We travel to Udon

I'm writing this four days after arriving here in Udon Thani, a medium sized city (pop. ~150,000) in northeastern Thailand, and the place my Homer riding buddies store their bikes and gear. Last year when I arrived here in early February it was uncomfortably warm. Then the air conditioners were humming full time as the long, hot Thai summer began. But this is November, the start of winter and the high tourist season. The weather is pretty near perfect with temperatures both day and night hanging right around 80 degrees (26 C). Two Homer bikers are here already, Al and DC, and Sean is due in next week. Last night we ate at one of our favorite spots to celebrate  DC's first full day in Thailand, a place we call Chicken Smoke Corner. Charcoal fires in sawed off 55-gallon drums burn hot all day cooking slabs of chicken and pork ribs, fish and sausage, and sending plumes of fragrant smoke out onto the street -- hence the name Chicken Smoke Corner.

At left: Nut, DC and Al finishing up our meal


So what have I been doing for the past few days? My motorcycle has a frozen front brake caliper so we're more or less stuck at the hotel. As if that isn't bad enough the new part must come all the way from Bangkok, a four-day wait. The situation was made worse when a local mechanic broke off part of the caliper when trying to free the piston. With such a badly weakened caliper the bike is not all that safe to ride. From now on I'll have all my work done at the Honda dealerships where they have trained technicians. The up side to the repair is that the new caliper will set me back only about $40 and that I'll get reimbursed by the owner when I return the bike.

Nut and I left Chiang Mai last Friday, October 29. We took our time once we left the busy 4-lane Route 11, the so called Superhighway, that points southeast out of Chiang Mai. Our destination was the village of Nam Pat, a town where I overnighted during my memorable first bike trip last February (more here...). I turned  onto a smaller road as soon as possible and the choice proved a particularly good one: route 1105 is a short, twisty, sweet ride through banana groves and rice paddies. I stopped several times to take photos of the beautiful countryside.

 

You can see me checking out the rice crop in one of the photos above. I had really never seen rice in this form before, that is to say, still on the stalk and close to harvest time. A couple more shots of the rice fields lining  Rte 1105 follow:

We arrived in Nam Pat after a 7 hour ride (5 hr 35 minutes actual ride time) that covered only about 190 miles (310 km). Riding two-up is more challenging for both the driver and the bike, consequently the maximum speed attained on this leg was only about 60 mph. 

Nut and me on a teak swing at our NamPat hotel - morning Oct 31st

Next day, the 31st, started out cool so I wore a long sleeve shirt atop a sleeveless one under my motorcycling jacket, and long pants. Amazingly, I was totally comfortable in this outfit all day. As you can see, Nut wore a poly-fleece jacket and, although she gets cold much easier than me she was able to stay out of the wind and stay warm by hiding behind my large carcass for most of the trip.  

We drove north on Rte 1047 out of Nam Pat. Although we were going out of our way the object was to make a swing through some of the pretty country, enjoying the ride and the scenery. Eventually we looped back southward on Rte 1241 and then in Ban Khok picked up Rte 1268 south. This is another of Thailand's great motorcycle roads. I'd ridden it going in the other direction last spring but now it is green and verdant, seemingly an altogether different road. Some photos follow:

Excellent motorcycling can be had on Rte 1268 in northern Thailand

Nut holding some longkong, another of her faves - Rest stop Rte 1268

 Nut at the Phu Soi Dao waterfall - Rte 1268

As the day wore on into evening the temperature dropped near 70 degrees, however, and both of us started to feel chilly. My new jacket, a Joe Rocket Phoenix, is designed for hot weather and is made from a very open weave mesh material that allows air to flow freely through it. That's fine as long as you're talking 80 degrees or so but in 60 degree temps, it's not so good. Our goal that day had been the small city of Loei but we decided to stop in Phu Ruea to escape the chill. We had driven 170 miles (274 km) in 6 hr 20 minutes on the bike; 8 hr 27 minutes door to door.

