Wake up at 7 something, it is cold so I put on bathrobe to go outside on the balcony! Enjoy cup of coffee and the lovely view, internet connection rather low, third post up!
Rebecca has brought along The Lonely Planet’s guide to Thailand and starts reading it. It is very resourceful and entertainingly written.
Breakfast: pancakes with caramelised bananas and mango gelato, Rebecca has French toast (remember the times when it had a different name: freedom toast?).
pancakes with caramelised bananas and mango sorbet
We manage to go to the tailor up the road, he promises to have the brown linen dress altered and ready at 5 pm for 1’000 Baht. Inshallah! I feel very courageous after all the disastrous experiences I had before.
James Bond (no joke!) takes us up in (in his van) to the hills to Mae Tang Elephant Nature Park. And yes, it is the same place we went to 12 years ago.
Lovely flowers abound in the reception area:
lovely orchids and a very tired dog
Do not tell me you have not been warned!
I am surprised that Rebecca wants to go elephant riding,
Rebecca and Valérie
and I am even more surprised that I go elephant riding but so be it! But I feel very bad when the mahout hits the elephant on ist head with the metal tip of his stick! My elephants knows the routine, blackmailed by sugarcane and banana that poor thing trots along.
Think of rollercoaster and hightech seat fixtures!
What a contrast to where we are living!
The bamboo river rafting adventure is a nice relaxing ride through calm waters down the river, a 20 – 30 minute ride with two nice guys rafting and singing us along. Lychee trees.
Valérie and our singing master rafter
Oioioi, what is there to be afraid of? No crocodiles, no piranhas
Back at 4, lunch outside, scampi in their noddle nests and chicken meatballs.
Chicken tandoorilike meatballs accompanied by a spicy cilantro sauce
2 Beers and I am ready to go to sleep but instead take off to the tailor and pharmacy after 5. My dress looks ok, I am glad. But the tailor is an odd person, very unfriendly.
Pharmacy: insect repellent as healthy as possible, some calming balm (after bites), inhaler, jasmine massage oil.
and the insect repellent will come to use now!
Pickup at 6.30: we have all been invited for dinner by friends of Kittipon. Deng is joining us. We are taken to a place within or near the old town walls, the restaurant is called Mango Chilli, rather modern with a boutique hotel on top of it, it is very chilly inside, but there is no mango (weak pun).
We finish off the evening in the bar on top of the restaurant at our hotel.