Day 02: When the Road Becomes the Adventure. Chiang Rai Thailand

After the excitement of Day One, we were up early and ready for our first proper day on the road. By 8:30 a.m., the bikes were lined up outside the hotel and there was a quiet sense of anticipation among the group. This was the moment we had been waiting for. We were finally going to ride. Helmets went on, gloves were pulled up, jackets zipped and luggage loaded into the truck that would follow us along the way. 

Then, one by one, the engines came to life. Eight motorbikes: AB, our ride captain and me on a Royal Enfield Himalayan 450cc, Ajith rode with Krishni, Tarique with Khairy, Adrian, Revatha, Roshan, and Dilip, all on Honda CB500Xs and Shehan on his Suzuki V-Strom 650, rolled out of the hotel. Behind us came the support team, with Asela and Nishantha in the self-drive SUV and Vishnu in the van carrying our luggage. With engines humming, helmets secured and everyone finally accounted for, we rolled out of Chiang Mai and onto the road north.

After all the changes of plan that had brought us to Thailand, it felt good to finally be on the road.

As a pillion, my responsibilities were considerably less complicated than those of the riders. I had no throttle to control, no brakes to operate, no gears to change and no route to navigate. My job was to hold on, enjoy the scenery, take photographs, move with the bike and trust AB, completely.

It was a very agreeable arrangement. For the moment.

We headed north along Highway 118, leaving the bustle of Chiang Mai behind and gradually entering greener countryside. The road carried us through the areas around Doi Saket and Wiang Pa Pao, with the hills becoming more prominent as we moved further into Northern Thailand.

One of the first things that impressed us was the discipline of Thai traffic. Vehicles generally moved in an orderly manner, lane discipline was good and drivers appeared far less interested in making sudden, unpredictable manoeuvres that many of us are accustomed to. Once everyone settled into the rhythm of the highway, the pace picked up. On some stretches, the motorbikes reached around 130 kilometres per hour. From the back of the Himalayan, that brought a little extra excitement. The scenery moved faster, the wind became more noticeable and I found myself holding on a little more firmly.

There was, however, one issue that soon became a recurring feature of the trip: breaks. AB appeared to believe that motorbikes were designed to travel continuously from Point A to Point B, given his initials, an almost perfect aptronym. The rest of us had a more relaxed interpretation of touring. After about an hour, we needed to stop. Not for long, necessarily. Just enough time to stretch our legs, find a coffee, check our phones, exchange a few words and remind ourselves that we were on holiday rather than participating in an endurance test.

Fortunately, Thailand seemed to have been designed with our particular group in mind. Many of the petrol stations had a 7-Eleven attached, which quickly became our unofficial support centre. Refuelling the bikes was only half the operation.

The other half involved disappearing into the air-conditioned shop in search of coffee, cold drinks, snacks and, naturally, ice cream. The selection of ice cream flavours was impressive, and we felt it was our responsibility to investigate thoroughly. After all, travel is about cultural immersion. Someone had to make the sacrifice.

One memorable stop came at Mae Chedi Mai in Wiang Pa Pao District, an area known for its natural hot springs. Soon, we were dipping our feet into the water. And when I say hot, I mean piping hot.

There was no graceful, spa-like entry into the experience. Feet went in, faces changed and a chorus of surprised reactions followed. But once we got used to the temperature, it was wonderfully soothing. After several hours on the road, the hot water provided unexpected relief for tired feet.

Eventually, we continued towards Chiang Rai and arrived at the first major highlight of the day, the extraordinary White Temple, officially known as Wat Rong Khun.

The White Temple is unlike almost any traditional Thai temple. For starters, it is not an ancient monument. Construction began in 1997, and the complex was created by Thai artist and architect Chalermchai Kositpipat as both a place of Buddhist worship and a monumental work of contemporary art.

The temple’s brilliant white exterior is decorated with thousands of tiny pieces of mirrored glass. The white represents purity, while the mirrors catch the sunlight and give the entire structure an almost otherworldly glow.

The symbolism becomes even more interesting as you approach the main building. The bridge is lined with sculpted hands reaching upwards, representing human desire, craving and attachment. In Buddhist philosophy, these desires are closely linked to suffering. Crossing the bridge symbolises moving away from worldly temptation and towards purity and enlightenment.

It is a powerful idea, although I suspect the photographers in our group were mainly focused on finding the best angle for the next photograph!

From the White Temple, we continued to the Blue Temple, or Wat Rong Suea Ten.

Where the White Temple dazzles with brightness, the Blue Temple creates an entirely different mood. Deep blue dominates the structure, contrasted with elaborate gold detailing and an enormous white Buddha inside. The effect is dramatic and almost theatrical, yet the interior also feels calm and contemplative.

The present temple is a modern construction built on the site of an older temple. Its design is associated with Phuttha Kabkaew, a student of Chalermchai Kositpipat, the artist behind the White Temple. The connection between the two temples is fascinating. They are very different in appearance, but both show how contemporary Thai artists continue to reinterpret traditional Buddhist architecture and symbolism.

By the time we finished exploring the temples, the day had settled into a comfortable rhythm. Asela and Nishantha, taking turns to drive the backup vehicle, continued to provide a reassuring presence behind the group, while Vishnu and AB kept the expedition moving in the right direction.

By the time we reached Chiang Rai after 206 kilometres, we were more than ready to call it a day. We checked into the Grand Vista Hotel, jumped into the pool, tried and tasted many local ‘spirits’, showered, changed and regrouped before heading out for the evening.

Getting ten of us into a Thai-style minibus was an adventure in itself. We squeezed in, somehow found enough room for everyone, sang some unprintable songs along the way and headed out for dinner at the Chiang Rai Night Bazaar.

After a good meal, plenty of conversation and the usual laughter, and not quite ready to call it a night, we opted to watch Game 3 between the All Blacks and South Africa. And the setting couldn’t have been more wonderfully random. Here we were, a bunch of Sri Lankans on a motorbike adventure in Northern Thailand, sitting in an Irish pub in Chiang Rai and watching South Africa take on New Zealand in a match being played thousands of kilometres away in Soweto. If that isn’t the definition of international travel, I’m not sure what is. Travel really does have a wonderfully strange way of bringing the world together.

And this is what happens when a bunch of like-minded souls come together, share the things they love, and turn a journey into memories that last long after the ride is over.

And so we wrapped up the day having ridden 202 kilometres, with temples, hot springs, plenty of laughs and a rugby match thrown into the mix. Not a bad day at all. But there was little time to rest on our laurels. Tomorrow, we were heading out again on another 200-kilometre loop, with Chiang Rai once again our starting point and our destination.

Check out our route here: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/4Elub9E5ptA