After a quick supper in the market Nut asked a local cop if he knew where the resorts were located. He pointed to a tiny street next to the market and indicated he owned a resort up there and that, surprise, surprise, it was a very good one. We drove off looking for his resort but we turned into the driveway of the first resort we saw, not his we soon learned, but it turned out well. Except for a couple of things. As we were unpacking the bike the cold started to get to Nut -- she began shivering and her hands turned icy. The night time temperature was way lower than what she's used to in Bangkok. The little old lady who ran the place, by the name of Lek, offered to build us a warming fire. Nut excitedly encouraged her to go ahead. Lek promptly hustled her over to a little gazebo and started building what turned out to be a very nice fire. (As far as I can tell, all the wood in Thailand is hardwood, which burns hot and with no sparks.) Her husband, Witthaya, brought out snacks and later drove into town for some wine.

Before long Nut was grilling bananas and sausages over the fire while Witthaya cooked up some strips of what I took to be fish at first but which turned out to be buffalo skin. I tried it but didn't think much of it -- it was tough, very chewy --  basically grilled fat -- but Lek and her husband wolfed it down.We shared some tasty local wine that night too. But the reason we were wined and dined, at least one major reason other than the fact that we're both likable and friendly, is that Nut is a massage therapist and I am a "wealthy" falang. They were seeking investors for Lek's struggling massage business in town and in their developing campground/resort. Apparently, much of the conversation Lek was having with Nut (and which I couldn't understand) around the campfire had to do with encouraging us to throw in with them. 

We turned in at about 11 pm after eating and drinking practically everything they brought out to share -- except the buffalo skins of course. When we went to take showers it turned out that, unfortunately, the water heater simply wasn't up to the job. Nut came out of the shower with the shakes. We laughed together until she crawled under the covers and began warming her hands on my back. We slept under 3 blankets that night, a first for my time in Thailand.

Next day we were up early and after saying good-byes to our friendly hosts were soon on the road to Udon. It was a short ride of 127 miles which we did in about 4 hours. I had called ahead to reserve a room at the Top Mansion, a hotel conveniently located near the night market, the Robinson's shopping mall, the bus and train stations, as well as other attractions.All my Homer buddies stay there and for obvious reasons.  At 370 baht per night (~12 bucks),  it's cheap and well appointed: A/C, hot water, balcony, TV, Wi-Fi, and it's kept super clean. Nut's happy because she's a clean freak and some of the other places we've stayed have fallen far short of her standards. LOL (I think most women are in agreement around this issue.)  We have no need for the A/C this time of year but it's essential in the spring or summer. Very nice accommodations!

I reckon I'll sign off for now. Be well ,wherever you are, and we'll be talking again soon.

Chiang Mai Travels

It's been good to be back in Chiang Mai. It's still very hot in the afternoons but the humidity is less so it's much more comfortable than Bangkok -- mornings and evenings are idyllic. When we got here we had not yet arranged a place to stay so based on Internet reviews we had the taxi drop us at a new (to me) guesthouse off Ratchadamnoen Rd, Soi-1. Luckily Baan Nud-Kun had two rooms available and after glancing around at the pleasant surroundings we booked them. Pierre and Pai came here on a different bus and we teamed up at the bus station. We've been here for a week and this is decidedly a very nice guesthouse, one I'll be sure to visit again. There are many amenities for guests out in the open air lounge: toaster, hot water for tea or coffee, a fridge, a microwave, free fruit and bottled water, hammocks -- 500 baht per night (A/C, fan, hot water, desk, separate toilet/shower, Wi-Fi, all for about 15 bucks). Fabulous place, highly recommended.

Early next morning I walked over to Tony's Big Bikes to pick up the Honda Phantom I had arranged for over the Internet. Tony is a real nice guy, an English expat who's been living in Thailand for over 20 years. He has a stable of nice bikes but the dependable Phantom is the mainstay of his rental business. We talked about biking in Thailand and joked about Thai women -- he too has a Thai girlfriend -- apparently Nut's penchant for finding a bargain is a common one among Thais. Before I drove the Phantom back to the hotel I took a short spin on a Honda Super-Four, a small-displacement "crotch-rocket" -- it has a lovely sound, four cylinders, 400 cc - but it's not made for touring two-up. Tony suggested I rent one for a day after I get back from my tour with by buddies. Probably shouldn't but probably will ;-))

Nut and I took a couple of day trips to see how the Phantom would work for the coming trip. For our first trip we drove north for about 30 miles to the lovely Mae Rim Valley. We saw elephants in the road, some lovely waterfalls, and beautiful forests. Compared to my time here last year, during the dry season, Thailand is green and lush now. Flowers abound and the air is tinged with delicate fragrances. Below is a view from the road side high above the Mae Rim valley.

