Chiang Mai/Krabi/Phuket - 3rd to 11th November 2007

Bangalore-Singapore

Need a desperate break from work, it is almost maddening to deal with one issue after another without a break. Absolute madhouse without a sign of relenting and I need an escape.

And........... promptly flew to Singapore to seek shelter and get away from my computer, my nemesis. Felt great to be flying after such a long time, actually got time to read the newspaper at leisure, felt like I was back being with my best friend, flying.

Singapore-Bangkok-Chiang Mai

Gracious! something needs to be done about the visa on arrival formality at Suvarnabhoomi airport.

Chiang Mai is a quaint little town tucked away in the North of Thailand, and is an ideal spot for doing some trekking. Ashika was waiting for me in one of the backpackers hangout perusing the Lonely Planet with great intent. We decided to book ourselves to a 3-day adventure trip for 1500 baht with one of the many travel agents in Chiang Mai.


The 3-day adventure trip

Wild plantains, marigolds and lush green trees greeted us on our way from Chiang Mai to the Elephant Safari. We climbed onto the backs of the elephants and took a leisurely tour of the forests for about an hour. The elephants were quite demanding, and expelled air out of their trunks onto our faces demanding for food (now, let me tell you, smelling an elephant‘s breath is not something you want to experience). After some food and a few hours of trekking we ended up in a small village where we stay for the night.

The tour guide and his partners were friendly folks and one of them decided that he was going to use his vocal prowess and skill with the guitar to impress Ashika. And, as is common on these trips, we started a fire and the revelry began with beer, guitars and singing. I don’t think I have ever heard ‘Let it be..’ as many times as I did on this trip.

There were 13 of us on the first day (Indian, Irish, Korean, French, Canadian, American origin), and only the French and Indian population were left out by the next morning. The rest of the folks had booked themselves on a 2 day tour and had to head back earlier. The second day was quite uneventful, we trekked and saw a couple of water falls and headed back to another village to spend the night.

Well, the third day was the most fun, had my first taste of wild water rafting. We had a blast going down the rapids and splashing water on folks in other rafts. Then was time for the bamboo raft ride, where the raft operator decided he would upend all of us into the river (the plan was foiled, as the rest of us caught onto the act and stared unbalancing the boat as well).

And, it was time to head out from Chiang Mai to our next destination…

Krabi

We caught a flight from Chiang Mai to Bangkok, where we had to catch up with Nidhi. This turned out to be quite eventful as we spent half the night waiting for Nidhi to clear the visa formalities at the airport, and she had decided to go on ahead to the hotel without us.

Krabi is the best location for rock climbing!
This is the second time I tried rock climbing after the Black Cliffs in Boise and it was absolutely stunning. After a short ferry ride we ended up at a thin stretch of beach surrounded by beautiful rock faces. And I met the most adorable rock climbing instructor, he was a sweet faced native with immense patience and encouragement (qualities absolutely necessary in an instructor in my experience when you are rock-climbing). I sucked at climbing artificial walls when I was 16 and had decided that rock climbing was something out of my league. John, who took me climbing in Boise changed my perspective. But, I was still very doubtful about rock climbing in Krabi. But the instructor ensured that all of us felt at ease while climbing.

Nidhi decided she wanted to exercise her vocal chords that night, and joined in with the lived band at a small inn. The rest of the patrons in the inn(4 folks besides us) also decided to join in, this ensured some head banging, cat calls into the late hours of the evening. And, off we headed to

Phuket

Dolly joined us in Phuket and promptly fell sick as a dog. As it had rained the past couple of days, the seas were gray instead of the bright blue-green we expected. And I think I will end my travel log here as Phuket was the most boring leg of the trip, we did what most tourists do, booked us onto sight-seeing trips to Phi-Phi islands, James bond island.