Have you ever traveled with a stranger? I am someone who has never even thought about traveling with someone I haven't met before. I don't know if our travel chemistry would be fun, if he would be uncomfortable with me, I think about all kinds of worries. But if you don't try, how will you know? Right? : )

The journey began when a senior from the Faculty of Pharmacy invited me to visit Chiang Mai during the rainy season. "The north is incredibly beautiful during the rainy season," they said, "I still can't get over my trip to Mae Hong Son last time." Without hesitation, I agreed to join them.

"Oh, Fah is bringing her boyfriend along."

"Well, what now? This is awkward. We can't do anything about it except invite more friends. The other group doesn't know who Fah is bringing, and we don't know who invited Fah. This is a confusing trip. Fah ended up with two more friends, a friend and a friend of a friend."

Trust me, whatever happens, it's always for the best.

The journey began with a train ride, as usual. This time, I got to sleep in a Blue Train compartment, which was a dream come true. However, I forgot to take a picture. For this trip, we opted for a car due to the fact that there were five of us. Riding motorbikes up the mountain would have been too much. Our first destination was Doi Inthanon.

On the way, I opened my phone to find a nice coffee shop to take some photos. I found Young Folk, a cool coffee shop in Chom Thong district. The shop is very stylishly decorated, and so is the barista. >///< ~ #handsomebaristarecommendation

The coffee is delicious, truly delicious, not exaggerating. Plus, it's not expensive either.

After enjoying coffee together, we couldn't stop chatting. The group quickly became close, transforming the trip from a gathering of strangers into a serendipitous experience. It turned out that many of us had unexpected connections, either coming from the same hometown or being friends of friends. The world truly felt small and interconnected.

The distance between Chom Thong and Ban Mae Klang Luang is not far, so we stopped to use the restroom and take photos at Ban Mae Klang Luang first. In fact, we wanted to visit Pha Dok Siew Waterfall, but it seems that time is not on our side.

" Have you ever been to Doi Inthanon?"
" Hmm. "

"Let's go!"

The driver took us to Doi Inthanon to pay respects to the pagoda. Wow, there's fog in November? And it's thick fog too.

Believe it or not, the temperature on Doi Inthanon was only 17 degrees Celsius when I visited. The weather was fantastic, but the fog was extremely thick. In fact, it was so thick that I couldn't see anything.

After taking photos at the top, it was time to head to Ban Pa Bong Piang. We had arranged for a car to take us to the rice terraces at 4 pm at Mae Pan Waterfall. If you don't have a 4WD vehicle, it's best to rent one from a local villager. It's more convenient and your car won't break down.

The day we went to Ban Chipo, it was full, so we ended up sleeping at another place belonging to Brother Na, which was the only house with electricity. [Almost screamed] At least we could charge our camera and phone batteries.

My brother has a guitar that he can lend us to play. :)

We wandered around, and someone led us down into a rice paddy that was on a hill. We walked and walked, and then we couldn't find our way out. The path was slippery, and my friends were afraid of rolling over the villagers' rice plants. So they told me to take off my shoes and walk. When Brother Na saw that we were unlikely to get out of the rice field, he rushed over and led us up the normal path. Haha, I felt so guilty. We walked along the ridge of the paddy that wasn't a paddy. I really admire the hill people for being able to grow rice like this. // I bow down.

Upon my return, my sister had already prepared dinner. The canned fish chili paste was delicious.

That night, we sat around talking, listening to music, and drinking beer. We were disappointed not to see any stars. We shared stories about our hometowns, with the city dwellers and Chiang Rai residents outnumbered by the Maha Sarakham natives (3 to 2). Eventually, we got tired of talking and ended the night by playing with fireworks and taking pictures. It was amazing!

The next morning, I intended to watch the sunrise, but unfortunately, I couldn't see the sun at all. I was very disappointed. In the end, I just took a walk around the area and then had breakfast before returning to Chiang Mai.

Before we went down, we saw tourists who had rented a car to come up here. So we asked them to take a picture of us with the yellow car.

I've been feeling a little down these past two days because the weather hasn't been cooperating for taking beautiful photos. But that's okay, I can always come back another time. On the bright side, I've gained a lot from this trip, including new friends, new experiences, and the realization that traveling with strangers can be a lot of fun.

Photo by .. fahpawa x P Dochado

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