We stopped at the locally famous Mae Sa waterfall for a look see. There are ten separate cascades in the river; this one is number four. The heat was getting to me at this point so we didn't go any further.

We drank some iced coffee near the above spot and as we were gazing down at the view we noticed a lovely floral aroma. There were some tall yellow flowers nearby. They reminded me a bit of sunflowers or huge daisies. Sure enough, that's where the smell was coming from.

On the way back we saw elephants trekking along the roadside. There are tourist spots where you can see elephants working, and even ride one, but I typically avoid such attractions. Still, in Alaska where moose in the road  can present a big problem, especially at night in a winter snow storm, imagine running into one of these guys. Just about at this point it started raining. We ran for cover and just in time, found some under a veranda in a small village. The rain came down in buckets but as is typical in the tropics, it was over in about 10 minutes. We left the veranda a bit too quickly and soon caught up with the trailing edge of the squall. We got slightly wet but the water was so warm it was refreshing rather than life threatening as it could have been in Alaska under similar circumstances.

 

The next day we went south to Doi Inthanon in the national park by the same name. At about 8,000 ft, this is Thailand's highest mountain. The air was chilly and rain was threatening. Again, and stupidly because I brought a rain jacket and pants to Thailand, we did not have any of that gear along on this trip. We got to the pair of chedi (temples) near the top (at about 7200 ft) but decided to stop there and wait the rain out. Just as we parked the bike, down it came. We had coffee and cocoa in the snack bar and before long the rain stopped. It didn't really clear up enough for great pictures but the flower gardens surrounding the chedi were beautiful and the subdued light brought out the colors superbly. Below is a shot of one of those temples and one of the tile mosaic panels surrounding it.

 Nut and I at Doi Inthanon

As the sun tried to poke its way through the mist I took a bunch of photos in an effort to get the effect of air and cloud that was so lovely to see with the eye but so difficult to catch with a camera. Below is my best effort. I did a bunch of Photoshopping on this particular shot to bring out the cloud detail but it's close to what I remember seeing.

Below is a road scene from the trip home. Again, because it's just after the rainy season, everything is in bloom -- even trees -- it was mighty fine motorcycling in the shade of the trees that lined the parkway.

Yesterday we took another ride, this one to the west of town, up to Doi Pui. We wanted to visit the Hmong village up there and got lost on a muddy road before finding it. Later I learned that we stopped just short of the Maesa Elephant Camp. Had I known that we might've persevered and driven there but the mud was scary and difficult to ride through. The hills around here are full of coffee plantations and the cup of locally grown Arabica was the best coffee I've had in Thailand so far.

It's getting late and we start out on our 3 or possibly 4-day ride to Udon early tomorrow so I'm just going to load the photos from our visit to Doi Pui. There were some gorgeous flowers and some great food to go along with the colorfully dressed Hmong people. This is a popular tourist destination so we had to pay 10 baht (30 cents) to get into the town's lovely Waterfall Garden.

This little 7-year old girl approached us while we were eating lunch. She was a trip. She was quite a talker and spoke fluent Thai as well as Hmong. She and Nut chatted away while I shot photos of her and her 8 month old brother. Usually she charges 10 baht for a photo (remember, this is a tourist spot) but we gave her a persimmon we had bought for 20 baht and was seemed satisfied with the trade. What a beautiful and smart little girl. I was very impressed.

I have photos of the moo gra~ta scene in Chiang Ma that I wanted to include here but it's late and a certain exotic Asian woman is distracting me so I'll close for now. Catch you later....

Chinatown in Bangkok

Chinatown Street Scene

Friday, October 22:

We're enroute to Chiang Mai as I write this. This is the way to travel, this first class bus way. There are only  21 passengers on the entire bus and each of us is seated in a very comfortable recliner seat equipped with back massage vibrators. They're power operated and very comfy, sort of like the 1st class seats  on an airplane but  more spacious. The bathroom is clean and convenient. There are video screens for each passenger and although the movie offerings are all in Thai the music is good, mostly American pop. And there is a pretty, sharply dressed attendant who periodically brings us snacks and water. We've had one light meal so far on this 9-hour journey and although plain by Thai street-side standards it was fairly good; rice and chicken strips, fresh cucumber slices and a tiny tomato. Our tickets cost 800 baht apiece, about $20.

