19/10/07 - 20/10/07 Friend House 150B

The morning after the night before and we had planned to be up and on an early bus... but with those hangovers there was no chance... so we left early afternoon feeling shocking... Let's just say the bus nearly got some unwanted re-decorating. But after lots of hangover food and a sleep I felt much better.

We arrived in Mae Hong Son late afternoon and as n-one had been in any state to look up accommodation on the bus we just pretty much stood around in the bus station looking lost.... lucky for us this worked! An american guy on a motorbike stopped and pointed us in the direction of the cheap guesthouses and off we trotted. The guesthouse was nice and the gils working there were lovely and really helpful, telling us all the things to do in the area. We went to do a bit of sight-seeing and found a little street with a night market that really reminded me of Hull Fair. There weren't really any rides... bar a few kiddy ones, but the sounds (dodgy dance music) and smells (dodgy fair food) made me feel right at home. We also visited the stalls by the lake where we stayed and here we bumped ino the American guys again. He had his own stall selling dvds about all the trouble going on in Burma at the moment, which if I understand correctly mainly revolves around the opium trade and until I spoke to him I had no idea we were that close to Burma (although you'd have thought the checkpoints we kept passing through might have been my first clue.. d'oh!). Anywho, he also recommended that whilst in Thailand we visit a place called Banphe... which is the jump off point for Ko Samet island. Apparently the beaches are just the same, but because you don't actually leave the mainland it's dirt cheap and the seafood is amazing.. we'll see!