trekking

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Welcome to the Jungle, Part Two

Posted by brittanykovacs ⋅ October 27, 2011 ⋅ 1 Comment

Check out the previous post for part one of the hill tribe trek!

Following our hike, we stayed overnight in the Palong village. Like the Karen, the Palong people have been living in the hills of northern Thailand for many years. The Palong are the smallest hill tribe, have an elected chief, and use agricultural resources to sustain their way of life.

On the bridge in the village

We walked around the village for a while, seeing all the different animals– dogs, pigs, chickens with chicks, and more. We also saw the most adorable children who were out playing in the village.

We enjoyed a great dinner (a really good vegetable soup and different types of stir fry) prepared by the people of the village. Afterwards, the girls of the village performed Palong songs and dances for us in their traditional outfits around the fire. It was a nice way to end the day.

On Wednesday morning, we were picked up from the Palong village by elephants. Amy, Rachel, and I shared an elephant for the one hour ride. We sat in a seat on the elephant’s back while the mahout (elephant keeper) sat on the elephant’s neck. The ride was a bit bumpy, but great. We went through a valley, which afforded some great views of the scenery and surrounding villages. Near the end of our ride, the mahout let us take turns riding on the elephant’s neck. It was a weird sensation at first– like I was going to fall off (because you’re right over the bones that move each time the front legs take a step) but really secure at the same time. When the elephant wasn’t trying to cool himself off by flapping his ears, he kind of wrapped his ears around my legs so I felt much more secure. It was an amazing ride.

Mahout on an elephant

Riding on the elephant’s neck

The rest of our day included several small stops as we made our way back to Chiang Mai. First, we went down the river on traditional bamboo rafts for about half an hour. Then we stopped at a place where paper is made from elephant dung. Yes, it sounds gross but it’s an amazing way to reuse waste and you can’t even tell that the paper originally came from elephant dung. Next we stopped at an orchid and butterfly garden and then made our way to Doi Suthep, the temple overlooking Chiang Mai. We climbed the 300 some-odd stairs to the top and checked out the views of the city before heading back to the hotel for a much-needed shower.

At the top of Doi Suthep

We celebrated our last night in Chaing Mai by going to a nice restaurant called Riverside. A portion of the restaurant is a normal restaurant on land but some tables are on small boats docked behind the restaurant. We were seated at a table on one of the boats and after everyone had received their dinners, we cruised up and down the river for about an hour. It was a very relaxing end to our two days of being in the hills and a great way to enjoy each other’s company as our time on the tour is drawing to a close.

Welcome to the Jungle, Part One

Posted by brittanykovacs ⋅ October 26, 2011 ⋅ Leave a comment

On Tuesday we set out for our two day/one night hill tribe trek excursion. We were picked up at the hotel in a songthaew (a large tuk tuk– kind of like riding in a pickup truck bed with benches on the sides and a cover). First we drove to the local market to pick up fresh food for dinner and breakfast and then made our way to the Chiang Dao Caves. Although the caves are in Thailand, they have a great deal of Burmese influence and even have traditional Burmese Buddhas carved inside.

After lunch, we headed up in the hills to see a Karen village. Karen people are part of the Karen hill tribe that has been living in northern Thailand for many generations. Our guide, Sunny, told us about the Karen people and their agricultural lifestyle while we walked around the village. One fact that I found interesting is that unlike in other hill tribes, when a Karen woman chooses to marry a man from another village, the man must move to the Karen village instead of the woman following the man.

The Karen village

Karen woman

Karen woman with some of the livestock

Next we began our two hour trek to the Palong village, our home stay for the evening. We trekked through a cornfield, up and down a trail surrounded by a bamboo forest, and through a creek. We all emerged with a few scrapes and bruises, but it was a great trail and we saw some gorgeous scenery.