Vagabonding at 60

We left Chiang Mai a few days ago for the three hour mini bus ride to Pai. Rumors that Pai is the Khao San Road of the north are true. Although much smaller, the place was packed with young backpackers of all stripes. It was definetly a young peoples party scene. So called walking street, which still had traffic, was chock full of shops, street vendors, restaurants and bars. At night it was wall to wall people, and was beastly hot during the day.

We met a nice Taiwanese couple at our hotel, and the next day we set off with them to find a waterfall described in one of our guidebooks. It turned out to be considerably further than we thought, but the hike, along side of, and in and out of a leafy stream, was shaded and quite enjoyable.










At one point we came to a deeper pool in the stream where we could immerse ourselves in the water. It was pure bliss in the steamy heat of the jungle.











Cooler now, we walked for another hour until we came across a local couple. They had been to the falls the day before, and were back out on the trail looking for an expensive par of sunglasses. They said it was still another two hours to the falls, and running low on water, we decided not to continue. On the return, we passed several other hikers, also low on water, but they continued on, somewhat foolishly in our opinion. Eventually we met up with the couple from Taiwan, who were slower hikers. We all stopped for a beer just outside town, at the rather funky Ing Doi Bungalows. Sitting next to us was a young couple from the Bay area.

We left Pai the next morning, and none too soon in our opinion. Mae Hong Son, close to the to Burmese border, was another three hour ride on the road with a thousand curves. Although no longer off the beaten track, the locals here outnumber the tourists, and so it is a fairly low key place. Unfortunately, it was beastly hot, which came as somewhat of a surprise as this was still supposed to be the cool time of year. During the afternoons, it was just too hot to do much of anything, and we just held up in our room with the ac cranked. It was also difficult to get around because of the shortage of tuk tuks. It renewed our interest in learning how to drive a motorbike, which are cheap to rent, unlike a car.

Not far from the center of town, and a few blocks from our hotel, there is a lake. It is a nice place to stroll at night, and relatively quiet, with few motorbikes. There is a pleasant night market nearby, as well as street food and several good restaurants.











On one side, there is an old Wat, lit up like a Christmas tree with multicolored lights. On one night there was a festival, and the monks appeared to be launching fiery lanterns into the night sky.


















Mask on the grounds of the Wat

In the relative cool of the morning mist, we climbed up to another Wat high on a hill overlooking the town.











Little girl on Wat stairs

Yesterday we went up into the nearby mountains in a four wheel drive vehicle. It was on a narrow track, paved in some spots, dirt in others. After an hour or two we pulled into Ban Huai Hee, a Karenni village tucked away in the hills. Nary a tourist in sight, we had our driver negotiate with the headman to hire a guide to take us on a hike through the jungle. Soon thereafter we started on a four hour trek to another village, Ban Nam Hoo, where our driver would wait for us. It was easy at first, more like a nature walk, but then things got progressively steeper.

Our guide, Umon, pointed out various plants, although he spoke not one word of English. At a certain point his cell phone rang. It seems it was time for his podcast. And so, as we walked along the trail as he listened to music and glanced at the pictures on his smart phone. It seems as if the damn things are everywhere, and even in this remote place there was service.








As we reached the top of the pass after a gain of 2-3000 vertical feet, it was quite steep indeed.























On the way down we had to carefully pick our way amidst the lose rock. We descended to another isolated village where I took pics of the women weaving. Everyone seemed quite friendly.














I walked up to the small christian church. Obviously the missionaries had beaten us here. As promised, our driver was waiting, and then took us on the long hot ride back to Mae Hong Son.

Today we hopped a minibus back to Pai, and are staying just out of town in a little enclave known as Lychee Bungalows. It is run by an extremely personable Israeli and her Thai husband. We spent most of the day chatting with her and her British friend. It was an easy day after yesterdays strenuous hike, and a more relaxed place to stay than the center of hectic Pai.

We have kept quite busy in Chiang Mai. Each of us did a day long course. I chose to do a Thai cooking class on an organic farm outside of town. It was quite professional. Each of us had our own cooking station, and we prepared 6 or 8 dishes. By the end of the day we were all tired and stuffed. They gave us a little cookbook, and I hope to be able to reproduce some of the meals for my friends upon our return.



Your's truely bending down on the left





Meanwhile Nanette took a jewelry class, and made a very classy silver pendant for a necklace.

