Chiang Mai Photos
Seismonastic Plants on Hiking Trail Video
Foot Volleyball Video
Waterfall Video
Sam's Bungee Jump Video
My Bungee Jump Video



Chiang Mai is the trekking capital of Thailand and we decided to go on a three day organized trip, which included hiking, elephant riding, zip lining, bamboo rafting, a waterfall, and white water rafting. We were mixed in with people doing a two day trip instead of three and you could tell which were which. The two-dayers complained the whole hike, but seemed glad they'd done it later. It's the first time I'd had a guide who didn't walk in the front. Instead he enjoyed talking to the people in the back, which made it difficult to figure out which way to go. One time we were half way up a massive hill before he called us back down to tell us we'd gone the wrong way. I yelled at him at one point, which did get him to walk up front eventually. Unfortunately, it was just the first in a series of angry outbursts I had during the trip, such as when one of the locals nearly killed me and two other guys when threw a large log down a steep hill while we were standing below him, and when we were trying to race during white water rafting and our guide kept laughing and dragging his paddle in the water to slow us down. Despite all that, I actually had a great time on the trip because I met some really cool people.

The village we stayed in for the second night was that of a long neck tribe where the women engage in the horrific practice of wearing metal rings that compress their ribcage and make their neck look longer. They had a small volleyball net setup in the village and we had a great time playing both volleyball between ourselves and foot volleyball with the kids. There wasn't any electricity, so after dark we ended up amusing ourselves by experimenting with long exposure photography and flashlights.

Once back in town, Sam and I took the opportunity to go bungee jumping. It's something that I'd wanted to do for quite awhile, but hadn't been near anywhere that allowed it. I was quite nervous the morning of the jump, but by the time I was getting strapped in, I was ready to go. On the way up the elevator, the operator asked me if I'd jumped before and when I said, never bungee, only skydiving, he told me that bungee is for kids, but skydiving is for adults. I'm not sure I quite agree with that. We I asked how many people get to the top of the elevator and decide not to jump, he said, "many". I hadn't asked to be dunked in the water, but for whatever reason, it worked out that I did. It was a bit startling, but it made the jump that much more fun. I'd definitely do it again at some point in the future. Supposedly New Zealand has a 250 meter jump, but I hear it's quite expensive.