However impossible it sounds, it seems that Thai trains are even better than the Czech (and Slovak) ones. Similar comfort and design, only they are more lively, full of small stories, atmosphere and fun. This one is also not full, which helps with the good impression for sure. Kids playing on the ground, people smoking in the corridor and all doors leading out of the train are wide open. Windows provide you with scenic views of nature. Wicked.

We set off cozy Chiang Mai several hours ago in the north of Thailand and we are on our way to the south. We are still not sure if we want to visit the capital, so far we have tickets to Autthaya, a once powerful metropolis a bit to the north of Bangkok. The Burmese destroyed it some centuries ago, fortunately not quite completely. The ride cost us about 4 euros for distance of 500 km. Train ride prices in Thailand rock! We are planning to stay there for one night and then either Bangkok (not sure if it really is worth seeing, considering that we are not much of big cities lovers) or straight to Siem Reap to visit Angkor. That’s where I am planning to celebrate my birthday.

There happened a distinct change in my mood during the last week. I reconciled myself with the fact that we will not do much hiking here, we started going on more moto trips instead, around both Chiang Rai and Chiang Mai. I stopped troubling myself with thoughts about if we are doing it properly here, if we squeeze enough experience from our travel, if we are enough here and now… and hopefully started being more here and now.

One day we also took a break from the constant compromises caused by travelling in two, from tolerance of something, that is not that enjoyable for one but undergoes it for the second one. It is not bad at all, once in a while! (An impulse for this decision was, not surprisingly, a visit to a local night market the previous evening.) It meant that there was no rational voice telling me what is and what is not possible, and I decided on an ascent to Doi Suthep, a hill with a temple on its top, just off the town. Without the unnecessary reaserch of how far it is, naturally. It was one of the nicest experiences here so far. Despite me ending up walking 19 kms in flip-flops and 35°, 16 of them uphill. I was alone after a long time, I had a chance to let fly through my head all those thoughts that tend to be sent away by communication and everyday reality, I cleaned myself up, saw two waterfalls, met a lot of locals including monks in orange, observed their customs and behaviour, got some candies and a refreshing towel for free, practiced properly the scending-descending intonation of “sabaudee chap!” and came up with two business plans. Without knowing, I chose the best day possible for this trip – it was the eve of Buddha’s birthday and people were preparing for the evening crowd of pilgrims along the road. As in Chiang Mai, people celebrate his birthday by pilgrimage to the temple on Doi Suthep. So there were many stalls with food and drinks, podiums with music and another stalls with sculptures of Buddha and some old monks. The higher I got, the nicer people were, wawing at me, showing thumbs up, giving me free stuff and supporting me in general. I wasn’t the only pilgrim, of course, despite the main wave was expected later in the day, bud I was the only falang there, therefore exotic and distinct. And, of course, the most sweaty one. It seems that the Asians don’t sweat at all. Not fair!

After some walking, I checked my GPS and realized I was only in the first third of the way while my strenght was leaving me rapidly. So I clenched my teeth and decided that I will make it there if it was to last till midnight. And then it suddenly started going pretty well and most of the nice things described above happened after that. Around and in my mind, too. I met a monk later, he was already going back down from the hill. “Just 5 more kilometers,” he said positively. Not sure if he really wanted to cheer me up or he was making fun of me – monks are not supposed to be mean, right? But it worked. I remembered Camino, where sometimes 10 km sounded like “just”, as you knew that it only meant 2 more hours walking. Here it was even only one!

Up in the temple, when I finally made it there (the golden parasols are really pretty, whatever they are for), I nearly felt like if I belonged there little bit. But only two things I know to do in a buddhist temple are to get off one’s shoes and keep one’s head lower than the ones of Buddha and monks (which is sometimes very difficult, some of the novices being just 8 years old or so). So I did that, enjoyed the view of the town, asked a group of young monks if I could make a picture of them – they started posing and rearanging themselves, so cute! – hobbled down all 300 stairs back under the temple, got in a tuk-tuk and went back to my guesthouse.

The thought of Camino brought me to one more idea; when I came back from there, Jan Florian and Radim Babak asked me if it was up to my expectations. I had to answer no. One influence surely was that I was freshly in love and a part of me wanted to be somewhere else, despite I had longed for such a long time to be right where I was walking. But maybe there was yet one more thing: I had then just left my hectic life in London after two years. There, at the end, I was taking 16hour shifts very often, several days in a row every week, and I was even able to enjoy it. And a break between London and Saint-Jean-Piet de Port were 3 weeks of a marathon meeting my friends and family, followed by 5 weeks of walking. Thqt might have not been enough to shake off my hyperactivity and to breath out, get used to the new rythm. So I didn’t.

I hope that the feelings I have been experiencing mean that I am getting there now.