bus ride – Page 2 – Growing With Leala

On my last full day in Chiang Mai, Thailand I take it easy. I visit a very clean laundromat down the street to get some laundry done. Then I mostly chill out in my room catching up on shows and people back home.

The next day I have a bus reservation to go to Pai – a hippie-like city a couple hours north of Chiang Mai. It isn’t popular for regular tourists visiting Thailand but is very popular with backpackers for its chill atmosphere. There are waterfalls and canyons to hike so being intrigued I decide to spend a couple days there.

Before my bus trip I get up early to get some coffee and finally try the doughnuts around the block that seem to be so popular at MOOH. I get the enthusiasm. I am not a huge doughnut fan but these are really good.

Black charcoal banana cream , lemon almond crumble

I gather my things at the hotel and take an uber to the bus station. After I check in at the bus company I get a hand written boarding pass of sorts and find my van. My bag is placed on top and I am told my assigned seat is in the very back. Unfortunately I am unable to choose my seat ahead of time online so the back is randomly assigned. I dread the ride. I don’t think I have motion sickness medicine on me. This ride will not be fun.

Turns out I am correct. The ride is horribly curvy. I am so nauseous. We stop half way for a bathroom break and I find a soda that might settle my stomach for the rest of the ride.

Our stop and a bus accident we witness on the way

We finally arrive in Pai and it is pouring raining. More prepared backpackers have a special rain cover for their backpack. I only have my rain jacket and poncho to use. But because it is raining too hard and I need my maps.me on my phone to navigate I wait for the rain to die down before heading out. The small bus area is packed and there is only a little overhang to cover all of us who have just arrived. But somehow we all shove under the area. There are taxis but my lodging is too close that I can’t justify the ride. I assume others have the same idea. Once the rain subsides I start my walk down to my lodging which is a bit of a splurge that I gave myself with credit card points.

I arrive at my villa and it is adorable. I have a private villa and it is very homey.

Pai Village Boutique Resort

After I settle in I head out because it is the night of the walking streets in town. It is still early but I am not one for late nights so I head down there.

I buy a couple food items and browse a bit at items for sale. What I really want to do is chill with a cocktail. The first place I find is a very quiet wine bar.

I find a seat outside and have a glass of wine. The bar tender is very friendly and the music isn’t bad. But because it is so quiet I decide to only have the one drink and walk around some more. I eventually walk down to this waterfront restaurant closer to my hotel. It is still very quiet but I decide to get a cocktail here as well before I head in for the night.

After my cocktail I head back. As I head back I hear the street music get louder. A young Aussie working one of the clubs tries to entice me to come in. He is either humoring me or he has no idea how old I really am. Anyway, it isn’t happening tonight. Bed early!!!

During my visit to Turkey I wanted the chance to visit a couple different regions. After some research I decided on the beach town of Alaçatı.

Most trains are non-existent in Turkey so to get around you need a plane or car. In my case I flew from Istanbul to Izmir. From the Izmir airport there is a regional bus system called Havas to get you to nearby cities. The bus itself isn’t too bad but my problem is that it wasn’t clear where to catch the bus at the airport. I wasted about an hour trying to locate where to catch the bus. After following signs that said shuttle down to a sleepy lot I decided to go back up and look again for my bus after waiting 30 minutes or so with no sign of my bus. I finally see the signs for Havas. I am still not sure why I did not see them the first time.

I get on the bus to Cesme. It stops first in Alaçatı, my intended destination.

From research before hand, Alaçatı doesn’t look too large. Not knowing where the bus will drop me off I wing it. The bus “station” is about 1.5 miles from my hotel. It is hot and my bags are heavy but I decide to walk. I can’t justify such a short cab ride, besides I am not sure there is a cab around.

I make it to my hotel but it is before check in and my room is not yet ready. I drop off my bags and wander around.

This town reminds of a cross between Greece, south beach Miami and Southern Italy. It is very cute. During the day it has an island feel where you can shop the day away but at night the streets are packed and music is loud.

After a little while I am finally able to check into my hotel. My room is charming and named after an author.

After settling in I go out to the city to explore. During my stay I never made it to the beach and I didn’t do any sightseeing. This part of my traveling was all about traveling locally. I enjoyed my stay in Alaçatı but if I had companions I might have tried one of the nightclubs. I just am not the type to go clubbing alone.

But I did dine at some of the cute restaurants.