Bangkok to Chiang Mai

My Ricksaw Taxi Driver, originally uploaded by Sheila's Flickr photos.

SUNDAY 1 AUGUST 2010

Another leisurely breakfast and then I got a tuk tuk to the river where I caught a boat for a cruise up the Ping River, where we stopped at a Farmer’s house for refreshment and were shown how to ground rice. I got a lift back with a rickshaw cycle, who insisted on taking me on a tour of all the temples I had already seen. I felt it was only polite for me to get off and have a look, as I had booked an hour’s ride and he would have been exhausted if he had had to cycle all that time. Later on I was having a banana pancake and a lassi in a café when I saw Leonora who joined me. We then went in search of locks and chains for my backpacks as there are many stories of luggage being robbed while people are sleeping on buses and trains.

I arranged for a tuk tuk to take me to the station and caught the 5.55 sleeper to Bangkok. The seats were changed into beds about 7.30 p.m. but unfortunately I was in the top bunk, as that was the last berth available when I booked two days ago, but it was very comfortable. There were two very noisy French families on board who played cards until about 11.30 p.m., long after most people were trying to sleep. They woke up about 6.00 a.m. just as noisily.