Lancelot
Full time employment: Posting here.
As the curtain whipped past my nose, I awoke to the clickity-clack of the train chugging north... Like the man said, "I'm on the road again"
I booked #51 train, lower bunk sleeper for $12.65 to to Chiang Mai, about a 14 hour journey from Bangkok. I decided to try the no air con car, relying on the ceiling fans and open window for cooling comfort. Not bad, especially when the engineer opened the throttle w i d e.
I bought two bottles of Chang and cooled them with my field expedient "ice chest"; a plastic bag and a layer of newspaper, then another plastic bag and another layer of paper. I poured myself a beer and settled in for the journey.
Next morning I awoke and enjoyed the mountain scenery of northern Thailand. At one of the (many) village stops, I bought a fifty cent chicken leg from a smilling vendor passing my window. Delicious!
We pulled into Chiang Mai at noon, and de-trained to the mass of tuk tuk/songtaew drivers waiting to fleece us for the ride into town. I politely ignored them and walked across the road to a songtaew full of Thais. The driver agreed to take me to the walled part of the old city for fifty cents. Deal!
He dropped me off at Tapei Gate and I strolled over to Top North Guest house. Yes, they had a room available and yes, they could discount for a longer stay. We agreed on $6.25 per night for four nights. I cranked up the ceiling fan and headed for shower...
Later I bumped into Billy Kaderli and his charming wife Akaisha. I promptly accepted their "Happy Hour" invitation and we throughly enjoyed ourselves, swapping travel stories, munching on chips and peanuts and washing them down with ice cold Chang beer. Tropical sunsets from the balcony at no charge.
The next day Billy kindly shared some "secrets" about Chiang Mai, including a laundry charging just fifty cents a kilo for wasing AND ironing. Believe me, the Kaderlis have found some deals up here! Probably the best bargain was a huge Thai-western luncheon buffet at a five star hotel for only $3.50!
I sort of fell into an enjoyable routine: by day I wandered the small and twisiting sois within the old walled city and in the evening, I joined the Kaderlis for "Happy Hour." They are as they present themselves in their book and website: happy, congenial, engaging people; smiling often and loads of fun. Good people, really.
The Top North is rich in "personalities" colorful people abound and it is good fun to strike up a converstation with people lounging at the pool. Maybe Billy will write a novel, based on "true" converstaions at the pool. Ha!
Later, I found a newly opened guest house for $7.50 per night, so I decided to move. I think I was their first customer, because for several nights I was the only guest there. The owner was an interesting Thai gentleman who had a great jazz collection and offered me free coffee whenever I wanted it. What a deal!
Later my girlfriend came up, so I rented a Honda Dream 125cc motorbike to tour the area. We rode up the mountain to Soi Dutep, a famous temple in Thailand and enjoyed the panoramic views of Chiang Mai and surrounding areas. The King of Thailand has a mountaintop palace and we toured the gardens-in a word stunning! There were some hilltribe villages on the otherside of the mountain, but I had only put $1 of gas in the bike and we coasted down the mountain on fumes. Later, when I returned the bike, the owner laughed and said "very good driving, only one glass of gasoline left!"
All to soon, it was time to return to The Big Mango, Bangkok.
Air Asia has a $35 (one way) flight to Hanoi. Maybe another train journey from Hanoi to Saigon is on the horizon
Lance out.
I booked #51 train, lower bunk sleeper for $12.65 to to Chiang Mai, about a 14 hour journey from Bangkok. I decided to try the no air con car, relying on the ceiling fans and open window for cooling comfort. Not bad, especially when the engineer opened the throttle w i d e.
I bought two bottles of Chang and cooled them with my field expedient "ice chest"; a plastic bag and a layer of newspaper, then another plastic bag and another layer of paper. I poured myself a beer and settled in for the journey.
Next morning I awoke and enjoyed the mountain scenery of northern Thailand. At one of the (many) village stops, I bought a fifty cent chicken leg from a smilling vendor passing my window. Delicious!
We pulled into Chiang Mai at noon, and de-trained to the mass of tuk tuk/songtaew drivers waiting to fleece us for the ride into town. I politely ignored them and walked across the road to a songtaew full of Thais. The driver agreed to take me to the walled part of the old city for fifty cents. Deal!
He dropped me off at Tapei Gate and I strolled over to Top North Guest house. Yes, they had a room available and yes, they could discount for a longer stay. We agreed on $6.25 per night for four nights. I cranked up the ceiling fan and headed for shower...
Later I bumped into Billy Kaderli and his charming wife Akaisha. I promptly accepted their "Happy Hour" invitation and we throughly enjoyed ourselves, swapping travel stories, munching on chips and peanuts and washing them down with ice cold Chang beer. Tropical sunsets from the balcony at no charge.
The next day Billy kindly shared some "secrets" about Chiang Mai, including a laundry charging just fifty cents a kilo for wasing AND ironing. Believe me, the Kaderlis have found some deals up here! Probably the best bargain was a huge Thai-western luncheon buffet at a five star hotel for only $3.50!
I sort of fell into an enjoyable routine: by day I wandered the small and twisiting sois within the old walled city and in the evening, I joined the Kaderlis for "Happy Hour." They are as they present themselves in their book and website: happy, congenial, engaging people; smiling often and loads of fun. Good people, really.
The Top North is rich in "personalities" colorful people abound and it is good fun to strike up a converstation with people lounging at the pool. Maybe Billy will write a novel, based on "true" converstaions at the pool. Ha!
Later, I found a newly opened guest house for $7.50 per night, so I decided to move. I think I was their first customer, because for several nights I was the only guest there. The owner was an interesting Thai gentleman who had a great jazz collection and offered me free coffee whenever I wanted it. What a deal!
Later my girlfriend came up, so I rented a Honda Dream 125cc motorbike to tour the area. We rode up the mountain to Soi Dutep, a famous temple in Thailand and enjoyed the panoramic views of Chiang Mai and surrounding areas. The King of Thailand has a mountaintop palace and we toured the gardens-in a word stunning! There were some hilltribe villages on the otherside of the mountain, but I had only put $1 of gas in the bike and we coasted down the mountain on fumes. Later, when I returned the bike, the owner laughed and said "very good driving, only one glass of gasoline left!"
All to soon, it was time to return to The Big Mango, Bangkok.
Air Asia has a $35 (one way) flight to Hanoi. Maybe another train journey from Hanoi to Saigon is on the horizon
Lance out.
