Chiang Mai, Pai, Chiang Rai

on the 11th i went with a group to tiger kingdom which is a zoo where you can touch touch the tigers. i wasn't planning to go as i had heard they were drugged but thought i would go an investigate. Apparently they weren't so i decided to pay and go in (wasn't cheap). Bit of an anti climax as all the tigers did was lie and sleep in the boiling heat so i got bored after 5 minutes so that was a waste of time. Went to the night market in the evening which isn't as spectacular as the sunday one but still pretty good. There were so many temptations, watches, clothes and food which i avoided. Fortunately the guy i was with was on a spending spree so it gave me an opportunity to hone by bartering skills. Then went to a bar to watch the thai boxing which was apparantly staged but still good.

On the 12th i decided to go to Pai to do some more trekking, didn't want to pay for a tuk tuk so walked for over an hour in the heat with my bag to get to the bus station. Got a local bus there whcih was good fun as it was like a bouncy castle and could barely make it up some of the mountains. Got a good glimpse of the jungle as well. Met a group of French guys so shared a room for the two nights in Pai which saved me some money. I got very frustrated by my level of French though.

13th - went to sort out another trek but because it's low season there are no other tourists so the costs of the treks are way more expensive and i'd either be on my own or in a tiny group which would be a bit dull so i abandoned that plan. Didn't take long to explore the town so i just chilled out for the day. Went out in the evening again with the French people but as it's low season most of the bars were empty.

Decided to leave Pai yesterday and head to Chiang Rai which unfortunately meant i had to go back to Chaing Mai which is like doing twon sides of a triangle. Wnet on a cheap ordinary bus to chaing mai but had to get a more expensive a/c bus to chiang rai as there didn't seem to be anything else. However it turned out that the long distance bus station in Chiang Rai was 7km out of town (a fact overlooked bu my lonely planet guide) so it was a bit of a mission to get out of town. I've managed to get my own tiny room for the same price as a dorm room so i've got my own space which is nice.

Today i went to look for another trek but it's the same story as Pai, there nore expensive as there are fewer tourists. As a result there's very little to do and few tourists to meet so i won't be staying here long. Probably going to head to laos soon and get the slow boat to Luang Prabang.