Christmas Pai

We have been lazily enjoying the holidays in northern Thailand in a town called Pai (pie). During a shopping expedition to Carrefour in Chiang Mai Jessica made sure to pick out a two foot tall plastic tree, lights and decorations so we would be properly outfitted for Christmas. We set it up in our gorgeous room in the hills above the town. Combined with the chilly nights it felt almost like we were back in New England.

We have been loving the atmosphere here. Though it is now heavily touristed it's still a charming town in a valley surrounded by towers of amber and gold tree-covered mountains. On Christmas eve there was a full moon. It stunningly illuminated our walk down the hill into town.

Christmas morning we awoke to a room (and town) without power! We opened our stockings (smartwool socks) and had our Weetbix breakfast on the porch. Though the sun shone on the verdant greenery of our resort, it was a deceptively cold morning and we stayed wrapped in blankets. In what Jessica refers to as "a Christmas miracle" the power came back on and we started the festivities.

What I mean by that is Jessica started the festivities. First she turned on her extraordinarily large collection of Christmas music. Then she made a "Christmas buffet of Hors D'oeuvres" which consisted of crackers, nori flavoured tuna, pickles, wholegrain mustard and cheddar cheese. This was followed by blood orange mimosas. She set a blanket on the floor in front of the tree and we tore into our gifts.

Since then we have been trying to decide what to do and where to go. Our visas expire on the fourth so we need to be in Laos by then but we are completely unmotivated to move on. Yesterday we moved to a cheaper bungalow at a sweet little place called Farmer Home. Our room feels like a tree house and when we step out the door we are greeted with a spectacular view of rice paddys, mountains and Wat Mae Yen. Slowly we are plotting our course.
Until then...