Welcome to the Jungle

This weekend, we went up to Doi Suthep National Forest and spent 3 days relaxing in beautiful surroundings.

On our way up to the forest, which is about an hour and a half NE of Chiang Mai, we stopped at a reservoir to take our swim test. I was mildly apprehensive, as the last time I'd any particular distance was the summer I started at Hamilton and took their swim test! However, I managed to swim the 300m across the lake and trod water for fifteen minutes with little difficulty. We then played around in the water, jousting and capsizing one another with paddleboards and generally goobing around in the water.

We then continued onward, driving in multiple vans to breathtaking Doi Suthep. We had reserved a large area for the weekend, nestled between two waterfalls and surrounded by dense jungle as far as the eye could see. We had four spacious cabins, as well as a 'salla' in which to cook and congregate, so we weren't exactly roughing it!

We spent the weekend getting to know one another better and spending time with the staff of ISDSI. I spent many hours playing volleyball, 'adventuring' down the river with Ajaan Mark's daughter, Lydia, and playing countless games of frisbee. We went up to the larger waterfall, Mork Fa, on several occastion and whiled away the hours playing somewhat belligerent games of frisbee beneath the refreshing rumble of the churning waterfall. In the evenings, we had spectacular bonfires, which the Forest Service rangers kindly set up for us each day. We played several rounds of Birdie on a Perch, but Melissa, Ben and I couldn't muster enough support for an epic game of capture the flag! But we relaxed by the fire well into the night, with many of us singing along to songs played on the guitar Pi Dana had brought along. On the last night, we spent a long time singing Irish folk songs, as Ajaan Mark and Pi Dana play in an Irish band together, here in Chiang Mai!! There were many exuberant rounds of 'What Shall We Do with the Drunken Sailor.....'

We were particularly excited by our meals on the retreat, as there was a seemingly endless supply of bread, Nutella and peanut butter!(I haven't had bread since leaving the US and have been craving it on a near daily basis!) We even had Thai style Oreos, that taste mildly of coffee, which we naturally smothered in PB and Nutella!

On our final morning, we went for a great hike through the jungle, led by a local guide from the Park Service. He showed us hot the villagers harvest bamboo sustainably for their firewood and how they gather mealworms from within the bamboo's trunk. We saw wild mulberry trees and tried sour berries which make you think that water tastes really sweet. I almost fell over in shock upon seeing a spider, vivid yellow and as big as the palm of my hand. We learned about the 'hell tree,' which adulterous men in Buddhist villages are sometimes forced to climb. We also inspected the deep grooves of a gnarled up tree, whence the poison of darts originates.

By the end of the weekend, we were loathe to leave, but excited to know that we'll be living in such wilderness in only three more weeks! Until then, I just need to work out how to speak Thai (not an easy task, I swear!)