Our Asia Travel Diary – Part Twenty
Monday morning we took our scooter and headed to Pai. Pai is a village located in the mountains of northern Thailand and is known as a hippie village. On our way to the hippie village, we have multiple stops planned.
The first stop was Mok Fa Waterfall. Mok Fa is a nice waterfall not too far from the main road. It’s a 100 baht entrance fee per person and a 20 baht parking fee for the scooter. It’s a tall waterfall, reachable with an easy path through nature. We didn’t go for a swim or shower underneath the fall. It was still early in the morning and the water was ice cold (according to us). From Chiang Mai to the waterfall it’s mostly highway, but after the waterfall, the mountain road finally starts.
We then drove further northwards to Pong Duet Geyser. This time the entrance fee is 300 baht per person (about €8,36 ). We think it’s worth it as we both haven’t seen a geyser before. But we somehow managed to enter with the kid’s fee of 150 baht each. The park is bigger than we expected and it’s a nice walk. We see the vapour from a few meters coming from the forest. The geyser itself was not as large as we hoped, but still very special to see!
What we didn’t know is that there was also a hot water spring from the geyser in the park and there are hot water pools created to relax. Luckily we brought our swimming clothes. In the meantime, it was already lunchtime so we were the only ones at the pools. The water is really hot, and there are signs saying you should only bathe for 15 minutes and then take a break so you don’t get dizzy or pass out.
After our relaxing bath, we took the scooter and drove further. Just before we entered Pai we saw Memorial Bridge. We made a small stop to take some photos. We had almost reached our hotel for the night when we see tons of scooters parked on the side of the road. We decided to stop here as well because there must be something happening here.
It was Pai Canyon, where everyone comes together for sunset. So, we joined hundreds of tourists to watch the sun go under the mountains. When the sun sets, we scooter to our hotel and call it a day.
It was an early wake-up call on Tuesday morning. We took the scooter and conquered the cold all the way to Sai Ngam hot spring. Of course, we didn’t pack clothes for the cold, but when we arrived at the hot spring, the warmth of the natural pools are extremely rewarding. We enjoyed it so much, we stayed for almost three hours at the hot spring. Sai Ngam hot spring is a totally different place than the hot spring from the day before, located in the middle of nature and not a man-made pool created like the ones at Pong Duet Geyser.
In the afternoon we paid a visit to Pai Bamboo bridge. This bridge is created to make an easy walking path from a temple to the town for the monks. This is where Marnick had the opportunity to learn how to shoot a crossbow from a local villager.
On Wednesday we headed back to Pai Canyon in the early morning. We were surprised to see that we shared the whole canyon with only two other tourists!! This was such a great experience. Not only for this reason we would recommend you to come early in the morning, but also to avoid the heat. We walked and climbed the canyon for almost three hours. When we were back down at our scooter, we were soaked in sweat. Afterwards, we changed hotels, as we couldn’t extend.
After visiting Pai’s Walking Street in the evening, which is full of food stalls, Kobie got pretty sick.
Although we didn’t have a good night’s rest and Kobie was still sick, we took the scooter on Thursday morning and drove back to Chiang Mai to catch the bus to Chiang Rai in the afternoon.
Friday we slept in and woke up in Chiang Rai. We changed hotels again as we couldn’t extend this hotel as well. It’s still high season in Thailand, so our plan of extending our stays at hotels for better prices is not working well. We book a new hotel close by for the next couple of nights to avoid this problem. Except for going for food, we stay in, get some rest and get our laundry done.
Saturday we feel like going on an adventure again. We rent a scooter and drive to the famous White Temple of Chiang Rai. This site is actually not religious as many think, but an art exhibit. We must say, it is something special! We walk around longer than we thought we would and went to the fanciest bathroom in the whole of Thailand. Yep, also at the White Temple!
Afterwards, we drive to Wat Huay Pla Kang. This might be the most beautiful temple we’ve seen on the inside! It’s still in construction and Kobie can help a bit by adding a diamond to one of the pillars. Next to the temple, there is also a pagoda and a huge statue. You can actually go inside the statue and see through the statue’s eyes.
After the visits, we go back to the hotel for a siesta. In the late afternoon, we drove to the other famous temple in Chiang Rai, the Blue Temple. Not so special, if you ask us. Also, this temple is still under construction. On our way back home we take a stop at the Saturday Night Market.
On Sunday we take it slow. Time for some blogging and doing some research for our next destination. Next week we’re flying to country number seven!
