171206 Chiangmai - Chiangrai - Chiang Khong

1 plane ride + 3 bus rides + 1 tuktuk ride later....e cat is alive in Chiang Khong =)

survived e Singapore-Chiangmai flight full of sing-gar-poh lang2, got rid of a pushy songthaew driver who wanted to charge e cat 80 baht from e airport to e Arcade bus station, missed 2 #6 public buses that refused to stop, took e #11 public bus for 15 baht instead & had a pleasant half hour tour of e old city with e whole air con bus to e cat + driver + conductor + a monk....=)

e green public intercity buses departing from Chiangmai have fixed numbered seating, even for e non-AC 'ordinary' buses, which resulted in a lot of climbing about in e aisle that even e cat finds too narrow....had some Lahus + papa smurfs (no idea what red berets mean in e Thai army though) + monks for company on e ride to Chiang Khong. met some really wonderful people along e way....airport security guard, bus driver, conductors, fellow solo backpackers, tuktuk driver (so different from those in Bangkok)....

e Chiangrai-Chiang Khong bus had a (sturdy) wooden floor & e road between Phaya Mengrai & Chiang Khong was paved but super potholed. on e way to Chiangrai from Chiangmai, a big fat truck was lying on its side in a ditch - can't imagine any way of removing it other than hacking into pieces. waiting to see what kinda conditions Lao vehicles & unsealed roads will throw up....

Ban Tammila Guesthouse is right by e Mekong river with Huay Xai (Lao) directly opposite. will cross over to that side tomorrow morning =)