A Day in the Life - Pai, Thailand

February 18, 2015

Waking up to the sound of a powerful waterfall in the middle of the jungle, I crawl out of my sleeping bag and splash icy-cold, crystal-clear water from the nearby stream onto my face. It's time to start the day.

We pack up our belongings, and begin the trek back through the jungle towards civilization, picking wild berries and edible fungi along the way. Once back, we decide to keep the adventure going, but this time on motorbikes. On the way to the “secret” hot springs—the one that only the locals know about—we stop at an elephant camp to feed them bananas and awe at their majestic power and beauty.

After the hot springs, we go to the market—a place where activity, color, and exotic scents overwhelm our senses. We eat on the side of the road, and then continue our journey to a nearby cave system to do some rock climbing and exploration. After getting expelled by an exodus of thousands of bats, we travel to a different waterfall. The Thai kids are sliding down the rocks as if they were water slides, and we join them.

We head back to town in time for our Muay Thai class. After getting our asses kicked, we enjoy a Thai massage to soothe our aching muscles. It's happy hour at the hostel, and the darker lascivious energy of the night is overtaking the spiritual lightness of the day.

We enjoy a few beers as four guys from different countries jam out in preparation for their performance at an open-mic tonight. They don't need much practice and the individual notes from the individual instruments come together to create beautiful music. As I lay in a hammock, nursing another beer, I drift to sleep thinking about another day in the life of Pai.