Pai-ridise

Posted by Emily

Back in Chiang Mai after a short trip 3 hours north of here to a small town called Pai (pronounced "pie"). It's sad that we couldn't spend more time there but we have a flight to catch tomorrow morning down to the south of Thailand.

We left for Pai at about 9 am yesterday morning in a minibus and I must say, I think those were the curviest roads I have ever been on! It was tight curve after tight curve and I had to hang on to the seat in front of me in order to avoid smashing into the girl sitting next to me. I think Nicki and I are both lucky that we didn't get sick (we are both very prone to motion sickness, especially when it involves curvy mountain roads).

Get to Pai in the early afternoon and basically just explored the city, even though it is really tiny. It's a very relaxed place with a beach town feel. Dogs plop down right in the middle of the road to take a nap because there is so little traffic. There also seems to be a lot of art going on, with little art shops all over the place and many people making jewelry to sell. We tried to walk out of town into the countryside a bit but it was way too hot yesterday. Instead we sat down near the river and admired the scenery and were jealous of the girls floating a long in inner tubes.

This morning we got up semi-early to check out the temple on the hill before it got too hot to move. However, it was very cloudy and rainy today so that wasn't a problem. It was a nice walk to the temple, I think about 2 km. The temple itself was nothing spectacular but it gave a very nice view of the town. We spent the afternoon reading, hopped on another minibus back to Chiang Mai and here I sit now.

Tomorrow morning we fly to Bangkok and then to Surat Thani, which is basically just a transit hub city. We will stay there for the night and then catch a morning ferry to Ko Phagnan, an island known for its huge party scene. We, however, will be heading to the quieter side of the island and hoping to find a beachside bungalow to spend a few days in. After that we hope to spent a few days on Ko Tao, an island known for its spectacular snorkeling and diving. After that, we fly back to Bangkok and then on to New Zealand. Don't know if we'll have internet access on the islands, so that's your update for the moment!