Mae Ya waterfalls

The Mae Ya Waterfalls just up the road from us are the biggest waterfalls in Thailand.
A few days ago we found the time to visit them.
At this time of the year (the end of the dry season), there wasn't a huge volume of water, but the many levels the water travelled down to reach the pools at the bottom of the falls made them stunningly beautiful. Throw in the dappled light from the surrounding trees and the odd bird song that combined with the falling water, and it made for a pretty magical experience.

 

Tomorrow we head for Canada. I have been a long time away, and am looking forward to being back in the garden there.

 

High in the mountains

We just returned from a short trip to Nepal. While wandering the dusty potholed streets lined with buildings that could either be in the midst of construction or falling down from old age (it's hard to tell often),in Kathmandu, it was sometimes hard to remember we were in the middle of a city. It seemed like every vacant lot was being used to grow a crop of something. The effect was quite charming, not to mention how much sense it made to grow food where the people lived.

 

 

Even the roof tops had gardens on them.

 

It was nice to think that the majority of the food for sale on the streets was locally grown.

I especially liked the bicycle vendors moving around the city selling their wares.

 

I could have spent hours poking around the small shops selling their home made low tech tools for the kitchen or garden.

 

The tea and spice shops were especially interesting with their exotic aromas.

 

Our time there was far too short this time, but we'll be back.

 

Mountain High

A few days ago we went up to Sooks village in the mountains.
After navigating the hairpin bends and seemingly vertical climb, we reached Sooks village where the air was noticeably cooler and fresher.

The first order of the day was to greet family and friends.

Sooks dad with his grandchild.

Sooks mum working on her needle work.

 

A walk through the village produced some great pics of flowers growing along the side of the road and peaking over the garden fence.

 



 

Then it was time to do some serious work out in the fields, accompanied by the songs of birds and the hoots of monkeys that lived in the jungle not 50 metres from where we toiled.

The coffee plants had just finished flowering and the new coffee beans were starting to form.

 

The young 2 year old plants needed to have the young beans stripped off the plant, so they would have another year to grow stronger before bearing a crop.

So that was our job for the day. We spent a pleasant few hours working amongst the young coffee plants.

There was alot more growing on the land. In between the coffee plants there were peaches starting to form on the tree.
Parsley ready to plant in the fields.

 The hydrangea bushes that are part of the royal project up here were flowering.
Between all this were the ubiquitous bananas.

A few jack fruit trees laden with their fruits.

Also an avocado just a few months off harvest.

We weren't the only ones working in the fields.
Sooks onion crop is coming along well.

 

We admired the new fish pond that had been filled with baby cat fish. These will be ready to eat in about 5 months



On the drive back to the village there were some great views down the valley.

After a hearty lunch we checked on the Still where rice whiskey was being distilled.

Of course we had to sample it.

I think it is a acquired taste.

Heading back to the lowlands we passed the road building crew. The road up to Sooks village is made of concrete. They've been working on this road for a few years now. Only a few more kilometres to go.

 

Decorating with flowers

When we arrived in our newly rented house with our tired old furniture I knew something had to be done.
So I spent a few days with paint and transformed a table, chairs and shelving unit.

Of course then I had to take an emergency trip down to the flower market to get some cut flowers to fill the vases.