Day 218- We woke up and Lloyd wasn't burping up petrol any more and was feeling much better. Hurray! We got out early to avoid the water, we found a little place for breakfast and got some fruit salad and yoghurt and we handed in the bike and made it to the bus station with just a few splashes. We jumped on the bus and we were on the way back to Chaing Mai. We were dropped off outside the city so jumped in a songthaew (Thai pick-up truck style taxi). We arrived in to the city on the main day of Songkran, this is the Thai New Year and basically the whole country has massive water fights for 3 or 4 days. It is observed strictly by Buddhists and the water fights come from when people used to wash buddha statues in their houses to cleanse them for the new year. Also large buddha statues are paraded around cities so people can wash them, the water fights followed from this. As we got closer to the centre the traffic got crazy and the crowds massive. People started throwing buckets of water at us and eventually we came to a stop and the driver told us he was as close as he could get. The place was crazy! We tried to walk to our guesthouse and we were getting drenched, buckets of water flying everywhere. We made it through the crowds to our hotel and our dry bag came in very handy. We checked in and dropped our bags, we were desperate to get back out and involved. We headed straight down to the moat and bought some squirty guns, the streets were heaving. Everyone was squirting or throwing water at everyone. The roads were full of pick up trucks with people in the back with barrels of water throwing it everywhere A lot of people had ice in the water which was horrible, especially if you got a bucket over your head although most people were just filling up at the moat which was a lot warmer although pretty dirty. Within 10 minutes or so we were soaking but loving it. We stopped for some sticky rice and chicken and sat behind the food stall for a bit of safety while we ate. Once done we were back on the streets, we felt like kids again. We came across a parade with lots of people in traditional dress and statues of Buddha being carried through the streets. Everyone was throwing orange coloured perfume water at the people and the statues. The poor people on the floats were getting water thrown at them from every angel but they just had to keep walking and some were even dancing, but to them the water is a blessing. We bumped in to Marcus and Heidi, a lovely couple we met in Australia, we knew they were in Chiang Mai somewhere so it was fab to see them. We stuck with them and walked around more getting in to more water fights. From nowhere the wind picked up and the skies turned black and it started chucking it down. It was freezing, all the streets were flooded so our feet were in water and we were so cold. I was freezing so we decided to go back and get a hot shower and change, we arranged to meet back up at a bar later on. Back at the hotel the hot shower was bliss, we changed in to clean clothes and felt much better. We nipped round the corner for something to eat and by this time it was late and people weren't throwing as much water. The bar was quite a walk away and we ran most of the way dodging people. Just before the bar someone caught me with a bucket down my back but Lloyd managed to stay dry. The bar was great everyone was there and they had a really good offer; a 30cl bottle of rum and 2 coke's for £3. We some how made it through 2 bottles between the two of us and we moved on. The next place wasn't too bad so stayed for 1 or 2 and then we went to a cul-de-sac of bars right next to our hotel, we didn't even know it was there. There was a class bar with a Thai rock band doing covers of Rage Against The Machine, they were amazing. Marcus and Heidi left so it was just us two and Charlie. The 3 of us danced all night with a few extra drinks, we had such a good night. Lloyd was getting carried away with his dancing and it was late so we called it a night, unforgettable day!! Day 219 - We stirred about 12pm but didn't actually get out of bed till 2pm, we were both very hungover. The main event of the day was the Sunderland - Newcastle match. We were in no mood to get wet but we were quite lucky as our hotel was in a tiny street inside the city walls and most of the fun was around the moat on the outside of the walls. We got some breakfast...lunch around the corner and went back to hotel. We asked at reception if she knew anywhere that might play the match and she mentioned a place down the road. We went along and realised it was no more than 100 meters and just before a main road with a lot of water fighting, we slipped in the side entrance and as we were early we got seats at the front. The match soon started and Lloyd's hangover started to take hold. Combined with the nerves of the match and the dizziness he felt like he was going to pass out. He took some time out on the balcony for a few minutes and I sat inside with one eye on the match and one eye on him and typically within minutes we managed to score. Amazing!! The place was starting to fill up and it was nice to hear some roars for the Sunderland goals. Lloyd was immediately back to his old self and the next two goals were epic. From behind a lad came over as he recognised our accents and it just so happened that he lives just round the corner from me. This world gets smaller and smaller. Him and Lloyd went crazy at the two goals and when it finished. The rest of the bar didn't know what hit them. Once the game ended we walked back to hotel, grabbed some food and went straight to sleep. Day 220 - Today we were doing a cookery class at 'Asia Scienic' and we were very excited. We had managed to get over our massive hangover and were ready to cook and eat! We grabbed a cheese toastie from 7eleven and waited to be picked up. After a welcome tea first up was a look around their herb garden, they had everything, limes, mint, ginger, basil all sorts, we went round smelling and tasting then we left for the market. Here our guide/chef showed us typical spices used by the Thai people, how they make coconut cream and showed us all the different types of rice you can get. Back at the class we were ready to start cooking. We had been given a list of stir fries, appetisers, soups, curry pastes and curries and deserts where we had to pick one from each. For stir fry I made Pad Thai and Lloyd made Hot Basil leaf chicken with rice, they took minutes to make and we sat down to eat - delicious. Once finished we were back at our posts and as appetisers we both had chosen spring rolls and we were really getting in to it. Lloyd volunteered to make the filling for the spring rolls for the whole class as it was daft each person trying to make a filling for 2 spring rolls. So we all stood round and watched while the guide talked him through the master piece. Once the filling was complete we got rolling and fried them off. We dug in then had a bit of a break. It was nice to just have some tea and talk to the rest of the group. After some free time it was on to the three course meal. We started by making our curry pastes, I had chosen Green curry and Lloyd went for Khao Soi curry, it was so much fun and such a great experience. Once we made the paste and prepared the soup we started to cook, I ended up with a trio of Coconut milk soup, Thai green curry and Mango with Sticky rice, Lloyd had Tom Yum soup, Khao Soi curry with noodles and Banana in coconut milk. We sat down to eat our creations and could hardly finish, it was excellent, everything tasted beautiful. We were fit to burst, we were given cookbooks and had a bit of a rest before almost rolling back to our hotel. We walked through the back streets but had to cross the main road and some woman managed to throw a bucket of water at me but Lloyd got back without a drop somehow, thankfully its so hot the water is welcome at times. After a bit of a rest we knocked on Charlie's door who we hadn't seen since we lost him on the night out. He came for a walk with us and we stumbled upon a square showing cultural aspects of Songkran, different exhibitions and finally a parade. It was great they had traditional food on and once the parade came in the square they laid a big mat on the ground to sit on and there were different traditional dances and Thai fighting. Charlie sat for a bit but went to meet a friend but me and Lloyd stayed till the very end, we loved all the the different dances and costumes. Back at the hostel we packed our stuff ready to leave in the morning.