3rd - 5th Feb - Treking into the Jungle

Our last adventure together is going to be a trek into the Jungle, staying with the hill tribes and observing their traditional way of life.

We are driven to a village in the hills, north of Chiang Mai and have lunch in one of the Hill Tribe Villages. Not exactly what I expected they have electricity and TV - OK not exactly all mod cons but not bad. This village is less traditional than the rest - it's on the road and has links to the city. At lunch Reang told the non veggies they were eating Monkey not chicken - Mairi nearly died until she realised that he was joking.

We start our trek from there, up hill of course but it's not too bad and even though it's hot the shade of the tree canopy keep you from really boiling. The guide must really know where he's going (I hope) cos it all looks exactly the same to me - jungle everywhere and hills, lots of hills.

There are 5 of us on the trek - an English couple Laura and Andy, Will an American and Mairi and I. Oh and the guide Reang. Our first stop is by a lovely waterfall where we sit and relax, the view down the valley, following the path of the river and waterfall is beautiful lush green jungle.

We camp the first night by the sides of a larger waterfall which also doubles as our swimming pool and shower - if your brave enough to get into the freezing water. We're all so hot and sweaty it looks great until the cold hits you and you retreat to the banks to look at the cascading water.

The camp has a few wood and bamboo buildings. Our sleeping quarters is large with a bamboo platform down either side on which we sleep. There are sleeping bags and blankets but no mosquito nets which worries both of us. There is a small open building for cooking and sitting around the fire and a smaller hut that is the bathroom. Bathroom being a term for the shack with a squat toilet in the middle of it. Theres a big drum of water beside it to flush the toilet - this will be fun in the dark.

Reang and another man cook fish, rice and veggies for our dinner and it's not that bad - I'm hungry and eat it anyway. Reang also cooks rice in a piece of bamboo - no need for pots and pans in the jungle. The resultant sticky rice was really good. To wash down the food somebody has carried beers all the way up here to sell us - entrauprenures or what.

Sitting round the fire chatting the sun sets and darkness descends which is total. The stars are amazing sparkling in the black sky. We can only name Orions belt - no amature astrologers amonst us.

Going to bed Mairi notices that something has been in her bag and asumes a dog. We sleep frozen - it's really cold up here in the jungle - no wonder they have no mosquito nets, no mosquito would venture up here way too cold.

We are awoken by the dawn and chickens so get up. Laura braves the waterfall shower - I washed enough last night thanks and anyway who's around to smell me if I stink. On closer inspection of Mairis smarties we realise it was not a dog that chewed the packet (and left the smarties) it was a rat - yuk we must have slept with it!

The next day we walk through the forrest emerging on the most beautiful scene of rice fields and grey water buffalos. Their horns are pretty scary and none of us are too happy with Reang who seems to take great pleasure in shouting at them. A few look unhappy and we're all worried they will attack. Thankfully they don't and we run away.

We lunch sitting in a shack in the middle of the rice field with a couple of local women who have taken a rest from working the fields. Our lunch is noodles with veggies wrapped in banana leaves (which Reang cut down himself) our chop sticks are two thin branches of bamboo. This stuff is very versatile - they use it for houses, furniture, bridges, fishing poles, chops stick and cooking implements - wow.
We also have more of the bamboo sticky rice perfectly preserved from last night, in the bamboo.

After lunch Reang and Andy go in search of food - dung bettles - again I think this is a joke but after digging up a few dozen we are on or way, dung beetles carefully packed away in an old plastic bottle.

On the trek we see many more trees - we are in the jungle!, lots of ants, spiders and termite hills. There are few flowers breaking up the green and no signs of any monkeys apart from Reangs impressions and yesterdays lunch!

We reach Bang Ma Po, the village we'll be sleeping in, one of the Kariang hill tribe villages, who live off farming, livestock and sometimes opium. We wander the village checking out all the wildlife on display. Pigs, chickens, dogs cats and buffalo all wander around undisturbed by humans.

I need a wash and luckily we've been told there is a shower - well there is a stand pipe in the middle of the village. I brave it cos theres nothing else. Wearing my bikinki I wash standing in the middle of a village with jungle all around me, to an audience of a big black hairy pig. As I wash my hair I have a timotti moment as I throw my wet hair back - well I would have had if I was slim, young and beautiful.

At another standpipe a local woman is washing in a long skirt and nothing else - why didn't I think of that!

The men of the village arrive before dinner - thankfully their bags empty, the hunt unsuccesful. I ask what they were hunting - monkey the reply - and this time it was no joke. Dinner was rice, veggies and chicken - thankfully.

Sitting chatting after dinner we bought a bottle of local moonshine - it was pretty bad but not that strong. Most of it was given to one local man to sing to us. He was playing what looked like a small harp but had a very eastern sound. He sang a few local songs which were pretty good and one very strange modern song which had bits of Bob Marley in it.

Breakfast the next day - eggs, bread and dung beetle. Will and Andy actually tried them and said they tasted salty - I'm a veggie - or at least that's my story. Reang asked me where I was going after the trek and suggested I stay in Thailand and teach - Mairi rekons he has a bit of a crush on me - and has great fun laughing at my new boyfriend all day.

Our last day treking was mostly down hill which is a killer on the knees. But we then had a really nice boat ride down the river on a bamboo raft (yet another usage). The raft got totally stuck at one stage so we had to get off and we ended up soaking. After the raft we took a ride on a elephant. They are such fantastic looking creatures but boy do they smell. They aren't that comfy to sit on and when they blow snot at you it's not nice. An experience at least.