Chiang Dao to Mae Salong

My evening photos of Don Chiang Dao are hugely superior to my morning ones, not least because I flipped the settings to monochrome at the crucial moment. So this is last night's sunset.

A long day. Not the riding, which was short and rapid on fast roads through open valleys with green paddy fields. But I'm not feeling great which makes me grumpy. And also makes me afraid of the bike: in a standoff of wills when I'm not on form, it wins. It's too heavy for me to keep upright.

Lunch by the river in Tha Thon - a town with a big bridge, a river, boats and tourist restaurants full of expensive tasteless food. My mood hardly improves though away from the restaurants it´s full of flowers, sleepy and sweet.

Steep uphill winding to a Chinese outpost founded by the pre Mao faction who, along with Pol Pot and his captive population and Burmese refugees, the Thai government allowed to exist on its borders, turning a blind eye to opium trade, militia wars and general murder, in exchange for keeping communism at bay. It´s very high and feels like a frontier town with no centre. It's full of enormous Chinese plated cars, red Chinese lanterns, gold Chinese writing, people visiting for Chinese New Year, and Thai day trippers.

The day ends with a win for the bike as it digs its wheels in half way up a hill. I cling desperately to stop it falling over and bleat for a disappearing Ulrich to save me. . . Ignominious. . .

Our room is super cheap and buzzed by mopeds at 30 second intervals. We learn too late it's the main road to the 5am morning market.