Monday, March 2, 2015

The Life of Pai

Hi gang! Andy here
     Pai is a little mountain town in the North of Thailand known for it's laid back vibe and popularity with backpackers, ex-pats and the like. Theres also a lot of cool waterfalls, but since we are in the dry season, we were also told not to bother. We are also here, unfortunately, at the start of the burning season when the farmers burn last years crops so the air quality is not so great. It's also a little disconcerting to see the dry mountain on fire at night.
We were only here for 5 days and it has been sort of hit and miss.
     Hit: We found a really great restaurant called Silhouette that has actual wine! The Cabernet Savignon was to die for and every bite of food was better than the last. I cannot recommend it highly enough. The last place we went in Thailand that styled itself as a wine bar had two kinds; red and white, both by the same maker, both undrinkable. Needless to say I beam upon these guys.

     Miss: Our grumpy sleazebag old-white-guy neighbor started pounding on the wall at 8 PM telling me to stop playing guitar. Seriously? In 20 countries no one has ever complained before. I wasn't even playing loud or singing and anyway, how can you even hear me over the sound of you berating your half-your-age Thai girlfriend for not understanding you? In short, wow. DIAF.

     Hit: We are staying at a really cool bungalow, Paiardise, (get it?..hahah) complete with a hammock on the front porch, with a pond in the center. Feeding the huge collection of awesome fish in the pond is really fun! They are so pretty and so many! In fact the whole place is really very cool.
     Miss: LuAnn got food poisoning from (we think) her favorite dessert coconut sticky rice and mango. A whole day and a half of really unpleasant gastric distress followed and I shan't elaborate on that. Good thing antibiotics are over the counter here.

     Hit: Got to meet and smoke a lovely cigarette with a charming fellow who grows it legally now in Seattle. He was most profuse in his praise of my playing which I shall take to heart more so than our curmudgeonly neighbor. This led to some foolishness, no doubt.
     Miss: There's lots of nightlife but it's pretty much swarming with drunken 20-somethings from all over the world and so in general not that exciting for us. I really want to see the reggae festival which, unfortunately, starts the day we leave. Sigh.
     Hit: Grumpy white guys girlfriend saw me later and profusely apologized. Apparently she told him how much she liked hearing me play and he got all jealous, hence the pounding. Aha! LOL So that explains that.

     Miss: the bus ride to and from Chiang Mai had 416 switchbacks. That's 208 sharp S-curves. Needless to say it was tough bein' all back of the mini-bus and shiz. Yikes.
     All in all though it absolutely beat the hell out of freezing our butts off in the Northeastern US so therefore it gets a net win. So bidding good-bye to Northern Thailand. Next up: Siem Reap and a visit to the iconic Angkor Wat, then back to Thailand to explore the Southern beaches. As always please follow on Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, Carrier Pigeon, etc... Cheers! -Andy & LuAnn

2 comments:

  1. Happy Belated Birthday Andy! It looks like you guys are having an amazing time on your trip!

    Kami, Ann & Rachel
    Zonin Wealth Management

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