I am back at 50% strength :) I am still tired, but the antibiotics are having an effect and I can start thinking about food again.
Pat, Karen and I have now rented scooters, and right away headed north to test them out. Our first stop was the reservoir of Luang Nuea, which is nestled on a low knot of mountains and provides potable water to Chiang Mai. We stopped at a small eatery by the side of the road, where I risked some catfish soup (delicious with its lemon grass flavoring) and the others had a big grilled fish coated on a multicolored salad.
We then proceeded across the mountains to the Buatong Waterfall - Chet Si Fountain National Park, which should be the poster child of serenity and quiet beauty. It is a woodland forest with shimmering leaves, and the top of the watershed, so there are all sorts of creeks running through it. The Buatong Waterfall (aka the Sticky Waterfall) is really water spilling over rounded outcrops of rock, where the running water has created many little ridges of travertine that give excellent traction. I was too pooped to go down and climb through the "waterfall" again, but the others did it and declared it better than a Disneyland ride and very refreshing.
The other point of interest is the Chet Si Fountain, a natural spring of crystalline water that fills a small pool or rock, maybe 10 m wide and 5 meters deep, which in turn forms the creek that tumbles over the Sticky Waterfall. It is a sacred place because, according to legend, the spring formed to provide water to the princesses of the realm, who were in hiding from some invading enemy. Crazy Pat had lugged with him a small watermelon, which we enjoyed in the fresh of the forest by the side of the spring.
Round trip we may have made a 125 km trip, which was perfect for a starting day. We were eager to get back to town because today is Sunday, the day of the big Night Market, and we didn't want to miss that. The market takes over one of the streets and a couple of courtyards of the old town center, and is a dazzling display of color, aromas, and temptations to the shopping tourist. Food was at the top of my list, and I delighted on the colors, varieties, an delicious aromas wafting from the different booths. I indulged in some rice with pork, and on a spicy papaya salad, but it turned to be too much to my emaciated stomach -- I should have tried the grilled squid as well :(
On the way back I was lured by the offer of a shoulders and back massage. I had been considering a massage for a couple of days now, because I am aching all over, but what can one of these petite women do to try to soften an old goat? I need a Tongan man to give me a massage. Be careful for what you ask! My masseur was a wirey man in his 40's with the pointiest elbows one can imagine. He proceeded to use said pointy elbows to knead the hell out of me, from neck to ankles, during an hour of pure torture that I am not likely to forget anytime soon. When he was done so was I, with barely enough strength left to crawl into bed.
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