Bangkok: July 2006

In this first part of a two part feauture, Amber Solaire and Mozzie Byte remind our readers about what was happening to Ray and Nikki after they completed their TEFL training in Chiang Mai, back in June.

In the second part, Amber and Mozzie will tell you more about what Ray and Nikki got up to whilst Ray took a six week break from travelling to return to the UK, and Nikki headed south for the island of Ko Samui. And we also bring you news of their re-union in the vibrant and chaotic city of Bangkok at the end of July.

First of all, a huge ‘welcome back’ to all of our readers! Your team at The Daily Lama have now returned from our summer break, ready to resume our exclusive coverage of Ray and Nikki as they travel around South-East Asia and beyond. Over the next six months, Ray and Nikki’s  journey will be taking them into Cambodia, Vietnam, backto Thailand and on to Australia. As usual, we intend to bring you the best stories, pictures and news as it unfolds.

Above: Flashback to June 2006; view of Chiang Mai, as seen from Doi Suthep - a Buddhist temple high up in the surrounding mountains

As we prepared for our summer break, Ray and Nikki had been staying in Chiang Mai, in the northern part of Thailand, and had just graduated from the Language Institute in the University, both gaining their qualifications to teach English (University Challenge Part 2).

“Most of our family and friends knew we were taking our exams and that we got good results, but I don’t think many people really knew how knackered we were at the end of the course” said Ray. “When it was over, we really wanted to re-juvenate ourselves, and our preferred way of doing this is through getting back to nature and exercise” added Nikki.

So the two of them decided to use their final few days together in Chiang Mai to visit the temple at Doi Suthep and then go further afield to Pai in the far north to do some trekking.

(Above) Ray relaxing after his TEFL course and enjoying his visit to Doi Suthep and (below), one of the four golden Umbrellas and the golden Chedi at Doi Suthep

Wat Prathat Doi Suthep, at an elevation of 1,022 metres, is Chiang Mai's most famous temple. The pagoda in its centre contains some of the relics of the Lord Buddha. The temple is visited thoughout the year by thousands of tourists and Buddhist pilgrims from all over the world. According to legend, the temple's site was selected by an auspicious elephant. The story goes that a monk named Sumana placed half of a Buddha relic onanelephant'sback and set it loose. It was decided that when the elephant stopped walking, a temple would be built on that exact spot to house the gem. Instead of stopping at an easy site, the elephant began climbing the hill - and finally paused on the brow. This was where Wat Prathat Doi Suthep was built by King Kuna in 1388.

There are two choices once you have reached the base of the temple - either hike up the 300 steps to the temple gate (admiring the longest Naga staircase in Thailand on the way), or hop on one of the cable cars and get conveyed to the top. Ray and Nikki opted for the walk!

Above: Nikki sits at the base of the 300 steps that lead to the temple gate and contemplates the walk up

“I am really glad we visited the temple as we had been promising ourselves we would go there ever since we arrived in Chiang Mai and we used to see it every day, high up in the hills, as we cycled to the University during our course” Nikki told me.

The visit to Doi Suthep was followed by a four an a half hour ride, on a packed public bus up and down twisting hair pin mountain roads to the town of Pai, enabling Ray and Nikki to once again take to the hills on foot and really take in some of the most spectacular scenery in Thailand.

“We decided to spend our last 3 or 4 days before parting in Pai, knowing that it would be a while before we would get another chance to do some trekking together” said Nikki. “I had been to Pai about 17 years ago and really wanted to find out how it had changed. Inevitably, the sleepy village with two guest houses had now become a large town complete with seven banks, a hospital and a thriving night life” she added.

Above: The beautiful countryside around Pai is wonderful for trekking

Having surveyed the territory on maps, it became clear to our two trekkers that they would need to enlist the services of a guide, with local knowledge of the trails and jungle regions. “Neither of us like doing the usual tourist thing and much prefer going into uncharted territory, so having a good guide is essential and you can usually hire one for about six pounds a day” Ray told me. “We were lucky on the day we chose for our first trek, as we ended up with two guides for the price of one and both were fantastic” he added.

Above: Ray with the two guides for their first trek in Pai

“Trekking is the major business in Pai, with every guest house offering organised trips"said Nikki. "When I first came here years ago to trek into undiscovered territory, we were told to ask for a man called 'Jungle Jim' who would guide us through the hills to stay in villages cut off from the rest of the world.  I discovered that Jungle Jim has since moved on from Pai and now runs a tour company out of the city of Chaing Mai” added Nikki. “However, despite the growing number of tourists coming to Pai, it is still possible to experience the isolation and beauty of the surrounding hillsides" she said.

Above: Nikki follows her guide across a farmers rice paddy, heading for a waterfall

“I am really glad that Nikki and I both invested in some decent footwear as these full day treks really do take it out of you and the shoes really help to arrest the onset of aching feet and legs" said Ray. "Or, maybe we are just not used to it, as our guides, who do this sort of thing all the time, seemed to be completely content with basic sandals" he told me.

Above: "Shoes are for wimps" as the saying goes in Pai!

Ray was very pleased with the accommodation they found too. "We managed to find a great place to stay, and most unusually, it had hot water so at least we had a good shower to look forward to each evening when we returned".

But there was another reason that Pai will live on in the memory for Ray. "I will not forget our time in Pai, not just because the environment is beautiful, but because England played their first group match against Trinidad and Tobago in the World Cup while we were there" he explained. "Although the game was televised live on Thai TV, the date co-incided with the anniversary of the King's 60 year reign - he decided that a blanket 25 minute block of all programmes be made at the time of the kick-off (!) so that a special feature about the celebrations could be broadcast.  As you can imagine, the uproar amongst English backpackers in Pai was palpable and everyone cheered when the special programme ended and we could watch the rest of the match" said a very patriotic Ray.

Above: Ray and Nikki’s wonderful lttle bungalow by the river in Pai was a great place to come back to each evening

On completion of their trip to Pai, Ray returned to England for six weeks, while Nikki decided to head to the south of Thailand, returning to the island of Koh Samui to further her yoga practice. “For the previous seven months, we had spent virtually every moment together and so it was quite hard to imagine being separated for a while" Ray told me. "However, we both had things we wanted and needed to do which made it OK" he added.

Above: "See you in six weeks darling!" - Ray and Nikki have breakfast together in Chiang Mai before Ray flies back to London and Nikki heads south to Ko Samui

Editors Note: It's great to be back with the first issue of our new season and we look forward to continuing our coverage of Ray and Nikki's journey. In the second part of this two part feature, Amber and myself will tell you more about what Ray and Nikki got up to whilst Ray was in the UK, and Nikki was on the island of Ko Samui. 

And we also bring you news of their re-union in July, in the vibrant and chaotic city of Bangkok and reveal the reason why this article is called "Secrets & Skypes".

To read part 2, click here: Secrets & Skypes (From Southfields to Samui) Part 2

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MOZZIE BYTE

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