Trekking and more in Chiang Mai

I've been in Chiang Mai for over a week now, and I'm really enjoying my time here. I arrived two Sundays ago and checked into a guest house that offered a room with two single beds and a private bathroom for just 150 baht per night. I was just thinking what a shame it was that the other bed was going to waste, so to speak, when Lizzie--a super cool Scottish lass--arrived at the guest house, also seeking a room. I asked her if she'd like to share; she agreed, and we've been inseparable ever since!

Lizzie and I spent our first two days in Chiang Mai wandering the streets, checking out some of the markets and Buddhist temples. We had a curious run-in with a monk at one of the temples (I think it was Wat Phan Tao... but I'm not sure). Normally, monks are not meant to have any physical contact with women; it is considered taboo to even brush against a monk's robes. So you can imagine my surprise when a certain cheeky monk, after introducing himself, took my hand as if to kiss it! But it gets worse--he brought my hand next to his face and took a long, slow whiff of it. He then smelled my arm, and asked if he could take a picture of me. Needless to say I was very relieved when this naughtly monk moved on from me to harass Lizzie.

After two days in the Chiang Mai, Lizzie and I embarked on a trek to the jungle about an hour north of the city. We were placed in a group with six other people: Christina and Uland from the States, Patric and Alexandra from Switzerland, and Fanny and Rudolf (yes, we did have a laugh at those names!) from France. We very much enjoyed one another's complany, and now Uland, Patric, Alex, Lizzie and I will be travelling into Laos together.

The trek began with an elephant ride. Although I wasn't overly keen on doing this in the first place, it was quite cool to be riding on top of such a giant and powerful creature. However, that feeling soon wore off, and was replaced with a sense of pity for these animals, that didn't seem too excited about walking uphill with humans on their backs in the heat of the midday sun. The elephants weren't treated cruelly--their keepers merely prodded them along, often just verbally, rather than physically--but I just would have rather walked alongside them instead of riding on top.

After flying across a river in a cage on a zipline (clearly there merely for the pleasure of foreigners, or farang) we had a rice-based lunch prepared by our tour guide Kai and some local women. We then began a three-hour hike, with Bo, another guide, leading the way. I was blown away by my surroundings--the jungle was absolutely immense, and the diversity of plant life was astounding. I really enjoyed our mostly uphill hike, and had so much energy that I stuck right behind Bo the whole way. My fellow trekkers were impressed by my stamina. Along the way, we took a break at a waterfall, the first of many we'd dip into of the course of the three days.

That night, we stayed in a bamboo hut with a Lahu village. I was concerned that this experience would be fabricated to meet Western expectations, that we wouldn't see 'authentic' Lahu life, but an exaggerated version of it. I was worried that we'd be invading the villagers' lives. So I was pleasantly surprised by most of the villagers' seemingly indifferent attitudes towards us. Our hut was at the edge of the village, and we were left to our own devices most of the time. We had a lovely, low-key evening, with Bo and Lizzie providing some tunes on the guitar.

On the second day of our trek, we were joined by 'Jack Sparrow', a young man from the village that can best be described as an overgrown teenager. He carried two things with him as we trekked through the jungle: a sling shot and a sharp knife. He used the sling shot to shoot rocks at various objects. He'd occassionally stop to climb a lychee tree and pick us fruit. He fashioned us hats out of giant leaves. He made a turbine out of bamboo shoots. I was impressed by how resourceful both he and Bo could be.

That evening, we stayed in a jungle camp in a similar form of accommodation. We had an amazing time, and really bonded. It's incredible how quickly we were able to get to know one another, and how well we connected, given how randomly we came together. We shared our meal and some beers with our guides, which I got the impression doesn't happen too often--it seemed that they weren't used to being invited to socialise with farang. Lizzie and I ended up staying up quite late with Bo and Jack Sparrow, who we found out were actually called Son and Nu respectively. I couldn't help but have a bit of a crush on Bo--he was so kind and gentle and had the nicest little singing voice! Jack Sparrow, on the other hand, was a complete nutter! Lizzie was lucky enough to become the object of his desire, and she had to spend the rest of the evening fending off his advances.

We did very little trekking on our third and final day, but got to go whitewater and bamboo rafting. Whitewater rafting was AWESOME--what an adrenaline rush! I definitely would like to do some more of that. On the way back to Chiang Mai we ended up sharing a bus with another group; we were talking and laughing the whole time, while the others just kind of sat there. I think they were jealous.

Now we're back to regular ol' travelling life in Chiang Mai. Today Lizzie and I will be visiting Doi Suthep, a temple that is very sacred to Thais, and then heading towards the Laos border tomorrow morning.