Scooting around (and falling over) in Pai, Thailand (still)

I loved Pai because it's a small hippie town (yoga and meditation are big here) however, it does take an age to get to as it's up high in the mountains and the roads have made at least one person on every tourist bus vomit...

Every direction you turn in the backdrop are those hills and it's stunning. I'd heard of a couple of party hostels to stay in but I wanted a few good nights sleep so I chose to stay in a little bungalow by myself in a place called Mountain View, they are so laid back they don't even take bookings which is pretty rare in SE Asia these days! The bungalow was adorably simple - a double mattress on the floor with a mosquito net hanging from the ceiling and a toilet and shower that was essentially outside with a couple of slabs of wood and corrugated iron for walls.

This is the place I'd heard that hiring a scooter/moped was essential for getting around and seeing some of the beautiful scenery and waterfalls surrounding the town. It's also the place where the most bike accidents happen to Westerners... So I was a little hesitant as I walked up to the bike hire as I'd never ridden one before and I just heard my sister's voice in my head ('Whatever you do, DON'T ride a scooter out there!') and my concerns grew when the woman behind the counter asked if I'd ridden before 'No..', I replied. She looked at me as if that was the wrong answer so I quickly changed it to a 'I mean, I have but not for years..'. Her response was 'You can hire them without a motorbike license but there are police out today and they can fine you a lot of money if they catch you and they are checking tourists especially...'. I swear, if I hadn't had watched The Secret Life of Walter Mitty (Ben Stiller and Kristen Wiig, great film) the night before, I probably would have walked away at that point BUT I DID watch it and I was totally inspired with a renewed sense of wanderlust and risk-taking courage sooo I went for it. It was a few quid to hire for 24 hours. 'Would you like insurance incase of accidents?' the woman asked. YES.

I was given a baby pink moped with girly stickers on the side and a bright pink helmet. As the man handed it over on what was the busiest street in Pai (so still not VERY busy, a couple of congested vehicles but not ideal) I asked him to 'remind' me how to ride. He showed me how to start and brake but read my face and saw how little confidence I had.

'I'll show you,' he said and jumped on the bike waiting for me to get on the back.

Now, you should know I have had an innate distrust of ALL strangers (who aren't travellers) on the trip to this point in attempt to stay safe which has been working to some extent but it is also a little restricting.

In the spilt second of decision making, I knew it was a big risk to jump on the back of the bike (anything could happen right?) but I went with my gut and decided I would NEVER be able to get the bike going without a little help. What would Walter Mitty do? (In the second half of the film, definitely not at the beginning)

I got on the bike. (Sorry Jess, sorry Beth, sorry Mum, I had to do it.) We drove to a dirt track and he waited for 15 minutes while I grew more confident.

I'd like to say that he set me up so I was perfect for the 2 days I kept the bike but it was about half an hour later when I was leaving the town, I tried to go up a small rocky slope to get to a pool I'd heard about. That's when I found out how much a moped weighed, and if you've never been under one before let me tell you, they are HEAVY!! Basically, it fell on me quite slowly and quite spectacularly scraping and bruising the right half of my body and knees and legs. It was a bit painful but more embarrassing than anything else as, of course, about 5 people of scooters were riding up the hill (with excellent balance) behind me. One of them stopped immediately and helped me pick up my bike and even rode it to the top of the hill and called someone at the pool to get some antiseptic and plasters. She was incredibly sweet and I warmed to her straight away. Isadora and her newlywed husband Nick, ended up being my buddies for my time in Pai. They are the cutest couple and were genuinely lovely people with great chat - up until this point (excluding everyone I met on my Chiang Mai trek, who I had such a great time with and those awesome few I met in Bangkok) I'd been struggling with some of the traveller types in Thailand, a lot of one-up-man-ship going on..! So Isadora, my hero, who swooped in and saved me, thanks for that and the good company!!

I wish I could say that was my only experience of falling off/crashing but... as I left the pool an hour later I started my bike without reversing backwards so I went straight into a tree stump, there was definitely a loud crack but I had insurance!

Riding around Pai was just amazing, I can definitely see why people love biking so much now. It felt liberating getting to the waterfalls by myself and driving through the smaller villages in the outskirts where they were untouched by tourism.