The Lush Valleys of the North

Part 1----The Lush Valleys of the North:

The ancient city of Chiang Mai and the Mae Taeng jungles---- activities: white water rafting class IV+ rapids, trekking to remote Hill-Tribe communities, and up-close encounters with the sweetest Ele's in the world.

Our white water rafting company is spot on when it comes to doing what they do....except for the few times they make some strange decisions. This time, Tim (our Kiwi safety kayaker) decided it would be fun to perch on a rock in the middle of the rapids to watch the boats come out....I'm on the upper left corner, leaning over the boat trying to make sure these guys didn't get knocked out from the slamming of our boat! I do admit, I had a huge smile on my face. I was half expecting to see them go swimming!

These are the Rafting boys, and some of the coolest friends I have here in the North. After rafting these guys always ride into town with us and a big night on the town always follows!

Before we go rafting, we spend 3 days trekking in the jungle visiting remote Hill Tribe villages. These villages are all nomadic peoples traditionally migrating from the South of China and Tibet hundreds of years ago. Until recently they were considered pests to the Thai government, and only now are there projects aimed at introducing these populations into Thai civil society. The biggest effort is providing free schooling for the young children before they reach the age where they need to work the rice fields: 12-13 years old.

They are animist villages who have maintained societal structures and beliefs taught from their ancestors; still following their ways even now over 1,000 years later. On this trip, our students are exposed to a way of life literally locked in time: they visit with shamans (witch doctors), drink black tea with Tiger hunters, chew beetle nut with the elderly women, pound rice with the workers, and learn new dialects of Chinese origin...All the while trekking through some of the most beautiful virgin tropical evergreen forest remaining in Thailand.

These young boys are part of the Lahu tribe, once known to be the most powerful since they were accomplished Tiger hunters. They are now the remotest of villages and the most isolated from Thai society. None of these boys understood a word of Thai I tried to speak to them, so instead they responded to my camera with a peace sign and a holler of 'Abu-n-jow' which is Lahu for thank you. Shortly after the monsoon rains started pouring down and they all immediately stripped down and had public play 'nakey' time!

The Lahu village is also the village where we spend one night overlooking the entire Mae Taeng valley and the province of Chiang Mai. Mid-trek I stopped to take a picture of our trekking goal: the village on top of the mountain far off in the cloudy distance.

Zac Da, our Akha trekking guide, always smiley and he loves to practice his English with me. A new addition to my niche of friends, but a much loved one :)

Along the way some students making their way through the clouds.

A stop for taking a much needed rest and a dip in the waterfall! This is always a blessing, since at this point I'm starting to smell like jungle rot.

Finally, trek over and time to enjoy the fruits of our struggle! The second I've showered and changed, I pose at the top of the mountain, for our overnight stay with the Lahu village.

An Akha woman in traditional garb, most easily recognized by their head-dresses laced with Indian rupees for decoration and merit. She was kind enough to offer us tea and bananas during a stop on our trekking venture.

Village life: includes waking up to rolling mists from the clouds hanging low, and trapping chickens in cages to keep the livestock from being killed and eaten by wild cats or pigs.

And then of course...there's ele heaven, known as Elephant Nature Park:

The new addition to the park, the little boy tucked between his aunties' legs, is only a couple months old now. He's recently discovered how to trip his mahout (elephant handler) and how to keep the dogs away...all he has to do is toot from his trunk and his Mother and Aunties come running to his rescue forming a blockade of elephant mass...he tends to abuse this privilege.

Some parting shots of Chiang Mai:

In the middle May is praying to the Lord Buddha: 3 times she bows in respect---1, to pay respect to the Lord Buddha; 2, to pay respect to his teachings; 3, to pay respect to the community of monks who carries out his message.

A shot of the famous walking street market from the roof of my favorite bar. On the right, the lovely Nim...the manager of the hotel we frequent on tour and another best friend here in Chiang Mai: she's my confidente and my relationship counselor!

Part 2---coming soon...the Golden South!