Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Thailand - Part 1
So this is my first blog entry for you all to read! So, I have been in the north of Thailand for the past two weeks with a group of 5 others with Gap Adventures.
Day 1
I started in Bangkok. After almost 24 hours of traveling I had to wait to check in since the flight arrived in the morning which was very annoying. Once I had met up with some of my tour group later on in the evening we headed to Khao San road, here we just had a quick look down the street at what was around then headed back to the hotel for an early night for us to begin our trip :)
Day 2
We headed off to Kanchanaburi by public bus where we had a hotel by the River Kwai. It was beautiful, however shame about the murky water since it is rainy season all the mud washes off the fields. We headed by river tuk tuk to a few places, firstly a cave where there were many Buddhist pieces of art. To get there we had to cross over 'Death Railway' where many POW lost there life trying to build it. It was built in WW2 for the Japenese to use as a easy way to transport goods between Myanmar (Burma) and Japan. The cave was maintained by monks who would give offerings to the Buddah statues, we even saw a monk on a mobile lol. We then headed to the war cemetary where all the people who died whilst making the 'Death Railway' were buried (hence the name 'Death Railway' since so many people died.) Then heading to the JEATH war museum and walked over the bridge over the River Kwai. I also had some coconut juice which wasn't the bes thing I have tasted lol.
Day 3
We went to Ewaran National Park. After an hour drive in a songthaew we got the park which has 7 levels of waterfalls to go and look at and swim in. On one of the levels we were actually able to use the rocks as a slide. There are also these fish that bite at your feet. It was a bit odd at first and hurt but got used to it in the end. The top level waterfall was the best! You were able to go under the waterfall into a cave area. The walk up was very taxing and was a lot harder than I thought it would be but the reward was amazing!
Day 4
We took a local bus ride to Ayutthaya. This was not air conditioned, but luckily there were windows which gave a good breeze. Once at the hotel we took a bike ride around the city to see the temples. The bikes were very wobbly but at least the Thai drive on the same side of the road as Britain so I didn't have to navigate the roadsd as much as my American friends on the tour lol. At the end of the bike ride we had to cycle through the rain :( Headed off on the sleeper train to Chiang Mai!
Day 5
Whilst in Chiang Mai we started our day by going to Tiger Kingdom to see and have pictures taken with the tigers. I had photos taken with the smallest and biggest :)
We went to an orchid garden and then to Wat Doi Suthep (a temple) which was up a big flight of stairs :( Went to the night bazaar and tryed some Thai fruit, mangostine and langkong. They were very different to anything but I liked them.
Day 6-8 The Hilltribe Trek!
So we went on a 3 day 2 night hilltribe trek. This was pretty intense! A lot of climbing up hill. We stayed in the Karin villages. Here they have very basic living conditions, a lot different to what we are used to. Everyone helped make dinner which tasted so good! We had an elephant trek on the second day for an hour once we had trekked about 4 hours. We were supposed to do bamboo rafting but the river was to high so we all piled into the back of a jeep to get to the place where we were being picked up.
We headed to the Maesa Elephant Camp where we saw elephants bathing, doing tricks, playing mouth organs, playing football and painting. We then headed to the Sunday Walking Market in Chiang Mai but unfortunately it started raining so heavy that I couldn't shop :(
Day 9
Today I went to cooking school :) It was great. Got to go to the market then went to go and cook what was brought. We were then able to eat what we had made throughout the day.
Day 10
We headed to Tha Ton by a 4 hour local bus ride. Once we arrived we headed to Wat Tha Ton. Another little trekking experience our tour leader declined to tell us about! It was very different to the other temples I have seen.
Day 11
We started with a 3 hour boat trip on the River Kok to a Karin village near the Golden Triangle. The Golden Triangle is where Thailand, Myanmar and Laos all meet. We visited the Opium Museum and then headed over to Laos. We then headed to Chiang Rai where we went to the restaurant Cabbages and Condoms, a chain where all the profits go to improving family planning in Thailand.
Day 12
Headed to a beautiful temple that is still being built on the way to the bus station. It was very different to any other style of temple in Thailand I have seen. The photos will show you this better than I can explain lol. So after a 3 hour bus ride we got to Chiang Mai. This is where I leave you to go get on the sleeper train to Bangkok this evening :) Pictures will follow soon :)
- comments