The End of the Road.......

With limited time left, Paul and Carolyn threw themselves in to a frenzy of activity in Northern Thailand.Having left rainy Laos behind, they packed their days in Chiang Mai with plenty of adventures. This area is well known for its temples and its treks.Before venturing out in to the surrounding jungles, Paul and Carolyn spent some leisurely time taking in the temples in the Old City. The grid of winding streets is Wat-tastic so they picked the best of the bunch and pounded the streets until they were templed out!

The following two days took them on a huge adventure; a 2 day trek in to the Hill Tribe region.Their first stop was at a Karen Hill Tribe, whose women are renowned for their elongated gold banded necks. There are 2 theories as to why these women deform and decorate themselves with heavy golden bands. The first is that the men, who were out hunting in the surrounding jungle were worried for the safety of their women and placed the gold bands around their necks to prevent the tigers from killing them with a bite to the neck. The second theory is that the men were so concerned that their women would find love in a different tribe, they forced them to deform their necks so they would be recognisable to other tribes.Who knows what the truth is, but these ladies seem very satisfied now selling their handicrafts to a captured audience, after inviting the tourists to pose for a 'necklace' photo.Very authentic!

Next stop the Elephant sanctuary where Paul and Carolyn got to ride one of these majestic creatures. Doctor Doolittle Paul made friends with the largest of the group.This 11ft giant came over for a sniff and a 'trunk-shake' which Paul obliged and Carolyn ran a mile! The elephant trek itself took them on a short tour of the jungle, to a watering hole and back up the steep slope to the camp. Their elephant was more interested in eating the sugar cane that Paul had bought him as a treat than actually moving so they took an age to get anywhere. Next it was their turn to trek... up up up into the clouds to stay overnight with the Lan Ha Hill Tribe.The 2 hour climb was intensive and exhausting.The amazing view promised at the top was nonexistent as the cloud hugged the mountains in the valley below.Their agile guide skipped up the path in his flip flops only stopping occasionally for a cigarette, while the rest of the group hauled themselves up to the steep summit, every muscle aching in pain!

The homestay they were to spend the night was beyond basic. The 'shower block' was a cold hose over a drop toilet with no lighting. It was still inviting and refreshing after such a strenuous climb! The sleeping arrangements consisted of a large bamboo shack with floor mats and a hard pillow. The mosquito net had huge holes, large enough for the scariest of creatures to climb in. It was going to be a long night! As there was no electricity in Lan Ha village, the evening's entertainments consisted of eating wonderful Thai curry in the dark followed by a singsong accompanying their talented guide, who lit his music manuscript up by head torch as the little group murdered songs by Oasis and the Beatles! Candle lights out by 10pm and they attempted to get any shred of sleep they could muster!

Next morning after a surprisingly decent sleep (approx. 5 hours) they refueled with a surprisingly Western breakfast (they have been so used to eating rice and noodles for breakfast, they would have fallen over if they hadn't been eating the fried egg, toast and jam sat on the floor!)

Today's trek took them back down a very slippery mountain (it had rained most of night) to a waterfall where they could shower and freshen up (no cold hose shower in the clouds this morning thank you!).I thoroughly enjoyed bathing with the group of bikini clad girls! When they finally slipped down to the bottom of the mountain several hours later, the adventure concluded with a white water rafting journey.They were shouted some basic rafting instructions from a Thai who spoke stilted English then they were off down the fierce, muddy river screaming in fear and delight when their dingy hit the rampant rapids! Paul, at the front, got a face full of wave every 30 seconds, Carolyn clinging on for dear life at the back. What a ride! They made it back to the tuk tuk in one piece. A small miracle for clumsy Carolyn!

Their final day in Chiang Mai was considerably more relaxing. They hired a scooter and visited the most sacred temple in Northern Thailand, Wat Suthep, up the top of a steep mountainside. They opted for the cable car rather than the steep 350 steps to the summit. Their weary legs needed a rest! As they were over seeing Wats and waterfalls, they set out to find some hot springs marked on the map. After a long ride out of the city, they finally found their wonder... It was a serene oasis of winding hot spa waterways culminating in a massive spurt of natural hot springs at the end.They joined in with all the locals hard boiling some eggs in the hot spring pool and sat back and enjoyed their snack in the soothing hot waters. Bliss!

After a fantastic few days Upt North, they jumped on a jet and headed south and to Phuket.Their final week was to be spent on the tropical paradise island of Ko Phi-Phi.Not before a rather raucous night out in Phuket before their early morning ferry transfer. They found themselves amongst a throng of pole dancing bars and Thai bunny go-go dancers and got stuck in to the one night of madness with a whisky cocktail bucket and danced the night away!

Fortunately Ko Phi-Phi was far more tranquil and they quickly got in to a routine of a beach bum, enjoying bathing in the beautiful aquamarine waters and swimming with the schools of tropical fish.Their one token effort to attempt to burn off the rice guts they'd accumulated was to walk the long way around to the beach over a steep mountain with an amazing viewpoint of the whole island.

One day they dragged themselves away from their beloved Long Beach and went on a speedboat tour of the surrounding islands and coral reefs.One stop took them to Maya Beach, made famous by Leonardo di Caprio when he discovered this 'perfect beach' in the 1999 film.It's not so perfect anymore, with a constant stream of speed boats lining up on the shore for 100's of tourists to enjoy its golden sands.It was busier than Blackpool on a sunny bank holiday! Paul and Carolyn also made the most of all the snorkeling around the coral reefs, bombarded with 100's of tropical fish swimming around them (they are obviously far too used to tourists!)

Sadly their week in paradise came to an end and they boarded the ferry back to Phuket and a steady night out before an excruciatingly early transfer (4.45am) to board a flight to Bangkok. Carolyn had surprised Paul by treating him to 2 nights at the 5 star Lebua State Tower hotel to complete their adventures in luxury. Backpacks on they arrived at the lobby in a sweaty mess and were escorted immediately to their suite on the 54th floor. From there they could see the whole of Bangkok in all its glory.They spent their last 2 days partaking in plenty of retail therapy (they didn't have to carry everything on their backs anymore so could go crazy!). On the last night they went in search of Ping Pong in Patpong before having a night cap cocktail back at Sirocco skybar (located on the roof of their hotel) to toast Mason's Amazing Adventures!

Since the 8th March the Masons have travelled 23,244 miles from location to location totalling 286 hours travelling time, 11 flights, 5664 miles (224 hours) over land, stayed in 52 different guesthouses, hotels, B&B's, homestays, boats, shacks, chalets & houses...... visited 7 capital cities and countless other destinations..... They have loved every minute of their travels. They've met some amazing people, seen many temples, wats, waterfalls, ruins, wonders, beaches, deserts, jungles, rain-forests, cities.....but the adventure has to end and now they're back in Blighty!

Thanks for all your lovely messages to the blog site, keeping Carolyn & Paul connected while they've been on the road. They look forward to seeing you all soon.

Signing off for the last time...

Love Alan (Carolyn & Paul)

P.S Thanks Judith for all your roving reports. Hope you're still having fun in the sun!