We arrived in Chiangmai after a comfortable trip. The pace was slow but steady. I gave up trying to write more on the rest of the trip because the Thai roads aren't as smooth as ours so even though the ride itself was fine there was too much jiggling to type. Let's get back to Bangkok and Chinatown.

I wanted to write a bit about our visits to Chinatown but a few pictures will pretty much tell the story. Because the food and service were so damn good we ate at the same street-side restaurant twice, the first time it was just Nut and me. We went to buy a smoked, dried duck for Nut's best friend Kaew who lives in Chiangmai but of course while we were there we had to eat, right? The second time we went with one of her best friends, Pai, and her falang boyfriend Pierre, a Frenchman. This couple met on the Internet, which was convenient, because Pierre cannot speak. It isn't just that he can't speak Thai, he cannot speak at all. His hearing is normal though and he understands French of course but Pai doesn't speak French, only Thai and a bit of English. Their communication problems make ours seem trivial by comparison.

Anyway, Chinatown, like much of Bangkok, is jammed with food sellers, snack stands, and sidewalk restaurants. We were trying to walk by this one particular eatery situated on a main street corner but the waiters hammered us trying to convince us to have a seat and eat with them. Usually we resist this sort of hard sell but the food we could see on the tables nearby looked fantastic so we relented and took a seat. Our guy, the one who was so pushy on the street was the best waitperson I've had in all of Thailand. Attentive to the point of supplying us with fresh napkins as soon as ours were soiled, topping off my beer glass constantly, and bringing us a container of water awash with lime slices to clean our hands, in essence, the perfect waiter. And the food! I had a garlic encrusted deep fried sea bass with chilies and fresh basil that was so good I ordered another when we had the first one almost eaten. This place was fairly expensive by Thailand standards: the meal plus two beers came to about 500 baht, about 7 bucks and change.

We bought durian from this woman. This stuff has a awful smell but the fruit inside is quite nice. When fully ripe it's tasty, sweet and has a consistency something like firm custard, but the smell puts many people off to the point that they don't even give it a chance. It's Nut's favorite fruit by far. I have all I can do to keep her away from the durian sellers because whenever we buy it she sits down and eats the whole bagful, every time. She's an addict. What you see in the photo is the hard shell of the whole fruit which must be cut through to get to the edible fruit inside. When handling this stuff you need to wear leather gloves as those knobby spines will otherwise abrade your skin badly.

The shop where we bought the dried duck for Kaew - ducks are shown in the inset at left

And below are photos from the night we went with Pai and Pierre. I had the garlic fried fish again (bottom center) while Pierre ordered a poached fish (center) which is served boiling on a small brazier or chafing dish. Also shown are an order of grilled prawns and a seafood vegetable stir-fry that Nut ordered. We also had a scallop vegetable dish that was splendid. The Thai basil in that one is one of my favorite seasonings -- it brings to mind the flavor of fennel, or anise. I simply love it! I've said it before and no doubt I'll say it again, IF YOU LIKE TO EAT, COME TO THAILAND:

 After dinner we were destroying the durian Nut just had to have and I asked Pierre to take this shot. It's a bit shaky but you get the idea. Her buddy Pai is in the picture along with us.

Tuesday, October 27, Chiangmai:

Back to the current situation: So far I'm loving Chiangmai. I was here twice last spring so it was a foregone conclusion that I'd like it again, especially considering that I'm traveling with Nut. I rented a Honda Phantom again but this one is from Tony's Big Bikes  and it's practically brand new with only 5,000 km on the speedo, unlike the beater I rented  in Udon last spring. I had a great chat with Tony, a Brit expat who's lived in Thailand for 20 some years. He takes very good care of his bikes and so far Nut and I have made a couple of day trips to test the waters, so to speak, for the our trip to Udon to meet up with my Alaska buddies-- it's a solid ride. At a whopping 200 cc  displacement these Phantoms are a bit underpowered compared to the superbikes running around in the rest of the world but it's a practical and simple touring bike for Thailand. I was worried that riding two-up on such a small-bore machine would be impractical but considering that Nut weighs in at about 100 lb soaking wet, I think it will get us to Udon alright.

I'll post an article about our first motorcycle trips in the next day or so. Talk to you later.

