Life is Good.

Today was an amazing day. Suzie and I started at the crack of dawn preparing for our biking adventure. By about 11 am we finally had two motorbikes, gas, and were off to Pai. Our first stop was the waterfall. It wasn’t far off the main road and turned out to be gorgeous! The waterfall must have been a local favorite because there weren’t many tourist. Numerous kids of all ages splashed about playing games swimming. Suzie and I made ourselves swim in the frigid cold water and then it was lunch time. We stopped at a cute café for some Pot-kA-POW-moo or as others call it fried chili, basil pork. The next detour was to …… National Park. Talk about a real live Alice in Wonderland scene! The landscape was very green, with crazy plants, and a smoky view.  We continued on through the mountains. It’s fall here so trees are changing colors and leaves are falling. It’s also burning season so the air is filled with smoke throughout northern Thailand. We even saw fires lapping at the road. The fire is only hot enough to burn the fallen leaves and not harm the trees.

During the first half of the beautiful, 763 turn road, the scenery reminded me of Kentucky with lush greenery. Though, all of a sudden, my nose was filled with pine scent. About three fourths of the way to Pai, the scenery turned to tall pine trees. We were in Colorado now! Towards Pai and off the mountain pass, the scenery was back to Thailand with banana trees, layered fields, and smoky mountains.

Just before Pai and with only 45 minutes before closing, we pulled into the hot springs. Imagine Strawberry Park Hot Springs in the 70’s, that is what we were about to take a dip into. Only elementary, slimy structures surrounding the hot springs pools. There were 5 pools ranging from 36 degrees Celsius to 32. Boy, did it get hot! Around 6, we moseyed into town to find a good burger joint and a cute hut to lay our head. 9 pm felt like midnight and it was time for dreaming!

 

Nighty night world! I’m excited for another adventurous day in Pai!