Aree and Chris drove Mary, Marjool and I to the village where they live for a hair cut. Marjool was first given a head and hair massage followed by a short shoulder massage and then finally a trim.
Graham then had the same treatment and the bill came to 120 baht for the two. Chris then drove us all to Phu Pha Thoeb National Park where we stopped for a BBQ lunch. Just like British Airways the choice was chicken or fish.
The national parks cost around 100 baht each plus 30 baht for the day. The rock formations and the walk up to the falls were certainly worth the entry fee.
The first part of the walk is over a rock plateau and the second part through some tropical woods or jungle. The path then gets steeper up towards the waterfall.
The waterfall is not spectacular, but is in a nice setting and would be great for a quick shower if you had your swimming things. The path continues up the rock to a set of ladders that give access to a Buddah and the top viewing point. It felt good to stretch our legs.
On the way back we saw beautiful but tiny flowers. Each flower was only a few mm across.
On the way home we saw a motorcycle with standing room only. Out of site on the other side of the pillion passenger is a gigantic basket. Unfortunately you cannot see it in the picture.
When we got back to Aree’s farm we all had a shower, then put up the tent for Mary. We then went back to Sal’s place in Mukdahan for a nice meal prepared by Jang … Thank you! Jang and Noy gave us gifts of tee shirts (for Graham) and silk scarfs for Mary and Marjool. Very kind!
We then had a busy time in the evening with a house warming party, a couple hours at the cowboy themed pub with the live rock band, and finally a dancing bar.
Graham had a slightly unnerving experience when a bloke started to give him a shoulder massage as he was using the urinal …. He politely told him “No thanks”, or words to that effect! Not sure if it is normal practice in Thai bars, or whether Graham is just lucky!! In any case he didn’t go again …..
troopytracks 