Market of Eden: tourist attraction

I have something to confess: I have been trying to write this post for almost two weeks. I have written paragraphs of mumbo-jumbo, and then just gone back and erased it all, multiple times. The truth is, there is no story to this post, or any interesting anecdotes, or even a single photo of food! It's just going to be a no-nonsense, straight-up photo post, seeing as the main attraction of staying in a Treehouse Resort is, of course, the treehouses themselves.

The Longan Treehouse.

The middle level of the Sticky Falls.

After being in Chiang Mai for a while, you may hear foreigners talk about a waterfall you can climb up like a gecko climbs up a wall, and they might refer to it as the "Sticky Falls", or maybe, the "Limestone Waterfall". You might hear a Thai person talk about "Buatong" or "Nam Phu Chet Si", and casually refer to it as a nice place to visit. They would all be talking about the same place, and anyone will tell you it is an attraction well-worth experiencing, probably unlike any other you've had before.

In May 2013, during the last week of the school term break, my boyfriend and I hopped on our CBR 150cc, and began our adventure to the town of Pai. I had been on this Pai journey once before, in the high season, and didn't quite understand the difference going in the low season would make. Of course, the trip there was thoroughly terrifying, although extremely enjoyable as well (if that makes sense). A lot of the more treacherous roads seemed to have been repaired since I had been on the same ones a few months before, and there were many more construction workers milling about and fiddling with heaps of tar. It rained heavily, as usual, and this was the part that made the trip so dangerous. Unless you can overcome the paranoia of flying down a natural water-slide on your vehicle, I'd recommend pulling over for a coffee while the rain subsides, which it nearly always does.

Because it was so quiet in Pai, with a noticeable lack of people and parties, we spent more time exploring the town and its surroundings. We would drive aimlessly along the little roads that make rings around the place, and stop wherever we thought we had spotted something interesting. This is how we came to find a lonely chained-up elephant, the Pai canyon, some adorable puppy friends, and many, many beautiful views of the scenery. Pai is a lovely little town, but it does have an extroverted, party-crazed personality during the high season, and I'm grateful I got to meet the beauty of this place when things were calm, quiet and peaceful.

A lonely elephant off the beaten track in Pai.

The Songkran Festival is the Thai New Year, which takes place for three days from April 13th to April 15th (although in Chiang Mai, the famous celebrations continue for up to six days or longer). The normal new year actually begins on the first of January like most other countries, but the traditional new year is still vigorously celebrated and is a national holiday for all, when many people either join in the festivities, go back to their hometowns to visit their elders, or simply take some time off to fulfil their Buddhist rites. Of course, the ritual that everyone knows about is the throwing of water, but there are a few more which many people overlook amongst all the wet chaos.

Even little people are dangerous during Songkran.

The first day is usually when more traditional Thai people will interpret the renewal aspect of a new year quite literally, and clean out their entire homes. As a time for cleansing, people will splash water on their Buddha statues to "bathe" them, and images of Buddha are displayed publicly for strangers to pay respect to with sprinklings of jasmine-scented water. People also choose to "cleanse" themselves, by making vows to abstain from alcohol or smoking, or refrain from other behaviours, similar to western New Year resolutions. The first day is also when the celebrations begin, at home and in the streets, and you can expect to get soaking wet walking or driving anywhere.

Wan Nao is the second day of Songkran, and is when many Thais will go to temples to pray, and offer alms to monks. Younger people will gently pour water over their elders' shoulders, and people believe their respect and kindness on this particular day will bring them refreshment of the spirit and prosperity for the new year. Another ritual carried out during this time is the act of tying strings around others' wrists, while uttering blessings and wishes of good luck. People aren't supposed to remove the strings, but rather let them fall off on their own accord, and some people take pride in amassing a whole armful of them, which carries all the blessings they have received.

