Along the Thai Riviera

 Sounds posh doesnt it?

Ruea - Long tailed boat to Tha Ton

Well, posh doesnt capture the beauty of the landscapes of Northern Thailand. It's like the perfectly cooked recipe combined with the perfect presentation on a carefully selected plate that makes the journey from Chiang Rai to Tha Ton. The experience is definitely wholesome and comes complete with excitement that tickles your soul.

Here's why...

I woke up late this morning and it felt like my regular work day in Toronto which has no shortage of adrenaline, this however, got quickly dismissed when I reached the reception to check out of the North Hotel in Chiang Rai. The Interac Machine ran out of paper and the dude at the desk seemed lost and normally this would have frustrated me, but it was so comical that I decided to have him hand print the amount on a existing bill after whitening out the previous amount. I think I might have just increased the % usage of my brain by a whole point while trying to think on my feet. This also helped me remember that I had rented a bicycle the previous day that needed to be returned ( this is another interesting story which will be exposed later - a note for readers to watch out for another article in this blog titled "Lost in Chiang Rai - Season 0, Episode 0")

Pedalling as hard as I could, I returned the bike, flagged a Tuk Tuk http://www.into-asia.com/bangkok/tuktuk/ and rushed to the bridge where Rue-a - The long tailed boats departed everyday at 10:30 am. You might wonder why the mad rush, well, you might remember Mr. Maroot from my previous arcticle, the man swore that I had to be there at 10:30 am sharp at the Riverside or else I would miss the boat. After hearing him say this a few times, fear was sown deep into my heart and my mind wanted to NOT miss the boat at any cost, it was MI-2, the Thai version.

A statue by the river

"There are no passengers today to Tha Ton sir, so the boat scheduled for 10:30 has been un-scheduled"( This is a self invented word that captures the pace of the North in Thailand perfectly), said the man at the Ticket counter, "However, if you wish to charter your boat, I can arrange this for 1000 Baht. It is normally more expensive and works cheaper when there are more people to share the ride."

At this moment, I opened the glass cover, pressed the red button and shouted "DEAL".

The fix it yourself
process

It was a spectacular, breath taking, meditative, rain filled, mesmerising, super cool and definitely the most memorable 5 hour long ride along the Mae-Kok river http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kok_River in a long tailed boat that had only one technical problem along the way which was quickly solved by the boat driver who parked the boat towards the basin and started hitting the rudder with a hammer producing a clinking metallic sound. 5 minutes later, we were back on the river and the boat seemed to go faster. The river levels were quite high as the north has been receiving more rains than usual this year and so there were some really rough rapids which suprisingly didnt even flinch the boat. One of the most sturdiest boat rides I have ever been on and I have been on a lot.

Captive Elephants
of Ruammit

I stopped the Ruammit elephant camp and had a spicy local lunch and felt for the Elephant whose chains were short and as a result couldnt move much. I heard from a local guide that Elephants in business all over Thailand were quite stressed and not so happy. So much so that people have started Elephant Rescue camps in Chiang Mai.

Hmm...

The Mae Kok river originates in Burma and flows for about 200 km through the Chaing Mai Province into Chiang Rai and has a flourishing history which keeps the eco system out here in check. Throught out my ride, I couldnt help but notice fishermen, Paddy Farmers, Corn Farmers working away. To these guys, rain was important and they loved days like today which made their crops happy and their bellies filled with fish that were plentiful due to the rise in water levels.

A Farmer working away
along Mae-Kok banks

I finally reached Tha Ton at 3:30 p.m. So why Tha-Ton and why spend a night at a really tiny town that sleeps at 6:00 p.m. and wakes up really early?

Well, today, I am hoping to visit a local school that is built by a French settler who came to Thailand 13 years ago. Paulo, a builder by profession decided to set up a beautiful guest house called 'The Old Tree house' in Tha-Ton and he's a big believer in sustainable and eco-friendly development and has promised to show me glimpses of how it has been established. Quite a remarkable man!

I've been awake since 4 am this morning and it's time for Breakfast.