We left our nice hotel in Chang Mai on Wednesday at 9 and headed for the bus station. We both had a Thai breakfast which consisted of ham, egg, sausage and toast. It was quite nice to be honest but nothing on a full English!!
When we got to the bus station we had to ask for some directions to where the minivans left for Pai and eventually found them and booked on a van to Pai which left at half 10. The van to Pai was comfortable although it was a bit hot as the air conditioning wasn't the greatest. The journey took about 3 hours with a 15 minute stop for some food and drink. The roads were winding as Pai is located up in the hills out of Chiang Mai.
When we got to Pai, we quickly jumped in a taxi at a small booth opposite for the 5 minute journey to our hotel. We've paid a bit more for the hotel we are staying in for 6 nights as its Beth's birthday on Sunday and we wanted to stay somewhere nice. The first impressions were excellent and the hotel looked great. We paid and the woman gladly took our money before dropping the bombshell that "we don't have any power"!! She assured us it would be on by 5 so we dumped our stuff in our room and went for a wander around Pai. The town is really small and can easily be walked and there are loads of bars, restaurants and shops. We both felt really comfortable here straight away which was probably helped by the prices in the first restaurant where most of the dishes were 50 baht (just less than £1) and a large bottle of Chang was 65 baht (about £1.20). The power was off in the whole town due to a problem with trees being down the power lines nearby but some of the restaurants had access to a generator so we could still grab some food. The power didn't come back on until about 6 and then went off again after an hour. Considering we couldn't have a shower and the toilet wouldn't flush without any power, it was a bit of a pain in the arse.
We went into town on Wednesday night when the power was again off and it was actually quite nice to see all of the town lit up by candlelight rather than the usual lights. All of the restaurants were shut due to the generators having been switched off so the street traders were doing a roaring trade. I grabbed a couple of roti's with cheese which were great while Beth got some chicken on sticks which is practically all she now eats. We then had a drink in a small bar which was actually really nice before the power came on again at about half 8. We were a bit knackered after the travelling so we went back to the room and sat on our balcony for a bit before hitting the sack.
Thursday dawned and the power was off again!! Needing a shower but unable to have one, we took the free bikes from our hotel and headed for the temple on the hill from which a giant Buddha is visible from our balcony. We parked our bikes up and headed up the many steps to the temple which has good views over the town. The only problem being that its very hazy so we couldn't really see much ! I decided to clamber up to the giant Buddha (there are no steps just a dirt track) while Beth stayed at the bottom. It was really impressive and it was fairly new and up there I met a couple from Holland who, when Beth got involved in the conversation, we ended up talking to for a couple of hours. They are really nice and we will hopefully have a night out with them whilst we are in Pai. After grabbing some lunch in town, we pedalled back to the hotel where the power had still not been restored. Bearing in mind that we had been riding bikes all day, we were both in pretty dire need of a shower. After waiting till 7 for the power to come on, we used the free tuk tuk into town as we could no longer see anything on our balcony. I even resorted to trying to read my kindle by candlelight but it didn't work. I was just ordering a pad Thai from a street vendor when suddenly the power came on. Beth ordered some sticky mango rice from the stall next door and we just looked at each other and thought 'shower'!!! We hurried home, with a short stop for a couple of beers and we both got clean before we sat on the balcony enjoying the cooler temperatures and I had a few beers.
This morning, i was up early as i wanted to make sure i could have a shower before the power went off at about half 7. Beth wasn't too fussed so she slept in!! It was actually nice to sit on the balcony at 7 with a cup of tea and watch the sun come out from behind the mountains. Its was bloody cold though after 6 weeks in the heat and humidity of Asia. Luckily the power has been on all day so Beth has actually been able to get washed. We have also rented a scooter today and went to have a look at some of the sights around Pai. We visited a waterfall which was nice but after Iguassu in Argentina / Brazil nothing really compares!!! We then went to a viewpoint over Pai but again couldn't see much due to the excessive haze. We then visited a temple before again having dinner in town. Can't go wrong with sweet and sour chicken for 50 baht. This afternoon we sorted through our bags and have sent some stuff that we don't need home. Most of it we've hardly used and we've been carrying it for 6 months. For anyone thinking of travelling, less is definitely more. We have ended up wearing a lot of the same stuff and hand washing quite regularly. It will all be wrecked when we come back but nothing a visit to Topman can't sort. I then went for a jog as the sun was going down and we've got some more street food for tea to eat on the balcony. Beth's got a pad Thai and I've went for some fried rice. It's actually quite cool tonight so Beth's sitting with her hoodie on while I have a couple of beers and we listen to some music. Quite relaxing here in Pai!!