Chiang Mai, One More Day Trip and Speaking my Second Language All Day

Day 5 in Chiang Mai I did another day trip! This was my last full day in this city and also the Fourth of July! It is not celebrated here whatsoever as there is little American footprint in Thailand and it’s not their country’s independence day so it makes complete sense why it is totally ignored. But, I wanted to celebrate a bit, so I treated myself to another tour and this one would take me on a hike through the highlands, visit a village, and see the pagodas of the old king and queen.

I got picked up around 7:30am and we started our day. We had a lot of stops throughout the day, lots of mini little experiences that compiled to make a long and full day. Our first stop was to a waterfall. Traveling alone is an interesting experience when the tour guide just lets you roam free for an hour to explore because I don’t know if I should cling to someone else in my group or go off on my own. For this one I thought I would do my own thing, having my camera to keep me company. I chatted with a few people at the waterfall, working on my ability to converse with anyone possible and to keep my level of human contact high. I assisted a fellow solo traveler with some photos, and also chatted with a Spanish couple for a few moments. The waterfall was so cool to see. It was large with a deck area for us to get misted and admire the view. There was also a trail that followed along the stream and I walked that too before returning up to the meeting point and ready for the second activity.

Our second activity was the highlight and main point of the day. We did a jungle trek. It said hike in the description but when I imagine a hike I picture myself scaling up a mountain, step after step, and a stretch of a steep incline... and this wasn’t that. We ended up starting at the top of the hill and walking down it. As we walked our tour guide would stop to explain some of the plants and animals we came across. We saw banana trees, coffee trees, pineapple trees, and avocado trees. There was a snake camoflauged in the green, but I didn't put to much effort to seek it out when I couldn't find it after a few moments and instead sought to retreat to safety. It was so cool to see how the food is grown in this small village. We saw more waterfalls on this walk, crossed bamboo bridges, and passed expansive rice paddies. Seeing the rice paddies was my favorite thing we came across, them being worked on and maintained while we simply strolled through the land. 

The terrain was unlike any hike I’d done before as I haven’t had the opportunity to visit a tropical place like this before. It was so cool, but it was long. We were all getting a bit fatigued and hungry, mainly because our trek lasted two hours and halfway through it rained on us. Thankfully I had my poncho with me as I have learned my lesson a few times before, but I was the only one in my group to have theirs, even the tour guide forgot his in the car. So I was the only one that was semi comfortable and protected from the rain in any way. The mist on the mountains looked really cool so it wasn’t the worst thing in the world. Except now my photos with the rice paddies have me dressed proudly in that bright purple poncho. 

I was able to find company on the trek, by my incessant need to get a photo at every picture perfect spot, and there was a girl there that gladly helped me. I got to know this family from Spain, and to my luck, they didn’t know a lick of english. The mother would pull up google translate and turn on the mic when the tour guide would explain about the nature on the hike. Most Spaniards that I meet can get by with English, but I would soon learn this family was from a small town in northwest Spain, practically touching the border with the top of Portugal. I could see how there would be no need to know English when it’s so rarely used to interact with tourists and visitors in their city. I think they took me in so quickly because I began speaking to them in Spanish, and although it was so broken, they were so kind as to not judge my mistakes and were quite impressed with the level of fluency I was at. This being said I haven’t practiced it once in the past year, truly since I left Spain as this was my first year of school without it. I couldn’t believe some of the simple words that I forgot, such as mushrooms and honey, and as soon as I saw it again I kicked myself that I forgot them in the first place. It’s crazy how quickly you can lose it if you don’t practice. I really enjoyed chatting with them, forcing myself to continue through my mistakes, and if it was a terrible sentence to just laugh it off and hope they understood me enough to get my message across. 

At the end of the hike, the family got fresh mango and shared it with the group, not something I could ever possibly turn down. Then we went to a village coffee roastery and got to taste test three types of tea and their coffee. It was so good, and the warm drink helped recoup our energy lost from hiking in the rain. This was where I was really able to converse with them, as they asked me many questions and I was able to navigate through the thick Spanish accent and understand just enough to know how to properly answer. It was really fun and sweet chatting with them, making friends and getting to practice Spanish in a no-judge environment. Could this day get any better!? I finished off all of the leftover tea and coffee as I would not let it go to waste, each one was so delicious.

Next up was our lunch. I sat next to my newly befriended family and we talked the whole time, again all in Spanish and it was for sure really testing my skills. I explained to them what was all served to us and they asked me about my trip and things like that! The dad even offered to buy me a soda, sadly I had to turn him down because I had too much water to tackle knowing that hydration was the name of the game while here. It was a sweet lunch and I couldn’t believe it was only half of our trip. We still had three more stops to go.

Thankfully the other three stops were of much shorter duration, our first after lunch was to the highest point in Thailand. It was marked by a sign, but then we climbed up a few more stairs to the actual tallest point. It was so cool up there. Thankfully I read a note to bring a jacket because it gets way colder up there than you’d expect. I was thankful to have that with me as the others were shivering, the tour guide even mentioned that during its coldest moments, the greenery will get frost on it, no snow, but yes some frost. I was blown away by how lush and green it was there, everything covered in moss and the deepest shade of green you could possibly imagine. We did a quick circle of the area, and then hopped back in the car to our next stop, the pagodas.

We stayed up in the highlands of Thailand to visit this large monument park area that honors the past king and queen of Thailand. Built on the hill are two very large temples, one for the queen and the other for the king. Surrounding them are gardens filled with flowers and perfectly kept landscape. Sadly, it was poor timing for our visit, as large clouds moved in just as we arrived. They don’t let tour buses in like the one that I was riding in, so we took this fun truck where the trunk had benches and it was caged in to be open in the air but protected from the rain. It was a fun but a short ride. We had about 45 minutes to walk around, see both pagodas, and marvel at the view, except that it was overshadowed by the low laying clouds. I still sought to see though the fog and find the beauty in the area. I would love to see it on a clear day. One day. One other random and cool moment was when I ran into someone wearing a Wisconsin shirt and I spoke up saying I was a recent alum and he as well, graduating in 2023 and must be on a similar summer trip as me. How cool.

I got a photo with my new friend, and as the day passed she got more comfortable hanging around me, happy to have my company, and her Spanish getting more relaxed and way harder to understand. But it kept me on my toes and I truly enjoyed having them to see the sights with and talk to the whole day, even if it was in my second language.

One last stop, and it was a quick one. We went to these markets with the village mothers selling all sorts of goods, mainly dried fruit, honey, and snacks. My "host mother" got these crispy rice cakes and kindly shared them with me. This family’s generosity was something of a prize to be part of, and an inspiration of how I hope to do the same for others. I wasn’t sure if it was just their nature, their pity that I was alone, or their joy to have someone to talk to and get translations from. Regardless, I was overjoyed with how well we worked together and swapped skills.

Now we headed back, I listened to the new Zach Bryan album as I read my book and looked out of the window. I have decided that on the last night of each of my cities, I want to treat myself to a meal/restaurant of choice, disregarding the price. I wanted to try the vegan banh mi at the garden restaurant I previously went to, and I also thought I deserved a dessert of tiramisu. It was so large that I couldn’t finish it but they packed it up for me so nicely and it ended up being my breakfast that I ate at 4:30am in my cab on my way to the airport to head to my next destination… finally a beach and one with the coolest rock formations. You guessed it, Krabi, Thailand!