Kaen Kachan national park turned out to be a lot more difficult than we expected. We woke up at 4am to be dropped off at the gate of the park, so that we could decided what to do with the day. Our first thought was to follow the simplest nature trail, but after ten minutes if wandering around looking for the actual pathway, we figured that it would be difficult to do with out a guide. So that left us with the view point at the very top if the mountain... 15km away.
We started trudging up the hill in the already muggy atmosphere, and soon figured out we would never be able to walk it to the top. But as fortune would have it, we didn't need to. For this is when we ran into them, in their pick up trucks. These women were remarkable, all of them in their seventies and eighties, yet fit as Molly and I, and kind enough to let us sit with them on the long and bumpy journey. In fact, they took really good care if us all day, providing us breakfast, protecting us from the branches that nearly took your head off as the vehicle whipped past, and dropping us all the way back to our accommodation after the adventure.
They spoke amazing English and came from all different backgrounds, including electrical engineering and BBC presenting, they climbed every hill with us, and watched the family of monkeys walk down the road beside us. But the most extraordinary thing about these women was their kindness. A lot of Thai people have a bad reputation among tourists, but we have experienced some really generous people, willing to help out in many different ways. Small acts of kindness create a big resonance, all over our world.
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