CNXJan08 (I) - How It All Began

It was New Year's Eve just as I was waking up from an afternoon nap. There my mother sat beside my bed and beaming, said to me, "I've got a brilliant idea."

"Why don't you go to Chiang Mai alone?"

I cannot be blamed for the fact that I just sat there like a dummy, speechless.

"Okay ah? I'll call Susan now."

Originally, my mother and I were to join the 11 days trip together with Susan and the rest. At the last minute, certain unforeseen matters arose which rocked all our plans. My mother even pulled out both our names from the list and I had been prepared to spend 8 months of my holiday at home. Then, less than two weeks before departure, she comes up with her 'brilliant' idea.

By 5 plus in the morning on the 9th of January, my first 'adventure' without my parents accompanying me began. Jason kindly gave me a lift to KL Sentral where we boarded the express bus to the LCCT Terminal. There, the others were already waiting and some were snatching a bite at the food shops.

At 8.50am, we boarded the Air Asia Airbus and I shared the last row of seats with Susan and Madam Choo. Gosh, was it cramped! My knees were just brushing the seat in front of me and there was no way I could lean my seat back as the wall of the aircraft firmly prevented anything of the sort. Oh well, I supposed that it could be worse - I may have had a big-sized person painstakingly forcing themselves into the narrow seat beside me, or the passenger in front could always have taken the liberty of testing their seat of 'how low can you go.'

Ah, at least I had a window seat. Which calls for nothing less than whipping out a camera to while away the time and to keep my mind off the surroundings.

The trademark red and white Airbuses which occupy LCCT

Right on the dot, the plane lifted its wheels off the tarmac at 8.55am.

View of LCCT

The scenery was rather interesting at first - there was the vast expanse of oil palm estates surrounding the terminal which appeared like a emerald green woolen rug with several bumps scattered here and there. As the aircraft gained altitude, we broke above the cloud line and steered into a cloudless blue sky. Sensing that there was nothing else of interest outside, I then dug out the on-board pamphlets to check out the menu. A plate of nasi lemak for RM8! A cup of water for half the price! Oh no. I decided to starve it out for the next couple of hours but thankfully, I had a good breakfast earlier. And what's the easiest way to forget about that growling stomach? Doze off.

I really enjoy such interesting cloud formations you can hardly hope to see from the ground. The numerous little upward spiralling peaks just happened to remind me of freshly whipped cream.

As this was taken quite some time into the flight, I guessed this to be one of the mountain backbones in Central or Northeastern Thailand already.

Soon enough, at 10.20 am - touchdown! At Chiang Mai International Airport (code - CNX)

After passing through the usual immigration procedures and collecting out luggage, Mam was already there to meet us. Outside the arrival hall, two vans which she had taken the trouble to charter us were waiting. Introductions ensued and we came to know Pop and Bird, our two loyal drivers for the entire trip. The vans were almost brand new, around a year or less old as we found out from them later. The interior and the works appeared to be in good condition and it was spacious as well as comfortable.

Off we then headed for a quick lunch at the International Academic Services Centre (IC). According to Mam, it provides adequate lodging for international students and locals. If I remember correctly, Mam herself has stayed there in her earlier years.

Our first taste of Thai food upon landing. Mam ordered a sumptuous meal of Tom Yum Goong with huge prawns among other very palatable dishes.

The I.C. and the empty plates - good signs of a good meal! Other than the fact that I'm sure everyone was ravenous.

Pleased that she had fed her guests enough to keep their tummies satisfied for the next leg of the journey, Mam bid us a safe and fruitful journey as she had to get back to work at the hospital. She would join us again after our sortie in Doi Inthanon.

Oh yes, before leaving the IC, I managed to spot a Red-whiskered Bulbul! Common though it may be for them, I have only seen it once - and it was most probably an escapee - back on mainland Penang.

The canal running around Chiang Mai town. Notice something about the canal? No rubbish! How clean these locals are. The water flows smoothly throughout its length. At several locations around town, there were even remnants of the old fort well restored and preserved.

We then had to make a quick stop at the local Tesco store to pick up supplies - especially breakfasts - to last us for the next four days. As it was a first time using the Thai Baht, I often got confused when paying at the cashier and quite blindly, I admit, handed over a sum of money not really knowing whether I was doing the right thing! Only later after checking the receipt and my change, giving it a thought alone did I finally grasp the currency!

We bought mainly food and water but some even needed an extra supply of clothes just in case. Uncle David and a few others too got themselves each a local mobile sim card so that calling or texting home would be less taxing on their credit.

On loading all our supplies into the packed vans, finally we were off to our first stop - Doi Inthanon!

Only after the vans rumbled off did those in my van discover a big store of supplies - apples, mangoes, water, various snacks and even a basket full of cutlery - at the back of our van! Mam had really taken much trouble to ensure we were well stocked! Such evidence to prove the great hospitality of the Thais.

The vans had to stop to refuel at Chom Thong town which allowed time for a cup of tea or coffee and the use of washrooms at a Don Cafe sharing the same premises as the petrol station.

After another hour or so, we reached the base of Doi Inthanon.

The first checkpoint of Doi Inthanon.

