We stayed in Pai in Northern Thailand for six days.We stayed in a hut right by the river, it was pretty basic, just a bed on the floor, mossie net and fan. We did have a bathroom at the back of the hut, which was basically outside, and a favourite place for disgusting creatures to hang out as it was shady, cool and wet. We saw several frogs, lizards and the biggest spider ever in there. We spent quite a lot of time chilling out and reading on our little veranda. It was a good place to stay, and cheap too. By the time we left I was looking forward to somewhere with actual walls though.

The town was quite touristy, very small and full of hippies. It was a relaxing and fun place to be. We managed to watch several football matches there, for a change. We also got a Thai massage, which was an interesting experience. They were not gentle. It was painful on my sunburn but otherwise quite relaxing.

On three days we went out on a scooter we hired, for the total price of two pounds for 24 hrs. As we had never driven one before we were a bit shaky at first but soon got the hang of it. The roads around Pia are good for learners as there is hardly any traffic, and curvy roads up into the mountains. One the first day we just went for a long drive, the scenery was lovely. We also visited several places nearby.

The first place we went was the hot springs, where we saw locals boiling eggs in the water. It was strange getting into really warm water. The next day we went to a waterfall, which was really quiet, and had a bit of a wander. Next we checked out the "landcrack" just down the road. It is basically a huge crack that appeared in a farmers field overnight. Alan was impressed. Later on we rode to a bigger, more impressive waterfall. Alan managed to fall while climbing up to it and slide down to the bottom. His hands were injured, but he was otherwise ok.

On the last day we were planning to get a bus to Laos at 8pm. As we had a lot of time to kill we rented a scooter for the day again. This time we went to Pai Canyon and had a walk around before heading back to the waterfall for a refreshing swim before getting the night bus.