Day Seven was Shehan’s birthday, and his breakfast omelette came with a candle stuck in it. Nothing says “Happy Birthday” quite like a hot omelette with a candle wobbling in the middle! And then, just to make the celebration even more memorable, he had 162 kilometres of mountain roads ahead of him in heavy rain. I’m sure that was exactly how he had imagined spending his birthday.
We leave Mae Hong Son at around 9.45 a.m., and the morning is properly wet. I opt to ride in the SUV with Khairy, Asela and Nishantha, just to keep dry and to help plan a surprise birthday party for Shehan. The boys are all zipped into their rain gear, looking more like a travelling motorbike raincoat convention than a group of holidaymakers. Tarique, in particular, is impossible to miss. In his bright red and white raincoat, he looks like a strawberry on two wheels.
The previous day had given the riders the full mountain-road experience on the famous Pai to Mae Hong Son stretch, with its seemingly endless 4000+ bends and “twisties”.
Our ride takes us south along Route 108 towards Khun Yuam, then through Mae La Noi and on to Mae Sariang. Today the road is still wonderfully scenic and twisty, but the riding feels a little more relaxed as we work our way south.
Our first important stop is the Thai-Japan Friendship Memorial Hall in Khun Yuam, which gives the day a completely different dimension. The memorial tells the story of the Japanese presence in the area during the Second World War, when Japanese forces moved through northern Thailand and used the region as part of their Burma campaign. The museum documents that period and the impact it had on the local communities, with photographs, military artefacts and information about the Japanese occupation and their movements through the area.
It is one of those stops that makes you pause and remember that these beautiful mountain roads have a history that goes far beyond tourism and motorbikes. Today we are travelling through them, taking photographs and enjoying the scenery. Eight decades ago, these same mountains were part of a very different and much more difficult story.
By the time we leave Khun Yuam, the rain has finally given up. And just like that, the whole landscape seems to change. The roads are wet and shining, the mountains are wonderfully green and the clouds hang low over the hills. With the rain behind us, I opt to get back on the pillion with AB as we settle back into the rhythm of the road, winding through Mae La Noi and towards Mae Sariang.
Lunch was at Maela Food and Coffee, a lovely open-sided wayside restaurant perched above a gorge. The views were spectacular, but what surprised me even more was the food. It was genuinely delicious and a wonderful reminder that sometimes the smallest, most unassuming places can serve up the most satisfying meals. After the morning’s ride, we were more than ready for a break. We ate, chatted, stretched out and generally made ourselves comfortable. With the mountains, fresh air and spectacular views spread out in front of us, we simply relaxed and enjoyed the moment. It was one of those stops where everything seemed just right.
We eventually arrive at the Sariang River House Resort, our home for the night. After several hours on the road, and 162 kms later, the first priority is not sightseeing, photography or even food. It is getting out of riding clothes.
After a quick change of clothes at the resort, some of us headed out to see Wat Chong Sung, a lovely old temple tucked away in the heart of Mae Sariang. Built in 1838, it was originally a temple of Shan Buddhism and was badly damaged when a huge fire swept through the town in 1888. The local people rallied together, donated money and rebuilt it, with the work completed in 1896. What caught my attention were the three old Mon-style chedis, including one with a distinctive seven-tiered top inspired by the Shwedagon style. The temple was wonderfully shady and peaceful, and wandering around it was a lovely way to get a little glimpse of Mae Sariang’s Shan heritage.
But we don’t linger too long. We have a birthday to celebrate. And this is where the day takes a very definite turn.
We head to Swasdee Café & Bar, where Shehan’s birthday celebration has been organised by Nishantha’s brother-in-law, Lasantha. And what a party he has put together! Suddenly we are surrounded by food, drinks, music and a group of people who seem to have completely forgotten that we have another day’s riding ahead of us. The tables are filled, the drinks start flowing and before long the birthday celebration has turned into a proper party. There was eating. There was drinking. There was loud music. And there was Dilip on top of a table!
And then came the dancing. Quite a lot of it, actually. Suddenly, all those aches and pains; bad knees, dodgy hips, sciatica, headaches and mysterious little complaints that had been discussed during the trip seemed to disappear completely. Nobody was limping anymore. Nobody needed a rest. The same people who had spent the day talking about rain, bends and sore muscles were now dancing as though we had discovered the fountain of youth in Mae Sariang. Shehan, of course, was the man of the hour, and it was impossible not to get caught up in the celebration. Lasantha, with a little coaxing from Nishantha, deserved enormous credit for putting it all together. It feels like someone has decided that if we are going to celebrate, we might as well do it properly. And we did.
By the end of the evening, Day Seven has turned out to be much more than another day on the Mae Hong Son route. We have travelled through rain and mountains, stopped to learn about a difficult chapter of history, explored a little of Mae Sariang’s Shan heritage and then finished the day exactly as a birthday should be finished: surrounded by good food, good company, plenty of laughter and a dance floor, that spilled out into the street, that has seen far too much action.
Tomorrow, the helmets go back on for our last day of riding. But tonight, Shehan got the birthday celebration he deserves.
Sounds like a fun day
It really was! Even our rest days somehow turned into fun experiences with this group!
What a day it was….
That is was!
It was a wet n wild day and night !
It sure was!