4 days squashed into 1/2 a day

Pai in northern Thailand near the Myanmar border is apparently the hippy capital of Thailand, and the number of shops openly selling dope seems to bear witness to that, although the visitors themselves are mostly posh university students who can afford a holiday in Asia. That said, there was a small percentage of dope heads. I couldn’t quite work it out, but it seems the police turn a blind eye in this town, and the tourist people openly encourage it. Rather strange given the otherwise harsh laws in Thailand, but then maybe they cater for the niche, in an out of the way location.
We spend 3 and a half days chilling, not because we particularly wanted to, but because Flo is still down with Influenza B, and the rest of us can all do with some recovery time.
The last half day, we decided to go on a whirlwind tour to see the local sights. No less than 9 stops in between 1300 and 1830. I won't go through them all, but they were a mixed bag, with some real highlights and some so-so. For me, the highlights were the walk across the padi fields on the bamboo bridge and the last stop at Pia Canyon. Although for the last one, I maybe did not get the best out of it due to my vertigo. (It’s a lot better, but steep drops left and right , whilst wearing flip flops, is still not my thing).Read more