DOI PHA HOM POK, CHIANG MAI 2006 Part 3

THIS STORY CONTINUES FROM PART 2 - INDEX OF THIS SERIES ARE HERE

**THE KIW LOM CAMPING SITE**

It took no more than half an hour until the pick-up truck reached the 'KIW LOM (in Thai - กิ่วลม)' camping site. The camping site was very quiet but traces of visitors were still stained everywhere. Kiw Lom camping site was the highest point in this mountain that the National Park of Thailand allow visitors to spend their night(s). The driver told us that visitors could camp at the mountain top in the past, but as the increasing of number of visitors and the mountain-top safety procedures, Kiw lom was the highest place to camp for years.

'I'll park here,' the driver said, in a very fluent central Thai language, then pointed his hand left and right. 'there are only a few groups of people today, you may select your best camping area and then go rent some tents at the national park office out there' His hand stopped on a large half wooden building on the one end of the camping site.

'You've a lot of experiences here. Where do you recommend?' Far asked the driver.

'Well... normally, people will camp near bathroom or water supply. However, some groups may think otherwise 'cause there will be some disturbance when others come and use the facility.'

'Oh, that's a very g'd point! Let's go round d' table. Jeab, what d' you think?' Ple asked, in a conference-like style.

The company agreed to camp a little far from bathroom but near the water supply in the matter of facts that there are only a few groups of people on the camping site, so, the water supply won't be too crowded, including to facilitate cooking and washing. When Jane and Jeab was helping each other setting up his newly brought tent, which he carried along the way from Bangkok, the other four went to the office of national park, which located just 300 metres away, to rent tents and gears.

'Jeab, The official will help us setting up tents' Far said to Jeab when we arrived back at the site. She smiling at her limit, since she successfully persuaded officials to help. But Jane finished the setting up of his tent. 'I also rent pillows, look!' she hit poor Jeab with 2 pillows in her hand (-*-).

The tent was set up very quickly, the officials had been very skillful. In half an hour, we had 3 rented tents, plus 1 tent of Jane, standing in the shade of pine trees, protected from sunlight.

**THE SUNSET @ THE CAMPING SITE**

It was almost half past two in the afternoon when we finished our lunch. The air was cool and windy. Cooking in the mountain proved more difficult than in the lower ground, lower boiling point of water made things cooked harder. We had a brasier we rented, as our main heat source, and a small camping gas stove as secondary heat source. The cooking gears we brought along from Bangkok proved its cost very quickly, as well as the drinking water. The water from the supply, didn't good enough for cooking nor drinking, was hard.

'HEY!!! HEY!!!' One woman voice rose when we were enjoy our lunch. A woman from the nearby tent walked towards our group 'Can you please lower your voice??? We come here to stay away from voices!!!' She came there with a man who was now sitting near his tent. She turned away after sending her commanding voice.

'I don't think we use too much noise' Ple said quietly

'she may be mad?' I added 'However, let's stay quiet for a while. Look, they've a cleaver on that stump \(~_~")\ /("~_~)/'

After finishing everything, including washing up all gears, the company sat back, planing things to be done that day and the next. Only one and a half hour to stroll around and to rest, then the cooking for dinner was going to be started, we couldn't do things much in the dark, of course!! The driver was gone, he went down because he was going to drive another group of tourist on the next day, he's running a good business, indeed!! (even he did complain a bit about getting empty-truck downhill) We all hurry up to shooting photos around the camping site. The nearby couple was moved their tent away up the hill ^_^

It was almost at the sunset when we started dinner. The sky is red, as red as it could be, and did not provided us with warmth anymore. Things which are shined with red light, were red. Temperature was dropping and dropping and we was starting to realise how cold we will have that night. The sunset was remarkable, we took many pictures with her before she hid away behind the mountain.

THIS STORY CONTINUES IN THE NEXT PART