We each had to fork out an entrance fee of 400 baht (foreigner's rate) while the locals only needed to pay a tenth of the price. As we had to stop over while Susan was settling the bill (which honestly proved to be a tough job, collecting a group fund from 10 people!), some of us got our first dose of avian friends - a flock of leafbirds hanging around the trees surrounding the checkpoint.

The journey up the slopes of the highlands was truly an eye-opener to me. The different vegetation was what struck me most. Back at home, I have always been accustomed to seeing thick, deep green jungles where the sun barely reaches the ground. You could see towering hardwood trees maybe about a few metres inside, but beyond that would be quite indiscernible, almost pitch darkness when the lighting is less appealing.

Here, instead, the temperate forest dominates the landscape. The trees are noticeably shorter and thinner. They are sparse and since it was winter, many had shed their golden leaves of crimson and orange hues. These crinkled leaves are strewn all over the dry, dusty forest floor. Here, you don't see any sign of mud anywhere!

We passed by a small local village before arriving at the EGAT headquarters where we would be staying, much thanks to another Thai birder who unfortunately could not join us as he was held up with his work.

Susan checking in our group at the EGAT power station. Thank goodness she can converse well enough in Thai to get some of our needs understood, or else it would certainly have a worst case scenario of the blind leading the blind!

The EGAT canteen where we normally have our dinners. The unusual thing about this canteen is, being in Thailand, it does not serve pork! Even chicken meat is hard to come by. The main ingredient in most dishes is chicken eggs, but you can get fish too, at least.

These are the newly constructed chalets where we were initially supposed to stay in.

They gave us two houses which each had a small living room, two rooms (one with an attached bathroom) and another bathroom attached to the living room. I think each chalet could accommodate around 5-6 people, if you strictly count the number of beds, as some bunks can be pulled down. But there were 13 of us, inclusive of the two drivers! Susan really had to sit down and decide who would be sleeping where - not an easy task, mind you!

I recall the first bird I saw up here was an Ashy Drongo hawking for insects above the new chalets.

Our luggage after it was unloaded from the vans. This may only be half of it.

Leaving our belongings in our designated rooms, we decided to do a spot of birding since it was around 4.30pm and there was still ample light. The vans brought us to a small unpaved jeep track slightly higher up but precisely where I do not recall as we go by the kilometre, e.g. KM37 trail etc.

It was rather quiet, but I enjoyed the stroll through the woods which became more and more fascinating to me as I saw more it. At one part, the pine (?) trees towered on each side of the path, creating a hushed sort of atmosphere, one which I have always wondered about, as I used to daydream of sitting quietly alone under such trees, just admiring the beauty of the mossy greenery and the fresh mountain air.

Through the forest...

Wild orchids which clung to the trunks and boughs.

At one point, a cheerful call pricked our ears. It was a melodious whistle: whi-whi-whiu whi-whi-whiu whi-whi-whiu whi-whi - with every falling third note. We stopped in our tracks, craned our necks and cupped our hands to our ears, trying to locate the source of the whistling. It seemed to come from the canopy. We were walking along a sloping part, so this made it more difficult to step off the road. A brief movement. Someone treks up the banks of the path and points their binoculars upwards. Moments later, they gesture to us, waving at us to come have a look. Not wanting to be left out, I manage to catch a glimpse of the bird. Slightly larger than a sparrow, yellowish with a dark throat and crest... A male Yellow-cheeked Tit! My first lifer! It then cheekily (pun intended) flew much further off, where we lost it. Nevertheless, I was beaming with satisfaction. It was a gem, that boy!

The light faded and we had to start leaving. We saw and heard nothing else of interest and were only looking forward to a good meal. What should we find out when we got back but we had been given the wrong rooms and were asked to vacate the new chalets immediately! At first, we thought of putting it off till after dinner but then we decided to get it over and done with. So, we put out backs into it to haul all our luggage out of the rooms, back up the steps (as the chalets are situated on lower ground than the canteen) and into the vans which took them yet further up to the older chalets. Finally the last bag was in and the van doors were slammed shut. By this time, everyone had worked up a good appetite.

Next came yet another unforseen challenge - ordering the menu! It was fully in Thai with only a smattering of English. Jason was given the task of 'deciphering' the menu. When dinner was served, out of the 5 dishes, three had a heap of eggs thrown in! We had tom yam and omelette, vegetable soup, omelette with minced pork, stir-fried mushrooms and omelette with mixed vegetables. Turns out that Jason is actually fond of eggs! But, oh well, there were empty stomachs to fill, and the plates were all licked clean before you could shout Jack Robinson.

Patiently waiting for dinner at the EGAT canteen

After dinner, we still had to face the arduous task of sorting out our luggage again as they had been jumbled up between the two vans. The older chalets were wooden and slightly larger - 4 rooms and 2 bathrooms. This time it was much easier deciding who should stay where, so all we had to do was grab our belongings and head for our room. Thank goodness for the egg-full dinner! Gave us a last energy boost for our long day.

Everyone settled down as fast as they could, and having taken a bath (heaters installed), we tucked into bed. At 9.30 pm, I feel asleep almost immediately, barely remembering that Susan had said we're leaving at 5am (Thai time) tomorrow! Just the thought of that knocked me out!

End of day one!