Day Six: Chiang Mai (take two)

Spent the last three days trekking!! so, it turns out im not fit at all!
On the first day we went swimming in a waterfall, which was quite surreal. (pics to be posted soon). After lunch we walked for 2.5 hours (generally uphill in the sweltering heat of the jungle) and arrived at a local village and spent the evening showering (under a bamboo shoot sticking out of the mountain) and playing brainteasers. Day two was more tough, 3.5 hours of trekking but we were treated to an elephant ride which was much more scary than it sounds! We spent the night in a different village and came back today via bamboo raft which, again, wasn't as smooth as it sounds - but all the more fun.
I should hurry up- the group is celebrating a belated birthday in town with a trip to a 'local restaurant', the night bazaar (it was just too much fun the first time) and hopefully a bar or two!
Tommorrow is scheduled to be more low-key with a visit to the biggest temple in the area and the highest mountain with (so they say) fantastic views of the city, all before we board our night train back to bangkok.
Ill try uploading some pictures from there,
i realise thats more entertaining than a diary eintrag:)
until the - kaja xx

Day three: Chiang Mai

me in my cooking outfit :)
we all made pad thai (thai noodles with tofu and chicken), spicy and sour soup with prawns, red/green thai curry and sticky rice with mango :) YUM!

the night train wasn't bad at all, until it started going backwards at 5am. turns out there is only one track form bangkok to chiang mai and we mustve run into someone else!
running out of time, its taking forever to upload the few pictures that I have - so you better appreciate them!
apparently this place does everything: internet, phone calls, printing, indian and thai food, tips for free etc.
must go catch up with the group - bis bald!
Kaja xx

Day One: Bangkok

All's well that starts well... right?
Judging by the half full, 10 and a half hour flight from Duesseldorf to Bangkok, things will be just fine!! I was able to zock three seats for myself and sleep for the majority of the trip and thus avoid any form of jetlag whatsoever! Quite the smooth beginning, I must say. And, although I ate like it was my last supper on the plane, I have indulged in red curry and pad thai since my arrival (needless to say, the curry necessitated a second plate of rice!), and have vowed to eat a different dish for every meal. We'll see how that works out!
I got to my hotel and met my roommate Liz and we set out to explore the area around the hotel before meeting the rest of the group for a briefing. Turns out all 11 of us are really young (between 18 and 23) and judging by dinner and drinks last night, theres no way it will be a boring trip.
Today is our last day in Bangkok (for now) - we hop on an overnight train to Chiang Mai this evening. Sharing the sleeper carriges with the locals should also be quite a sight; we were warned to not make use of the squat-down toilets while the train is still at the station!!
In Chiang Mai, trekking, elephant riding, and waterfall swimming awaits! Hopefully, i'll be able to squeeze in a cooking course (courtesy of my mom) and a massage (theyre around 2 euros!).
Thats about it for now, its just past 09:00 and about 30 degrees (C) outside! Oh, last night there was a tropical thunderstorm, pretty cool stuff!! It shocked the locals though, rainy season ended months ago - I guess this is what they call global warming!
Hope you all are well and safe, I sure am :)
Kaja xx

Prologue

So...
The plan is to go round the world in 90 days(ish) - travel (obv), meet new people, see old ones and recharge. Hopefully I can use this to keep you guys updated with anecdotes, photos and anything else I feel is worthy of sharing. And ofcourse, keep me posted on your life back home (or wherever you may be).
Feel free to leave messages, updates, advice or anything of the like - it will be most appreciated :)
Take care,
Kaja xx