Chaing Rai & 'Roundabout

Well we ended up spending 6 nights in Chiang Rai. It was a nice little city with enough to do but not too busy. Except for one night we stayed in a place called Mae Kok Villa - villa was definitely a stretch but it was adequate and cheap (210 BHT which translates in about $7 CDN). Now before you start thinking "Wow!, imagine paying $7 dollars for a room in a villa", let me describe those accommodations.

It was a small room, probably 10' x 10'. It had one double bed with a very hard mattress. I'm not sure what's up with Thais and their idea of a bed but having seen more than one Thai taking a nap on a cement floor, including one in the hallway of a hotel, I guess they think that a matress of any kind is a luxury. We have stayed in places with a brand spanking new mattress but it is still almost as hard as sleeping on a piece of plywoood. Anyway, this villa in Chaing Rai had the typical hard mattress. On the advice of Jan/Hilda, David brought Peter's Thermarest mattress with him so he inflates that to put on his side of the bed. I don't know what's up with me but I don't seem to really mind the hard mattresses. Courtney got a mattress on the floor and her's was pretty soft so that was the sleeping arrangements. In addition, there were two small bamboo chairs and a small vanity with a mirror.

The bathroom was in a separate room. It had a cold shower and cold water in the one tap. Both the sink and the drain in the floor from the shower went directly outside on the ground. For a hot shower, you walked outside the room down a covered walkway to a separate room (5' x 5') where there was a gas-fired hot water unit. You opened the "water cock" which is a lever to let the water flow and the water went into a very large aluminum basin. You used a plastic container to scoop the warm water onto your body/head and that was your shower. It was actually very nice. You were basically outside but with some short walls to protect your privacy.

There was also a nice space outside each room where there was a little table with a nice tablecloth and a plant and a large garden to see from there. This villa was a former missionary school so I suspect that our room was one for a teacher. There were also dormitory rooms at this place available for considerably less than $7 night. There were young backpackers staying there.

We did a day trip from Chiang Rai, spending ~$50 each to drive all day in the mountains outside of Chaing Rai in the luxury of an airconditioned van with two other tourists - a young couple from Britain. We also had a driver and a man from the Lisu tribe as a guide. He spoke good English and could answer our many questions, plus he ordered us a great lunch (We will do a separate blog on the food sometime soon). Among other things that day, we visited several hill tribe villages. The people in these villages came from China and other areas outside of the borders of the current Thailand. You see many of these people (Akha, Lisu, Lahu, Humong) both in their individual villages and also in the towns and cities of northern Thailand. Some, in particular the women, still wear their traditional clothes. You see them especially in the markets selling handicrafts. One of the villages we visited was run more like a museum/historical village, kind of like Sherbrooke Village in NS - the villagers were supported by an NGO to set things up in this way. There was fee paid to the village to have us visit and as a result the villagers were not urging you to purchase handicrafts and souviners. It was interesting to read and experience a little of what life was like in a traditional environment. We also saw the local day care in this village. It's always a treat to see children. The Thai children seem well loved for the most part and spend lots of time in physical contact with their parents. Many of the hilltribe mothers are very young and still carry their babies in slings on their back.

On the same trip we went to a small town called Mae Salong. This town was in the mountains and is known for it's cherries and Oolong tea. There were many tea plantations in this area, grown as an alternative to opium which was commonly grown in the north of Thailand and the surrounding countries of Laos and Burma/Mynamar. This was an initiative of the Thai royal family who promote many rural development projects in Thailand. Mae Salong was settled by people who left China when Chaing Kai Chiek (sp?) and his army (Kumaintang) were chased out of China by the communists.

Well that's about it for Chiang Rai, except for a riverboat trip we took. We'll tell you more about this next time.

Just for the record we are currently back in Chiang Mai. Our tales of Chaing Rai are a little behind the times but we are trying to be somewhat sequential in our blogging. FYI - we are paying about $1/hr for internet access which is the same as a coffee or a bottle of beer.

Thanks for the messages from Kathy, Mary Ellen, Sue and Teresa. Interesting to realize that it's the women who are keeping up the lines of communication. David and Courtney are both doing some emails but since I'm the fastest typist, it seems that the blog falls to me. David and Courtney look over my shoulder and keep me honest and remind me when I forget things.

Love to all.....Simply MacLean