Today we headed off into the countryside about 40 minutes north of Chiang Mai. Our first stop was the Elephant Poo Poo Paper Park (yes indeed, elephant poo)! It's an eco-friendly, outdoor museum park focused on explaining the unique steps involved in making their world famous paper products from elephant poop fibre (they actually export to Canadian craft stores). Elephants produce 100kgs of poop fibre a day so it's a readily available, eco-friendly alternative resource for paper making instead of trees.
Our amazing guide explained the different steps involved in sanitizing the poop so it can be made into beautiful paper sheets . From the washing, to boiling (4 hours), to mixing & draining. We got some hands on experience by taking a pulp ball and smooshing it around in the tub of water to create a flat layer over a screen. The screen is then drained & put out in sun to dry. As their website proclaims it's poo-satively loads of fun!
We then headed off to the nearby Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden. A tram ferried us through the gardens & up the steep hillside. Since it's the end of the dry season the gardens were not in bloom but they had 8 beautiful glasshouse complexes (rainforest, arid, lilies & lotuses, etc). Really well presented. The Natural History Museum was an interesting side bonus.
Last stop for the day was the Mae Sa Waterfall, a series of 10 waterfalls. Quite an climb up the steps to each waterfall but some scenic spots for our picnic lunch (not as spectacular as the waterfall in Laos though). A refreshing dip to cool off (very carefully over the slippery rocks) and a few minutes under the cascading falls. Then we trekked back down to the van for the ride back to the hotel.
Ice cream, a dip in the pool then a crazy ride with 4 people in the 2 person tuk tuk (keep your wings tucked in Vic) for supper in town at the Whole Earth Restaurant (Thai/Indian). Fantastic meal in a beautiful setting.
It actually rained tonight! First rain we've seen in the 2 weeks we've been here.