I want to go off the beaten path! There are too many tourists! We can figure it out there!

In Bangkok, I heard about a small mountain village Chiang Dao, close to Chiang Mai (our next stop). After a few weeks of noise and people, mountain scenery and nights under the stars sounded ideal. There wasn’t much information online. There were a couple of guesthouses on Booking, information on the bus there, and rave reviews of the scenery.

Andrew is the planner of the two of us. He is skilled at finding accommodation and coordinating logistics. With Chiang Dao, he was going to be the passenger princess - I had it figured out! I was a little stressed, as the main mode of transport seemed to be scooters, which neither of us can drive. But reviews said that the guesthouses could coordinate transport. The guesthouse I wanted to book was full, but we found a very inexpensive option with beautiful pictures of the mountain, rice fields, and stars.

We got to the guesthouse and realized it was truly in a remote area of a pretty remote village. Only a handful of restaurants in walking distance, and far from a temple we wanted to visit (the original guesthouse I wanted to stay at was near the temple and had a restaurant next door). This difference ended up being pretty difficult. I used google translate to try to book a driver - our host seemed mystified that we wouldn’t just rent a scooter. We finally got a driver for a very expensive ride to the temple built into a mountain (which ended up being a favorite of both of ours). We wanted to go to a restaurant after as it was getting dark, but couldn’t communicate with our driver. He dropped us off back at the guesthouse hungry. We realized the nearest restaurant was closed and that the one a 15 minute walk away had some obstacles - street dogs. Andrew is pretty scared of street dogs (Andrew’s note: ask me about Campos do Jordao in Brazil). I thought he was overly worried, but we had encountered two in southern Thailand that also had me scared.

We ended up going to a nearby stall and getting instant noodles. I felt terrible that I had dragged Andrew to a place with no food and expensive drivers. Our relaxing nature vacation had become stressful, and my first real time at the helm was a colossal failure. I beat myself up that evening- why didn’t I do more research into food options, why did I just assume we could show up with no motorcycle? I was comforted by the stunning view (and Andrew’s kindness and understanding). I booked another expensive driver for our day hike the next day and tried to enjoy the stars.

In the morning, I had the treat of many birds in the rice fields. Who needs comfort when you have Asian Openbills, Red-Wattled Lapwings, Greater Coucals, and more chattering in the morning? No breakfast for us - again, no built in restaurant at this homestay. Hungry, our driver took us up the beautiful mountain across the rice fields. There was a small mountain village where we got coffee and a banana, egg, and cheese roti - a surprisingly delicious combination.

After gazing at the stunning view with Thai tourists (a nice change from the loud Europeans that populated most of the places in the South), we set off on a short hike. Alltrails informed us that there were some aggressive street dogs towards the end of the trail we decided to cut it short. The hike was stunning, surrounded by the mountains, beautiful fields and wildflowers, and quiet moments in the forest (we didn’t see anyone else, and I doubt that more than a few people a week do this hike).

The quiet was broken when nearly stepped on a bright green snake and shrieked. Andrew asked me if I wanted to go back. I really did. But I also thought that there might be snakes on the way back. Turns out nature has animals! This is not a theme park! I briefly regretted (a tiny bit) getting into hiking. Maybe I should go back to museums.

We pushed on, my eyes glued to the ground, and eventually left the forest and came to a field. With a grave. That seemed fresh. As well as a small hut. That seemed occupied. As this immediately followed the snake, I knew that this was the place where I’d die. Sorry Mom. We both pretended to be ok with what was going on, passing some shoes and a purse. No one was in the two huts we saw. We continued hiking, and I saw another snake. I was very over it at this point and we hurried back to the village.

Following the hike, I looked up both snakes - not venomous, and I know that snakes are generally not aggressive. Still, I continued to feel bad for bringing Andrew to this beautiful but very not relaxing place. The restaurant we planned to stop at was either not there, or just beyond some street dogs. Either way, we went down with our driver and had the rest of our instant noodles.

By that evening, I stopped beating myself up. We had learned some good lessons for our future travel, and I trusted that Andrew didn’t hate me. Relaxing in front of the rice fields watching the birds, I finally felt glad to be there. Chiang Dao is now very present in my memory, even several weeks on. Despite the difficulty, it felt truly adventurous and gave me a deep appreciation for Andrew and me as a travel team. Next time, we’ll stay in a guesthouse with food!