Charlotte's Web: An Adirondack Weekend

This weekend we went with our Thai friend, Prince, to his summer home about an hour's drive outside of Chiang Mai. His summer home is located in the mountains in a small town called Pang Hai. The home was recently built and had a beautiful porch looking out towards the surrounding mountains. We spent Saturday exploring the area, walking through farmland where flowers were being grown and exploring the dense forest behind his house. Prince even took me our on his motorbike to a nearby reservoir. His mom was at the house in the afternoon, and helped us begin the preparations for dinner. We took bamboo stalks and stuffed them with sticky rice and coconut milk that were later cooked on the fire before cutting off the bamboo and enjoying the rice on its own or with fresh mango. We also barbecued some pork on a grill, using a folded bamboo stalk as tongs. We spent the night around the campfire, enjoying its warmth since the temperature at night was much colder in the mountains than in Chiang Mai. We had been told that it would be a bit cold, but didn't believe Prince since "Thai cold" hasn't turned out to be what we think is cold yet, but I was pretty chilly sleeping indoors in a sleeping bag last night. It was so great to be back in nature. I felt like I was at an Adirondack camp staying up late chatting with good friends around a campfire.

This morning we made breakfast at the camp before heading back to Chiang Mai. We made a slight detour to Tad Mork Falls, which is part of Doi Suthep-Pui National Park. We got to cool off in the pool underneath and waterfall and hike around a little bit before heading back to campus.