Burma Visa Run

(written on 26/08/09, posted on 06/10/09)

I’m so early this morning that the woman who does breakfast in the morning is still praying to the spirit house. Every house has a smaller spirit house which they offer food to and pray to every morning before 12. This is to appease the spirits that have no where to live now there is a new house or building there. The mini-houses look a bit like elaborate and colourful bird tables and some have cars and furniture in them like dolls houses. I wanted to get a picture of one but didn’t want to offend any of the locals. Or the spirits.

Anyway, today? Dullsville. A seven hour trip to Burma and back means going across the border, getting my passport stamped, waiting an hour and coming back into Thailand just to get seven more days on my visa. If I’d have come in by plane my visa would have been 30 days but as I came overland it’s 15. Seven days too short to get me through to the 7th September when I fly home. There are only three of us on the run, the two others are older white gentlemen. Turns out the Geordie bloke is brilliant and here for a year. And not looking for a wife. Well not specifically anyway. He tells me how it works at this border and recommends the market.

Several purchases made, we all meet back up on the Thailand side and our driver picks us up. Back to Chiang Mai for 3pm it’s a waste of a day but I have three hours in which to go to the post office, get some more books and eat. The night bus is predictably bad again but it’s so cheap it really doesn’t matter. It’s all about journal catching up and sleeping today. I’m still not sure where I’m off to next. I don’t want to stay in Bangkok and would rather do this at the end of my trip as I fly from here. Everyone recommends Koh Phi Phi even though it was my aim to go to the Gulf coast (Eastern side) as the weather is better at this time of year and Koh Tao has good diving. I’ll make a decision at 5am tomorrow when I get there…

Tribe trekking

(written 24/08/09, posted 06/10/09)

I haven’t been able to write in my journal for the last day or so as I went on a Hill Tribe trek. An elephant tour to start with, then a trek up through the mountains, a dip in a waterfall, hiking clothes back on for the next trek up to our village camp. In the mountains it rains constantly so all of us in my group of seven were totally soaked when we got to camp. I rinsed out my clothes and had a ‘shower’ which was a strip wash in brown water! Even getting from the toilet to my bamboo hut, which had woodworm, was a nightmare as the steps were made from eroded mud. All of us were sliding around. No electricity here either so come dark it was all candles and games of cards. The two different groups of girls were all on three day treks and were trying to convince me to stay an extra night. With not enough dry clothes with me and no entertainment by the next morning it was a great big fat ‘no’.

Today was fun. I was in a different group, having left everyone else to a full day’s trek. The morning was heavy going like it was yesterday. I thought we’d do an afternoon trek too after another waterfall but this mini-trek only lasted an hour before we jumped in a truck and were taken to lunch. As my new group and I sat in our hut, it started to bucket down but I knew a hot shower was nearly in sight. Two Spanish boys got a lift back to Chiang Mai as they’d done three days and were tired. Mistake. With five of us left, we went bamboo rafting. It was brilliant fun! Trying to stand up and not fall off as the raft was rolling over the river surges was pretty tough and I’d recommend it for anyone wanting a core body work out.

In the songthaew on the way back we munch on my left over Oreos and cashews before I nod off. Meet M later for yet more local beers, well why would you not go to a local shop that’s a lot more fun? And more street food, so much better and cheaper than the restaurants. It’s the last night for beers as he’s got training and I have a visa run to Burma followed by my night bus to Bangkok. No clue what I’m doing after that but that decision will be made later, as I’ve become accustomed too. More VSO chat and we cover the deeper subject of length of placements and what has happened to a few ex-volunteers here who have stayed. I see M staying here, I know he’s spent time in Thailand before but it is different. Sometimes you see someone in their environment and it’s clear that this is just where they belong.