It was a very hard couple of days, and a couple of times i really thought that I would not make it (one time seriously)  The trek is not for people of my advanced age.  Yesterday was really, really hard and my legs have still not recovered. Chai and Rambo our guides were really good and some of the time carried my rucksack, taking pity on the old'un - even though I told them not to. They called me super-woman and i think were quite impressed that I did it. I was told stories of others who had given up. At one point yesterday I really thought that I would not get to the top of a very steep mountain slope, and it was only with the help of my "guardian angel" that I managed it. Also yesterday we had an elephant ride, which was different, I am glad I did it but won't be doing it again, it was the second time in one day that I thought that i might die. As a single rider I had a smaller elephant which meant it had shorter legs and therefore when going down VERY STEEP pathways (and I use the term pathways very loosly) I was thown forward at a 90 deg angle with only a peice of rope stopping me going A... over T.. over the elephants head. Not to mention the sheer drop on the side of the pathway. Sleeping and eating was different, the toilets are referred to as "the happy room" which on the whole they are not that "happy", sleeping was on the floor of huts - with sleeping bag which we had to carry with us........ but the food has been simple but very, very good.

On a much brighter note - Today we had no walking, which was just as well because i couldn't have managed it and would have had to given up. We had a 4 hour bamboo raft ride on the river, which was fantastic, although wet. From where that finished we got the truck back to Chaing Mai and tomorrow afternoon we catch the overnight train back to bangkok. All in all a very eventful weekend.

I hope to put photos on when I get back to Bangkok, also details of the villages that I have been to when I write down the names....!!!!