CHIANG MAI & BANGKOK

11th - 15th August 2015

We ambitiously decided we would catch the last bus over the border from Laos to Thailand after finishing the two day Gibbon Experience on the border town of Huoy Xai. The border closes around 6pm, and our bus got us there about 5.15. Plenty of time to spare! What was awaiting us on the Thailand side was our own amazing private mini bus! It wasn't meant to be private but obviously no one else had booked so it was all for us! The driver stopped at a nice service station and we got a 7/11 toastie for dinner, (yum) Will said he lived on them whilst surfing in Phuket and they were like an old friend. It was without doubt the nicest bus ride we've had so far. When we arrived in Chiang Mai we thought it would be easy enough to walk to our hostel. However the deluge of monsoon rain changed things somewhat, and we were soon caught under a shop canopy with the rain bucketing down! A tuk tuk pulled up along side us and we ran to get in to go the final 700m to our hostel. It was a lovely place with even lovelier staff. It was about 11pm and we were soaked and tired so went straight to bed.

The next day I woke early to go climbing with the Chiang Mai Rock Climbing Adventures Co. whilst Will had a day of sorting out stuff. I was taken to Crazy Horse crag with my guide Pui and did some nice climbs there. It had been a couple of months since climbing in Ton Sai and I was a but rusty but it was a fun day all the same. I met a lovely couple who lived near Melbourne and so were telling me a few spots I had to check out when we got down there. The last few days were catching up with me and I was completely knackered after the climbing. I met will back at the hostel, he had managed to do most of his bits and bobs, but had got bored and went for a wonder around some of the temples and alleys of the old town.

We had heard there was a hot tub on the roof of the hostel so we headed up to hopefully catch a sunset from the luxury of the tub. When we got there, a guy from England was already in it and broke the bad news to us - it wasn't hot!

We got in anyway and had a beer, unfortunately our time was cut short when right on time, the heavens opened up and we were treated to another deluge. This time it really was HEAVY, I've never seen rain like it! We hadn't eaten and it was about 8pm before we decided we'd have to man up and make a run for it. We asked at reception where the nearest place to eat was, glanced at each other, and with a grin, ran out into the rain. In one minute we were there, but we were completely soaked and I had a spectacular fall right in front of everyone eating in the restaurant in my haste to get inside. Cringe. Dinner was brilliant as our friendly hostile host had written down all the best things on the menu in Thai for us on a scrap of paper which we just handed to the waiter.

The next day we visited a temple on a hill overlooking the whole city. To get there we hired a bike... It was gloriously sunny when we left, but about 10 minutes into the drive it was bucketing down, so out came the rain jackets and on we went. The rain cleared in time for a glorious view from the top. We walked round the temple and I got déjà vu from when I was here with some school friends 10 years ago! Afterwards we biked on to a village in the hills that didn't have much going for it other than a beautiful little waterfall set next to a couple of crumbly farms at the end of the road. We were later told we were probably near the long neck village where the women wear brass coils to elongate their necks, but unfortunately we knew nothing about this which is a shame as I'd have loved to go there.

We got back to the hostel round four and were picked up for an evenings cookery course. It turned out to be one of the most fun evenings of the trip because of the two women who ran the course. They were absolutely hilarious! We first went around the market to pick up the ingredients, one of which was named 'phuk yaw' which solicited a childish giggle from us all. Back at the school, (which was actually their family home) we went through what we could make. We were making 4 items, but we could chose from a selection in each group: soup, noodles, curry (including making the curry paste from scratch) and a desert. Whenever we added lime, we had to say 'squuuuuueze' and squeeze it into the pan whilst wiggling our hips. When she added an ingredient to my drunken noodle dish, the whole thing went up in flames and she called out "welcome to Thailand". I guess you had to be there but she was hilarious and the dishes we cooked were delicious. We'll definitely be trying to cook the coconut chicken soup, pad Thai and Thai green curry when we get home!

After class, all the pupils went out for 'a drink', which turned into many drinks. The night took an interesting turn when me and Will lead everyone else to a rock club next door, as we could hear a live band rocking out. They played some pretty heavy screamo rock which wasn't to everyone's tastes, but later another band took to the stage who played crowd pleasers such as Kings of Leon.

Unfortunately, our time was nearly up for the south east Asia loop. All that was left was a quick flight down to Bangkok, in time to catch our flight to Bali the next day. Luckily we had one last treat awaiting us - Pierre, Will's boss from his days at HGV plays in a band every Friday and Saturday night in Bangkok and when we met up with him 2 months ago, he invited us along. We made our way to Soi Cowboy - the heart of the sex district, and found The Corner bar where the band were in full swing. Luckily being the on the very edge of Soi Cowboy the bar was not full of weirdos and horny blokes. They played all the greats, from The Beatles, The Stones, and Neil Young to Snow Patrol, Coldplay and our new favourite Thai hit, which we call the 'do do do' song. It was a fun night and the area seemed less seedy than the road we found ourself in last time round Pat Pong. We popped out mid set to grab a snack. We decided to take a risk and give chickens feet a try. They were surprisingly good like a really crispy think bit of chicken skin not bad with a bag of sticky rice. We hot footed it back to the bar in time for the second half of the gig. It was nice to share a beer with Pierre and Nit again. They seem to be having a great little life in their corner of Bangkok.

Our hotel for the night was called Matchbox, as all the beds are in little compartments stacked on top of each other in dorm rooms. We saw it online and thought we should give it a try. It turned out to be pretty luxurious, especially if you've lived in box rooms in central London on minimum wage!!

The next day we headed out for an amazing brunch at Black Box, a slick little cafe just below the sky train in central Bangkok. The main reason for going is their pulled pork eggs Benedict, it was as good as it sounds. Definitely have to start a business in London selling that - we'd make a killing! Then it was time to board the sky train and head for the airport. Next stop - BALI!!!!