Pendant in process

We also took a tuk tuk out to Umong Wat, on the outskirts of town. With its subterranean tunnels, many trees, and Buddha heads, the place had a very peaceful atmosphere.





















? WHY INDEED?












Today we journeyed to an elephant show, about 45 minutes away. Nanette was keen to see it and thought it was enjoyable, though I thought it was a bit on the hokey side. Well, I have to admit that they were cute.

We came back to our apartment after that to hang out at the pool, and listen to music on my phone, through tiny, but amazingly good travel speakers. Ahh, the wonders of technology.

Everyday we have taken to having a beer and watching the sunsets from our terrace. What could be better?

Today is Chinese New Year and we thought we go into chinatown to see what was going on. At this point though, it seems as though it is not worth the effort . Another hard day of relaxation.

View from my terrace at Chiang Mai Apartments, overlooking Doi Sup Mountain and monastery.









We arrived in Chiang Mai two days ago. A bit of hassle getting from the airport to meet Derek, our landlord at the apartment. We were told we had to wait an hour for a taxi, but eventually managed to find a tuk-tuk on a street outside the airport. Not sure why the wait was so long. The apartment is quite nice, located in a residential section across from the train station. However, it is a hefty walk into town, and the tuk tuks sometimes demand too much money. Derek is quite a character. An expat Irishmen, he'll talk your ear off, is quite obese, and has traveled all over, including Leh, where he plans to return this summer. How he manages at that altitude, with all the extra weight he is carrying, is a question.

Yesterday we reached Nyi Nyi and ate lunch together. He was the monk we had met in Mandalay three years ago, who we tried, but failed to help him get to the US. He was desperate to leave Burma at the time, as this was before anything had changed for the better in that beleaguered country. He managed to sneak across the border to Thailand, as so many Burmese have done, and ended up in Chiang Mai because he had a friend here. Looking nothing like the monk he was, he is a handsome young man, neatly dressed, who works as a receptionist at Le... Massage. He is much more upbeat and mature than when we knew him in Burma, and despite the improvement in things in his own country, has no desire to return. The owner of Le... seems to be a savvy business woman who has taken a liking to him, and so he has a lot of responsibility considering he is just a receptionist. The fact that his English has improved considerably is no doubt an important factor, as several of the masseuses and masseurs are Burmese, and don't speak English. He does the translating since almost all the customers are English speakers. It may not be too long before he is managing the place. What he hopes to do at some point, is return to Burma and get a passport. Then he can get a legal visa for Thailand and enroll in a Thai high school where he can study the language. Although not a certainty, this may enable him to live here on a permanent basis. It is really wonderful to seem him so happy. He feels there are some real opportunities for him to make some money, to continue studying, and to make a life for himself in Chiang Mai.

We stppped into his spa last night hoping to meet his boss, but she had already left. We did get great oil massages with two people who he picked out for us, also Burmese. There is a large, and mostly illegal Burmese community here, and I'm sure they are often paid less and treated badly, just like Mexicans in the US. Luckily for Nyi Nyi, he seems to have found a place for himself where this is not the case.

Tomorrow, he wants to take us out to dinner now that he is working.




Nanette and Nyi Nyi






It was a bit strange to be drinking beer, and more than one, with our former monk

2/3--New Siam Guesthouse. This place never changes. Khao San Road will forever be locked in the 60's with a constant parade of foreigners from all over. Interestingly we have heard the Chinese now make up 13% of all tourists and are now the single largest group of foreigners. However, there are lots of hippie types (non Chinese) or wanna be hippies. This includes an old white guy, going bald, but with dyed red hair and a long white beard looking more or less like an Indian sadhu. Everyday we see him parading back and forth along the nearby alley. There are Euro's with little kids, and yes, even a bunch of us older folk, (excluding the sadhu), from various parts of the globe. We met two intrepid travelers from Vancouver, several years older than us. Joyce and Gordon have been all over, taking off for four months during the soggy winters of coastal BC. They have been to and trekked in Nepal several times, befriended a guide named Santa, and paid for his girls to go to school. They will leave for Pokhora in a few days after spending a month in Burma. They tell us the place is now lousy with tourists, prices have quadrupled, ATM's have appeared, and cell phones are ubiquitous. Luckily, the people are still the same, though I think we got there at the right time.

