Hey back again ill carry on from where i left off last.

so had our first day with the group properly in sukhothai. next we got on a bus to lampang which took around 4 hours. we arrived at the guest house which again was very nice. named riverside resort or something, not so much a river as a sewer unfortunatley, had a certain pong to it. i shared a room with karen this time so was nice to get to know her abit.

we walked into the local town and went for a meal at a little place on the river with a live band. i had a very spicey green curry, which was very nice just blew my mouth off a little bit! wandered upto the night market and had some pancakes which were very nice! they made them with bananas in between and covered them with condensed milk and sugar so good! didnt think i liked condensed milk either!

next day the tuesday we went to the ELEPHANT SANCTUARY AND HOSPITAL! as you might be able to tell it made me very excited! always been my favourite animals so was an absolute dream come true for me!

the girls traveled in a very cushy taxi to the park while the boys got shoved in a sontow haha. theyre these pickup trucks with seats down both sides in the back and roofs. theyre used as taxis everywhere!

we arrived and got taken to see some babies firstly with their mothers. they were so adorable, i fell in love with one instantly, he was so small and friendly and playfull. kept trying to put his feet through the fence to get out and join us. didnt quite know his own strength yet either as her arther hurt my wrist, bashed it against a tree! but i dont care too cute!

we next went to watch them bathe. they brought out about 20 elephants all seemed huge at the time although there were two younger ones who were around 6 years old. we got to just walk around between them, hugging them and stroking them. there so garceful and gentle that i felt safe around them even though they could of quite easily killed me! got lots of photos taken with them. everyone seemed completeley besoted by them. they then bathed with their keepers in a huge lake which wa fun to watch as they rolled around squirting water at each other etc. just as i was taking a photo one decieded it would be funny to absolultey soak me with water only saw it coming down the lense of my camera! really funny but very wet and dirty!

afterwrds the elephants joined us again and we fed them lollies. couldnt believ how clever they are, they were able to eat the lollies and spit out the sticks afterwards! i ahd my hand in its mouth when i was feeding it and they ahve really big pink tongues so soft mouths thoguh!

the show was cool, i was worried it might be abit cruel, but they dont use any force on them to amke them do thins and they werent really showing us tricks as mucha s skills theyve learnt. things like how they interact with the keepers getting on and off tehir backs, bending down on their knees to pick things up. how theyv adapted to turning taps on plaing music with their trunks, stuff like that. they also did abit of a dispaly stacking logs like they would if they were used for logging. the younger ones painted flowers for us whcih wa scute.

they made paper out of elephant dung, so a few people had a go at making that before we rode them!

i got on with craig, and it was so cool. if i thought the other elephants were big thatw as nothing the elephants we rode were enormous! so high up. carzy. alex wasnt too happy as shes scared of heights but she enjoyed it still. quite a few of the elephants occasionally went abit awol and decied to wander off on an eating mission. think we managed to get the most obedient there. ours was beautful to, had reallys unken in tmeples because he was like 60 years old crazy! but really pretty eyes!

we then went to the elephant hospital which was sad. they told us about what had happend to the elephantsand why they were there. what they do for them ETC. a couple ahd had their legs blown off in lnadmine accidents which was very sad especiallya s one was only a baby mosha!

onec wed left the ellies, we went to a hot springs and swam in the pool, really warm and if this makes any sense the waterw as thick almost like liquified jelly or something?!

then off to the homestay in chaing thai, whcih i was nervous about as i didnt know what to expect, btu was really gpood, one of the ebst parts of the tour.

the ladys house was beautiful. we all stayed in one big room, slept on the floor in pairs under huge mosquito nets. very hard floor thoguh did not do my back much good. we had dinner downstairs all sat in threes on the floor around little tables to eat and sopme children played music to us. they also danecd for us after the meal. we got to join in with both too. the instruments were so hard to paly though! one of the dances that the boys did was like kicking game in which they had to get each tohers bums whcih we joined in with and was very funny!

got up early the next day and went to 'feed the monks' as kady called it. we popped over the road to their local temple and took parcels of food. one by one we approached the monk and put the food in his basket before bowing. we then all knelt before him and he said a prayer of good health and long life over us.

went for another bike ride that day. around their area up in the moutnains very beautifull. vsited a temple. a mushroom farm where they told us how they grow them and we picked some. then a sweat shop.

after we had some luch at the aldies house again, and then caught a bus to chaing mai. the bus was incredibly uncomfortable. for a start it was falling apart! the chairs were very uncomfy and it was incredibly bumpy!

arrived at our hotel in chaing mai, whichwas pretty nice. i had a room to myself whcih wass abit of a luxury! it had a balcony too!

most of our time in chaing mai was free time so we didnt so alot other than wandering around and spent time raeding and writing dioaries etc. the first night we went to teh ngiht market whcihw as amsing. absolutley enormous. covered the whole of chaing mai, every street was lined with stalls abrely pavements were left! there were special indoor and outdoor ones too. we wnt to one of the indoor ones for food. it was a nice way of doin it. you paid 100baht and got some vouchers which you could spend at the food stalls, if you didnt use them all you could get money bakc or you could buy more!

the next day, we had a thai cooking class in the morning which bwas wiked. really happy i did it. got a cook book to take home too. we went to a market with our teacher and shopped for our ingredients, she told us all about them, very interesting. thenm went back to the house place and cooked! we all did it rarther than in grouyps. we made spring rolls, tom yum soup, green curry, pad thai!

then i went ith randy and craig to a tenmple ontop of the moutians. cant remeber the name but i will find out.

it was amaising. incredibly beautful. alot more so than any others ive seen. the views from the tip were just stunning, we could see for hundreds of miles over the city and the moutnains. had to climb 300 hundred steps to the top! but was very worth it.

that was our leaving night too! so we all got alittle bit dressed up and went for a meal in town. trhen a few went off to watch some thai boxing and me alex and lisa did abit more shopping! we were planning on going out that night to a club as our leaving doo but unfortunalty beacsue it weas elections weekend everywhere was closed and nowhere was serving alchol so we just went back to the hotel!

next day the saturday we went into the old town and then caught the ngiht trainback to bangkok. the old town is nice, alot quietr than otehr parts of chaing mai, lots of old temples and history.

the train was fun. strtas out as all seats. i sat opposite alex and then after dinner about 9 the staff come round and move the chairs to makes bunk beds. pretty funk and actaully quite comfy. i slept ont he top buk whcihwas quiite small compared to the bottom but fine! have a littel curtain to pull around the bed so none can see in and it was quite a fun way to spend the alst night.

arrived back in bangkok early sunday morning. went ofd r lucnha nd then said goodblye to quite a few people which was very sad as we had such a good week together.

then alex, hayley and myself trotted off to the granbd palace which im afraid to say was quite disapointing. it was alot like evrything else ive ever seen! the temple by it was stunning and alot bigger than many places weve been to. saw the emrald buddah which i read abit about and it said that its actually jaed but tehyt thoguth it was emrald when they first dicovered it hence the name. the palace was quite ugly abit like a disney castle! we didnt enjoy it any how.

that night alex, hayley and myself went out for dinner and the ended up gettinga bit drunk and went o the irish bar agin! whcih wa a very fun night!

got to go il update bout singapore and bali soon!

xxx