Most days you woke up in 30c/86f degree heat. We stayed at a few places in Pai and the one thing in common that they all had was free fruit and coffee in the morning. I wouldn't call it a sleepy town and I wouldn't call it a lazy town, but it seemed like a large part of the place was set up to accommodate Westerners content on eating fruit, strolling around, and riding to waterfalls on Pai's outskirts.
There are a few places in Pai outstanding enough to demand their own post but I'll stick to one.
If you walk along the mountain road towards Chiang Mai for 30 minutes you'll come to a dirt path. Covered in lights, sticking out among the red leaved trees, a sign says 'Sunset Playground'. Run by just another couple 20 something year-olds there's a small kitchen and bar, practically just a tin shed, and several verandas with blankets and pillows to sit back on and look at the retreating sun behind the hills.
The one thing that struck me about Sunset Playground, and really the rest of Pai, is how authentic and organic it all felt. Constantly, you would see young people taking an idea with a restaurant or bar and just running with it. The world chose Pai to be its stop off point on their way through Thailand and Pai welcomed them in.
Thanks for reading. I hope to post a few more about Pai, Melbourne, and a few others. Enjoy