At night the nearby alley and surrounding streets here in Balimphoo become one big party scene with loud American rock and blues, outdoor restaurants and bars, and VERY crowded streets. It is quite a scene.






All's quiet in the morning





Our breakfast spot

The famous Mr. Yim, who makes various Thai veg curries for a buck

Yesterday, we went to see Wat Pho, a little further on the river taxi than the King's Palace, but a place we had never been. The enormous reclining Buddha was spectacular.

Although some 50 feet long, it is only possible to capture the head by itself







Statues on the grounds of Wat Pho

After wandering around a bit, we set off to look for a local sim card. That was an adventure, and we got somewhat lost on the way back. It was a success, in that we did find a card and then were able to call Derek at Chaing Mai Apartments, our next destination.

TO ALL MY NEW TRAVEL AND OLD FRIENDS: HERE STARTS THE BLOG OF MY LAST TRAVEL ADVENTURE THIS PAST FEB TO APRIL 2013. WE ARE NOW HOME.

After the long flight, Hong Kong still felt vaguely familiar after a five year absence. Our hotel, the Panda, was comfortable enough, though kitchy in the Chinese way. When we had breakfast in a local place around the corner, ham and eggs and toast with the crust cut off in the British manner, we truely felt we had arrived. Shortly thereafter we made our way to the subway station, and managed to get lost several times, though we did make it to the mainland Chinese train station. It was not entirely uneventful, as I left my small day pack next to the information both in the subway. As we were purchasing tickets from a machine, the attendant came up to me and asked if I had left a bag. Initially I said no, only to realize a few minutes later that in fact I had done so. Luckily she still had it in the booth. A close call with a lot of imprtant papers.

In the main train station we found ourselves next to Peter from Montreal, who we chatted with about travel adventures and found we had been to many of the same places. In his late 40's, he had a business and a girlfriend which brought him to Guangzhou on a monthly basis. He kindly offered to let us call Sunny, our former English student, on his phone when we arrived, which turned out to be unnecessary. Sunny, who was only 15 when we last saw her was right there to meet us, and we recognized each other immediately. It was, after five long years, wonderful to see her again, as she was by far our favorite student in Xiamen.






Sunny in her apartment and next to revolutionary statue in sculpture garden

Guangzhou is a big,rather futuristic looking city with many new skyscapers, and a nice walkway along the Pearl River. On the day we arrived Sunny took us to the top of the Canton tower, some 600M high with a commanding view of the city. The tower was erected for the 2010 Asian games. Unfortunately the smog obscured much of the sunset. However, when the lights of the city came on after dark, the display of multicolored neon was incredible.




Taken through the glass at the top of the tower

The tower itself was alternately lit up like a rainbo, then red, purple, green etc. which was best seen once we descended.

As Sunny pointed out, the Chinese are very good at puttng on a show for others to see. Later in the evening we took a cruise on the Pearl River, and the lights on the bridges and tall buildings were like a well organized light show, also multicolored, as well as moving and pulsating. I snapped away wthout a tripod, eager to try out my new superlight camera.

For the first couple of days Sunny kept us incredible busy seeing all of the sights, and insisted on paying for many things. We ate up a storm, from local soups, to dongbei, hotpot, and dim sum.




Old monastery amidst the constant new construction

Finally we had to tell her that we didn't need to see EVERYTHING, and just wanted to spend time with her. This gave us time to just relax and enjoy each other's company. We spent one evening making jouza, dumplings, in her apartment, where we met her roommates, and an Italian man who Sunny had corresponded with, who was interested in studying Chinese in exchange for teaching her Italian. Another night we met her boss, David , a low key Brit who seems to appreciate her talents and is almost paternal with her. She works for him as an administrator, in a language institute which provides training to multinational corporations. Though much more mature than when we last saw her, Sunny is still the same free thinking, independent person she was five years ago. Despite the gaps in her formal education she has a very good and inquizative mind, and has blossomned into a responsible and attractive woman. Her English, complete with American accent, has improved to the point where it is possible to have a conversation with her about practically anything. We discussed many things including some heavy family issues, friendships, work, goals for the future etc. When and if she decides to create her own business, we can be the first, and as she put it, likely the only shareholders. I think we all realized that our connection to each other remains as strong as ever, despite the time and the distance. She has become, for all intents and purposes, like our third daughter, and we feel very protective of her.