The Magical Land of Pai
We opted for a weekend away from Chiang Mai in the quaint “village” of Pai, Thailand. I say the village part in quotes because it’s not really that village-like anymore. I’ve never been here before, but from what I can gather it’s really taken off as a tourist hot spot in the past decade.
There were a lot of bamboo bridges around here.
To be fair, we absolutely loved our long weekend in Pai. It was just beautiful. Between the two of us, we kept contemplating what this place was like. A village with beachy vibes in Switzerland? Nah. A groovy little town in Colorado? Not quite. A magically beautiful mountain town with hippie roots and Thai hospitality? Yep, that’s the one.
We departed Chiang Mai around 10 AM on Friday in a van full of other travelers (aka barely legal backpackers) and took the treacherously windy and hilly route to Pai. We arrived around 1 PM and decided to walk to our accommodation in the middle of the day for some reason. It was about eight minutes in and we stopped to have a beer at a riverside hostel/bar. Little did we know the “tipsy tubing” was just kicking off and the bar we were at was the first stop on the river route. There was loud music, shots being poured, and a DJ on the microphone instructing tubers to exit the river and come on up to the party.
We took this as our cue to finish our brews and continue the trek to our much more tame accommodation. We stayed at Pai My Guest Resort which was about a 5-minute scooter ride from the main part of town but it felt really rural.
There were several stylish and modern cafes that served organic produce and vegan smoothie bowls, all in a location that felt like you were in the middle of nowhere. One morning we went to The House Cafe Homestead where we had a leisurely breakfast. We lingered and gazed at the rice fields and tried to soak in the natural surroundings as best as we could before starting our day of sightseeing.
We rented a scooter so we did everything at our own pace. The Lan Yai viewpoint was incredible, the Pai Canyon was a geological sight, and the “big white Buddha” is exactly how you’d picture it but with a stunning view of course.
Aside from adventuring, I spent a few hours here and there lounging and reading by the pool. I think this weekend relieved me of the constant need to be productive (even though I wrote this on my phone while sitting at a bar in Pai). I just wrote because I wanted to, which is why I like this blog. I can’t say I’m great at maintaining it, but when I have time/when I want to, I do. Thanks for following along.
