After working hard at the elephant camp (see previous blog), we returned to Chiang Mai with a laundry list of to-do's to take care of. Here's a taste of the "hardships" we've been enduring!

First on our list was the Chiang Mai zoo. We were a little hesitant after our horrible experience with the Beijing Zoo, but we were pleasantly surprised. Most exhibits were comparable to their western counterparts. My favorite exhibit was Gibbon Island, which was really a collection of islands with lots of trees and climbing structures for several species of gibbons. At the risk of anthropomorphizing, the gibbons seemed to be very happy with their home! They were swinging and playing all over the place, and their loud calls were simply mesmerizing.

Of course, seeing these gibbons at the zoo just wasn't good enough, so we were forced to seek them out in the wild. We signed up with Flight of the Gibbon for a 5km zip line adventure that takes you through the rainforest from a gibbon's point of view. Flying through the canopy was tough work, but it was totally worth it when we found a small group of gibbons up in the trees. They were kind enough to sing for us while we had our video camera running!

All this gibbon spotting made us hungry. The following morning we got up early to spend the day on a farm for some Thai food cooking lessons. We didn't have to work any fields this time, but instead we were forced to slave over hot woks and eat more delicious food than should feasibly fit in one person's stomach.

On top of all this, we had other tedious work to take care of, like shopping at the Night Bazaar, watching ornate Thai dancing performances and firework displays for the King's birthday, and finding a yummy place to eat three times a day. I won't go on any longer, lest you begin to feel sorry for us. Obviously, we need a vacation, so today we're off to the islands!