After a quick stop over in Bangkok, (which was apprently dodgey, but affected me in no way) I headed up to Chiang Mai, saying my goodbyes to James in Bangkok who was headed for Oz. Being alone didn't last long, having met people before I even jumpoed on the bus and bumping into a guy who I'd been with in Oz the moment I walked into the hostel - small world! The journey up there was pretty treacherous, with no air con, half the bus refusing to continue and eventually driving the rest of the way with the doors open!

A big group of us headed for the Tiger Sanctuary on the first day where I got to lie next to a 200kg 20 month old tiger. A once in a life time experience all for just £6 - crazy! We then went to a monkey show which was pretty disturbing to see lots of monkeys tied up and going a bit mad, however they assured us they were let free at 5pm.. I wasn't convinced. The show however was incredible, seeing monkeys ride bikes, do back flip dives into water and score basketball hoops.

The guy I'd been with in Oz and his friend were heading on a 2 day, 1 night jungle treck so I decided to join them. First up we got to ride elephants which was probably the best thing of all. My new favourite animal, such beasts yet so chilled out at the same time. Although working elephants they were left to roam the fields after each ride which was nice to see. They seemed perfectly happy strolling along at their own pace, stopping to grab food when and if they fancied. We got to ride them for about half an hour - I could certainly get quite accustomed to this mode of transport!

A savage, intensely hot, yet rewarding 7km treck later, we arrived in the Lahui tribal village, that has a population of about 300 all living in bamboo huts on the mountainside. The stop halfway on the treck was certainly welcomed with a quick dip in the river that was well deserved! The village was a fantastic spot, with great views down the valley into the jungle and in the distance Chiang Mai. Our food was cooked on a wood fire and ofcoure the local cuisine of rice and curry was served. With a good group of people and an awesome setting we had a good laugh. I slept surprisingly well in the bamboo hut, with the luxury of a mosquito net over us!

The next day we all rose fairly early and after a quick carb load we started our descent. This was almost as treacherous as coming up, having to make sure you didn't lose your grip and go A over T! It probably didn't help I was still wearing flip flops, althought I managed not to fall over and others with trainers did! We stopped at a hidden waterfalls with freezing cold water, also very much welcomed by all! Another hour or so's treck and we were at the white water rafting camp. We did our white water rafting, which ended up being pretty tame due to low water conditions, however what was even better was the bamboo rafting afterwards. We just floated down river at our own leisurely pace while laying back in the sun. Had a great few adventurous days, now time for a chill out on the islands in the south!