Pig on a stick...

Just got back from 3 days in the jungle in Doi Inthathon NP near Chang Mai. On the trek with my new friends Adrian (romania), Stefano (italy), and Guy (UK). Also three pretty cool australians on half of it (Chip, Joshy, and Wyly). As the guides called it...no woman no cry tour. First day of we hiked up into the jungle and mountains and to some pretty cool caves. Temps this time of year are perfect for jungle hiking, not too hot. still obviously sweat like crazy, but not near so bad as the summer or rainy season. Oh, on the way out we had to stop by the thai tourist police. An ex-pat american police came out and said make sure you wear mosquitos as malaria, dengue, and another flu that gives you the runs, vomits, and 42 degree C fever are rampant. Also, watch out in town for thieves stealing cameras on one shoulder, make sure you drink 3 liters of water or you will get sick...and welcome to thailand! Haha. Not so bad as he makes it out to be though. The jungle trek was steep, but not too hard. A couple of the guys had some trouble so I had to put their stuff in my pack as I had a big one, but it was ok. The first night we stayed in a karen village. Way up in the hills...no roads, no electricity, no nothing. Just stayed in bamboo huts. We all took a shower in the nearby waterfall, which we later found was directly below the long drop (outhouse) and where we washed the pig we killed. Yea...so we killed a pig...or the villagers killed one for us. We got into camp around 3pm. I went off to explore the forest and go up the stream. Everyone else was too tired so I went off by myself (bro, I need my exploring broski!). When I came back, the aussies had decided they wanted a pig for dinner. the villagers brought one down. What happened next was difficult to watch. I admit I love to eat meat and I know the treatment of animals is never the best, but I sure hope they kill most animals more humanely (read quickly), then this. They brought the pig down, put it in a bag, then beat its head for several minutes with a piece of firewood. The pig was still not dead, so they all jumped on it, and tried to strangle it. All in all it lasted about 10 minutes...10 horrible minutes for the pig. The aussies loved it, which we couldn't figure them out b/c they lied a lot b/c these are the same guys who refused to ride the elephants b/c of human reasons. The pig, though, was quite tasty once cooked on the fire. We got to watch the whole cleaning and gutting procedure...kind of like a biology dissection lab. Of course we could now say that we had had pig on a stick. Everything in thailand is on a stick and so tasty, chicken on a stick, fish on a stick, eggs on a stick, etc, etc. It's a big joke between adrian and I b/c we love things on a stick. We always yell at the stray dogs if they charge us that we'll put them on a stick! That night they brought out the opium as we were in the golden triangle area, famous for opium. I just tried a little bit, but not enough to do anything. The next day the aussies and their guide tiger left us (which we were glad for as the 4 of us had formed a good bond) and we, along with our guide JJ, left for the next village. We trekked up some more jungle hills (poor Guy vomitted from exhaustion several times up the final hill) to a waterfall for lunch. I helped some local kids catch some sucker fish and then we hiked to the next village to stay. Saw Mark from the train on the trail with his guide before reaching the gorgeous waterfall and village we stayed at. Went for a sweet and refreshing swim in the waterfall and enjoyed the evening at the camp by the waterfall playing poker and sitting by the fire. The next day we hiked back down into the valley for some elephant riding. It was kind of a touristy thing and not the best, and they did use poking sticks and would hit the elephants from time to time to get them to cooperate. Don't know how much it hurts them...they do similar things to horses I think, though the only time I've done serious horse riding was when I learned horsemanship up in wyoming and they treated those horses quite well. So I'm not quite sure what to thing about the whole elephant thing...they used to use the elephants has work machines to carry stuff, etc, but now since there are trucks and tractors most of the elephants have been orphaned as there is no use for them except some for tourism. So they actually have lots of elephant orphanages around too. After the elephant stuff, we went on a sweet bamboo rafting trip. Adrian, Guy, stefano, and I had quite an awesome time. Fell in a lot on the rapids and did lots of hooting and hollaring to the excitement of the locals along the riverbank. On the trek out we got stopped by police to check our bags. They had sneakily planted opium in our backpacks and threatened to send us to jail. Of course we bribed them with money. I was prepared for things like this. You keep a smaller amount of money in a separate place so they don't see how much you really have and take all your money. THis is common near the burmese border where drug trafficking is quite high. I had 200 baht (6 dollars) in a spot with my diving log and pictures of friends and family (they say to bring pictures of friends and family to share with others and for memories on long trips). The one policeman looked through the pictures. They took the bribe of 200 and wanted a picture. Oddly enough they took one of Conrad and Whitney Frank. It appeared as though there were mainly interested in conrad =) They don't see biceps that big in these parts. So unfortunately I no longer have pics of the Franks, but I hope to see them when they
visit anyways. But the overall jungle trip was quite cool. Neat to see people living in more traditional ways up in the hills and tasting some unique fruits and plants up there.
The night we got back, we chilled out at the pool, then all went and had some very, very interesting fondue type street food. Cheap and good. I personally think it's always best to eat on the street as it's cheap and the tastiest. Then we went for thai oil massages and then went out on the town. The crazy thing, and I didn't even realize it until everyone talked about it was just the incredibly large amount of prostitution going on. Quite sad. You really feel like brad pitt as you walk along the streets. All these attractive gals calling to you, grabbing you, hugging you. Really crazy. Then the really mind boggling thing to me is the lady boys. Lots, and I mean lots, of boys dress up and even have procedures to look like girls. And believe you me, they look just like them. Very attractive, etc, etc. You have to look real close to tell them apart (look for the adam's apple). They mostly "prey" on drunk tourists who definitely can't tell the truth. Good thing I'm not in thailand for the sex (which apparently lots are) and more for the culture, nature, beaches, and adventure. If you are looking for sex, you have to learn what is called the Thai handshake where you crab the crotchal region to check for certain parts. Though the lady boys can even have their junk removed too. Haha...it's really fun to watch it all go down in the streets though. Quite the spectacle.
The 4 of us spent the last day, exploring chang mai, the temples, drinking beers at stops along the way and exploring the markets and of course sampling all the crazy things we can. We found squid on a stick today!! big score!
It will be kind of sad tomorrow to say goodbye to the guys as we all part ways (me to Pai and they go to Laos, Ko Phi Phi, and Krabi).
hasta pasta