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.
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.