Bangkok

Dateline Bangkok, Tuesday, October 19th:

Nut and I went to her brother's for what turned out to be a big family gathering on Sunday. I had thought it would be just Nut and me and Moo's family but as it was Wan-yut, a Thai holiday, so the whole clan was there, or much of it anyway. Her brother is in the orchid business and orchid farms surround his home in the suburb of Bang Phai to the west of Bangkok. There is a huge covered workspace filled with tables that are used when packaging orchids for shipment to various places in the world -- this is where we hung out and ate the meal.

After arriving at Moo's and the introductions made, we immediately piled into Moo's van to drive to a seafood market where the best, freshest fish and crabs were to be had. Of course Thais never go far without needing something to eat along the way. It was a longish drive to this particular market and after about 15 minutes or so the general clamor for food was acknowledged and Moo pulled the van into a roadside market for snacks. Here are a couple of shots of the family chowing down as we drove along. In the photo clockwise from bottom left are, Nut's mom, sister Aou, daughter Dui-dui, cousin Pim (her father, Nut's brother, died years ago), Nut, Aou's son Ice, and brother Muk, a clamorous and very friendly group.

Moo's house is situated on a klong, or canal. These are peaceful waterways where boats, both powered long-tails and paddled flat-bottomed "canoes" I'll call them, pass by constantly on their way to a neighbor's perhaps or a nearby market. They're very common in Bangkok and this one was particularly attractive in this rural setting. It was very quiet, a relief from Bangkok's noise and traffic, and before long exotic birdsong filled the quiet evening air. All the klongs seem to be loaded with fish that are constantly seen in great numbers when they hit the surface to feed. Her brother tells me some of them weigh in excess of 15 lb -- considering the water quality I don't think I would dare to eat one but many locals fish the klongs and of course, of necessity I imagine, eat what they catch. Nut and I took a short ride in one of the boats used for traveling on these waterways. It was a flat bottomed affair with no keel I could detect that I found very difficult to keep headed in a straight line even as I tried to apply what I could remember of the J-stroke from my canoeing days.

Above is their klong-side picnic area which is surrounded with beautiful trees and shrubs. One tree caught my eye because the blossoms were spectacular and colorful. Nut told me it was a rose-apple. I've eaten the fruit before and can say it's delicious.

Just before we were ready to sit down and feast, a lady showed up paddling her boat along the klong selling fruits and vegetables. Nut's brother Moo is in the photo; he's buying some eggs and ginger root for the cooks at work in the kitchen.

Below are some shots of the folks preparing the food for the feast. In the first one Nut's sister Aou and brother Muk are cleaning fish and prawns. Below that are her mom with brother Moo and his wife Uh in the kitchen. In the last one is Dui-dui, Nut's daughter, frying some fish in a huge wok:

I might as well admit that I've pretty much fallen for Nut. And she seems, for some strange reason, to feel the same way about me. She is smart, fiery, lovable and sexy. I caught her in this great candid photo as she was collecting coconut meat for the tom yum Aou was making.

I wish I had caught more of the dinner on film but I was busy eating and drinking with the brothers. The women worked all during the meal presenting plate after plate of great chow: fried fish, steamed fish, curried chicken and fish, mussels, crab, tom yum, assorted vegetables, platters of huge grilled prawns, watermelon, pineapple. And of course many beers and glasses of 100 Pipers, a Thai brand of scotch whiskey, with soda added to the scene. Neighbors and an Aussie expat with is Thai wife dropped in to join in the fun. I ate and drank quite a bit but managed to remain sober what with all the food I was putting away along with the beer.

Thursday, October 21, Bangkok:

In the interim since beginning this entry we made a visit to Chinatown and had a memorable dinner there which I'll cover in another post. Tomorrow morning we will travel by 1st class bus (recliner seats and cold aircon) to Chiang Mai for a week or so before heading to Udon to meet up with my friends from Homer for another motorcycle tour.

Then, around the 2nd or 3rd of November Nut and I will ride to Udon. It will be interesting to see if we can load the bike with all of our stuff for the two day trip to Udon. I'll rent a Phantom again, or maybe a bigger bike, for the ride. Albie and DC will arrive Nov 4th and 5th, and Big Al arrives Bangkok on the 25th. He'll head to Udon also to meet up with the rest of the gang. Another friend from Homer, Sean, will join us on the ride this year. We four, the same crew as last spring along with Andy from Canada, and Sean, will tour together this season.