!

New Years Eve

Today we have had a lazy day! We have slept a lot in preparation for tonight's celebrations!

We ate dinner about 9 pm, later than usual and treated ourselves to something special for New Year. A huge pizza! The bar started to fill up and a few people from the hostel came to join us. We paid the bill and headed off to the halo halo store for another New Year treat. Halo halo is like a desert, crushed ice, jelly pieces, fruit, cornflakes and lashing of condensed milk! Tastes great. We continued walking along the beach front to the next resort where a band was was playing Bob Marley. Some people were dancing, others dangling their feet in the resort pool. We relaxed in their comfy seats and enjoyed listening to the music for a while. As 12 o'clock drew closer we headed back to a bar where a band were playing, ready to welcome the New Year. At midnight, everyone went wild! Blowing plastic horns, fireworks lit up the sky, the band sang Auld Lang Syne, although you couldn't hear it over the raucous celebrations! We wished people a Happy New Year and headed on to the beach. Well, we tried but our path was blocked. Too many Fireworks zipping around our heads. We found a different route to the beach to welcome in the New Year Filipino style!

HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!