The third day is when the city is completely transformed into a big, slippery, flowery-smelling mess, with street food stalls in full bloom, as well as parades filled with Buddhist decorations, traditionally-dressed Thais and plenty of water-throwing. By this time, many people are all partied out, but the streets are still full, and they will be for a few more days. Water-guns and buckets are still being sold by the boatload, and stories are beginning to emerge about people finding creatures from the netherworld lurking in the moat, and scooters sliding into Starbucks and destroying all the brownies, and so on. April is the hottest month in Thailand, with an average daily high of 36°C, and record highs over 40°C, which is another reason Songkran in Thailand has become more about playing with water than with traditional rituals. Add 2 million foreign tourists to that equation (in the month of April) and you have yourself a rather large party. Here are my photos from the Thai New Year of 2013:

Ready to strike as I'm driving past.

Throwing water from trucks.

My friend and I in the midst of the madness.

My friend and I again, completely soaked.

Fighting guns with buckets.

These guys have got some evil, watery schemes going on.

The generic water-guns for sale for a small fortune (mine broke within the hour).

Action shot.

Cute.

Big chunks of ice which are being broken up to keep the water freezing. Great!

I'm guessing a lot of people say RIP to their phones during Songkran.

The chaos at Thapae Square (along with a few way-too-wasted foreigners).

Wearing a helmet was a really good idea - what a smartie-pants.

Getting splashed.

Aargh!

The ground covered in water at Thapae Square.

The beach at night on Ko Phangan.

In March 2013, my boyfriend and I had begun our holiday in the south of Thailand, starting off in Bangkok, where we fled Khao San Road, stalked the malls, became Skytrain experts, and had the ceiling of our hotel room collapse. We then explored a bit more of Bangkok by motorcycle taxi, and landed up at The Museum of Death. After leaving The City of Angels, we had a quick break in Ko Samui, and then headed off to camp on a deserted island. So far, our trip had been overwhelming, fascinating, frustrating, fantastic, and breathtaking, and it was far from over.

After camping on the island of Koh Wua Talap for three days, and exploring the beauty of the Mu Ko Ang Thong National Marine Park, we made our way by ferry to the island of Ko Phangan, which is a notorious "party island". Unfortunately, my boyfriend and I were exhausted, and just excited to eat some restaurant food and pass out on a soft bed. And that's exactly what we did.

Ko Phangan, in our opinion, was much nicer than Ko Samui. Of course, we could explore more of it quicker, as it is smaller and less populated. We could not, however, explore further inland, as most of the natural forest and mountainous area is pretty much inaccessible by vehicle, and I doubt many tourists leave the bustling coastline to wander around the wild parts of the island.

We ended up staying there for two nights, and spent most of our time wandering around slurping fruit shakes, eating delicious Mexican, Western and Thai food, and relaxing at our guesthouse. Our bodies needed a break from the sun and constant travelling, and this is why we didn't really do much on the island of Ko Phangan.

I liked this shot of the sleeping dog and statue.

Stoic island dog.

Perfect Ko Phangan waters.

Yet another shot of clouds, sky and sun in Ko Phangan.

We enjoyed a few drinks at this place, but had to leave before the party started out of sheer exhaustion.

Ko Phangan sunset number one.

Our second sunset on Ko Phangan.

Beautiful.

Myself and a silly golden labby who hung around our guesthouse.

Leaving the island.

From Ko Phangan we got on yet another ferry, and arrived at our final holiday destination: Ko Tao. As soon as we had arrived on the tiny pier, cramped with tourists and Thai hawkers, selling everything from sunglasses to diving courses, we knew this would be a special place. Our friend in Ko Tao had already hooked us up with Phoenix Divers, who picked us up from the ferry in a truck and took us straight to where we needed to be. While my boyfriend booked himself a diving course, I checked out the free accommodation, which was a cozy fan bungalow at AC Resort. My boyfriend then spent the duration of his course getting free breakfast at AC Restaurant and learning how to dive in various beaches around the island, while I rode around the place on a hired scooter, stopping for food and shopping now and then. On the fourth day, when he had finished his finished his course, we realised we weren't going to leave Ko Tao just yet - we had fallen in love with the place and wanted to explore it together - so we moved a few blocks away to a quieter area. Our authentic and affordable bungalow at In Touch Resort was perfect for us, and right next to their relaxed cocktail bar and restaurant on the beach. This is where the last bits of our holiday were spent, lazing around with pineapple shakes, perfect weather, and each other. Paradise.