The Apple of my Pai

Ok, so that was long break! Where to begin....
Chiang Mai = Ace. Muay Thai = Ace.


So, after Chiang Mai I went to a small mountain town called Pai in Northern Thailand. I planned to be there for three days to trek, but ended up not trekking and staying there for ten days! It's an amazing place where everyone gets to know your name within a couple of days, and because it's such a small town the locals know and greet you too. There's a large expat community of Oz, English and Chinese that own some of the shops and bars around town, and you bump into them throughout the day. There are a few bars and small nightclubs that look awesome and stay open until the last person leaves! Messy. More often than not.



I was living in a hut next to a river, and the only way to get there was over a bamboo bridge! I wrote a lot of music and met some fantastic people. There was a swimming pool and gym which is where most of the travellers spent the daytime; getting slowing sozzled on whisky, larking around in the pool and (occasionally) pushing some weights. All outside of course to a wicked sound system, but all very chilled. Below is a picture of "Team Alpha"; a select group of individuals that we founded; galvanizing our comradery by drinking whisky, imitating ghekkos, and driving around the mountains on a fleet of mopeds.

"Filth Hut"

As it's approaching monsoon season there have been some horrendous rain storms (most of which I'm managed to get caught in away from my dwellings). All warm rain, so it doesn't matter, but it really, REALLY blasts down from the heavens. 15 minutes and the roads are turned to rivers, then the sun peeps it's head out again.

So after ten days in the Pai Hole (as we dubbed it), I took the 3 hour mountainous bus journey BACK to Chiang Mai; primarily to DJ on the Friday night (it's the main city after Bangkok) in a club called "Fabrique", but also to see a super-cutie who worked in the guest house I stayed at the first time. I went trekking at last into the jungle and stayed on a mountain with a village tribe and it was one of the most beautiful places I've seen. We watched two separate electrical storms at night but they were far away so it didn't rain on us; just huge lightening forks in the distance over Chiang Mai.


Anyway, after white-water rafter and bamboo-rafting on the second day of the trek I had gelled with 3 London lads, so we stayed together in Chiang Mai for a few days partying and getting massages, before leaving for the country of Laos: