Easy Paider

Last night, whilst standing on a rickety bamboo bridge, Monica, Jackie and I watched a column of paper lanterns rise into the sky over Pai, next to a river reflecting the yellow glow of wooden restaurants. On our walk back to the hostel some happy dogs joined us. 

Every traveller I've asked has recommended Pai to me, but none of them explained how simply beautiful it is. Coloured lanterns hang across the pedestrianised main street, lined with souvenir and hemp clothing stores. At night handicraft vendors and street food stalls stuff into the sides of the road. The vibe from the bars and coffee shops is distinctly chilled hippie and the on-theme clothing on offer means that the town displays a full spectrum of colours.

It's a bit higher up in Pai; its residents are rewarded with cool evenings and mornings, and an abundance of strawberries and mushrooms in the surrounding mountains.

In true visitor fashion, we decided to hire out motorbikes to explore. If you are feeling masochistic you can explore Pai by push bike, however with the number and scale of the surrounding hills I would say this is inadvisable. The idea was that we would hire two motorbikes, as Monica was more keen to be a passenger. I was cool with this; hadn't ridden one before but you see idiot Australians doing it all the time, so how hard can it be?

It didn't help that the bike distributor was a moody arsehole Thai (a rarity amongst the Thai people) who assumed that every person knows how to ride every bike ever. He pointed at two 'scoopy-i' scooters and grunted. Jackie, who had wridden a couple of times before demanded an overview of the controls from him and he scowlingly obliged.

My first go on a scooter went as follows: I pulled too hard on the accellerator whilst the front was tilted sideways causing me to lose control, panic, and drop the bike. Mr. Arsehole rushed over to tell me to go and get my money back,  which I started to argue against until Monica agreed to drive it instead.

This actually turned out to be a good thing, as Monica is something of a natural. She had no problem carrying a passenger and was soon speeding us up the hills and into the sunset. We all spent the day visiting waterfalls, hot springs and canyons. If we were hungry we parked up at random places and ate. It was the first time I've felt like a proper adventurer. Even if I can't ride a scooter like an idiot Australian.