Pai is pronounced like the dessert people love and rave about "you just gotta try it!" Backpackers talk about Pai the same way it's pronounced. "You haven't been to Pai? Oh, you have to go!" This is my third and last night here. Like many pies, I like it, it's okay, but I don't love it. Would I rather have chocolate cake? Yes. I love chocolate cake more than I love pie and Pai.
I was sick on my first day so I stayed in bed in my hotel room sleeping, waking from fever dreams, and convincing myself I didn't have dengue fever and/or malaria. I'm better now, so either I simply had a mild form of the flu or my immune system is one that must be studied because it's able to defeat dengue fever, unaided, in two days.
I rented a motorbike and went to The Land Split (Crack). A blog I read said it was a good place to stop on your way to the Pam Bok waterfall. The blog also said that Pam Bok falls are on the way to Pai Canyon. I didn't make it to Pai Canyon, I turned around when the road turned to dirt ruts. And it's good I didn't keep going, because the blog was wrong about Pai Canyon. The falls I went to are in the opposite direction. They are both south of Pai, but one takes you west off I-1095 and the other east.
Granted, if I would have studied the map closer, I could have easily caught this, but it's hard to read my phone in the sun, and it wasn't all that important, just a place to go, so I rode a couple kilometers until I realized it didn't seem right. No harm no foul. So remember kids, to quote Alexander Graham Bell "Don't believe everything you read on the internet."
Here's a picture from the waterfall. I wasn't all that impressed. I've seen bigger (keep the Michael Scott joke to yourself), so I didn't bother getting in the water with the Israeli guy in his underwear traveling with the guy in the pic and their six other friends tarnishing my experience. Thankfully underwear guy was briefly out of sight when I snapped this pic...
Now, back to the Land split. Here's what happened...
DId you get all that? Yeah, I wouldn't have read it either. Basically, the land split open a few years ago and the guy put on his entrepreneur cap and turned it into a tourist attraction. The family gives you food from his garden and rosella juice they make and they only ask for donations. So payment is either in guilt or baht. I paid him 10 baht for water.
The trail to the farmer's crack goes through his garden (Oh, I've been waiting to write "the trail to the farmer's crack" this whole post!) Here's a bunch of pictures from his garden. None of the plants were labeled so I chopped up some wood, made some signs, fashioned some paint out of coconut milk and pandem and labeled everything correctly. I'm joking...
You get the idea, and he labeled some trees, this is a Teak tree...
And now, drum roll please... ... ... ...
The farmer's crack!
The view from the top...
Again, I'm not proud, and the experience wasn't nearly as enjoyable, but as a former nurse, I've seen bigger cracks. Hey oh!! (No, I am not 12 years old, I am a grown man,)
I did enjoy this view...
Here's the food stand you see and the very nice family you meet at the entrance...
Here's some views from around a great coffee shop called Coffee in Love, south of town...
A table in the coffee shop
Outside...
You know, I've been thinking. Maybe I wouldn't have gotten sick if I hadn't have been eating so much Gosh---
Okay, maybe I am twelve years old.
Next post will be my experience and impressions in town, including the best breakfast buffet ever! Ever, ever, ever!
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As always, thanks for stopping by. We hope you enjoyed the show. And this Friday is ladies night, all ladies receive one free t-shirt at the door and are required to give two t-shirts on their way out, so be advised to bring an extra shirt, or somebody's going home topless, and we are not that kind of establishment.
Please, resteem, upvote, and put travelman in your will. Thank you and good night!
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Maybe it's not quite like it is advertised, but it is still a very nice place! (That's my attempt at a decent comment, but of course I read all the post just to get to the farmer's crack!) Have fun!
I do like it. Just not the way people rave about it. I guess I'm looking for different things in my travels. I just couldn't resist the juvenile humor, so I posted about the land split first.
Thats what I'd call a landmine! Well, you won't know till you've been.
Good post, there you redeemed yourself after the durian debacle, hip hip!
Be sure to keep on down that road to Mae Hong Song, more interesting and beautiful than Pai imho.
Thanks. I'll have to catch that next time around the globe. I booked a ticket for the morning to take the slow boat down the Mekong in Laos. And it sounds like you're referring to a previous post of mine about the durian. Thanks for reading. He turned out to be sensible and undid his actions without me asking. We're buds now. Also, imho all my posts are wildly entertaining! ;-) ...but my character emojis are questionable, lol.
Nice post. I've been told by several people to "Go to Pai." I probably will someday, but I'm not in a hurry to do so.
My next and final post about it which I'm about to write as soon as I finish replying to you will talk about the town more. It all depends on the experience you're looking for. And thanks for commenting and thereby introducing yourself. Do you live in Chiang Mi now?
Yes, I left Singapore in August, and came here in September. Basically, I wanted to "retire" from active work, and I knew Chiang Mai is a great, inexpensive place to live.
Then, just before I moved here, I found Steemit. Chiang Mai is a great place to live while building a strong Steemit presence. I've got a nice residence on Huay Kaew Road, and I may stay here for a year or more.
Why is the next post your "FINAL" one? Are you planning to move on?
Sorry, bad syntax. The final post on Pai. I'll be continuing to post..
Sorry, bad syntax. The final post on Pai. I'll be continuing to post..
Sorry, bad comprehension here. Looking forward to more posts.