Oh my Buddha.

So after the elephants we’d thought we calm it down by zip lining through the jungle. 

We planned on going later in the day so that we could go to church in the morning. Church was actually pretty close and we walked. Although it was like a billion degrees so that was hot. But we got there and there were a ton of white people there. The missionaries translated and we listened through headsets. I try to listen to prayers and the sacrament in the native language and then use the headsets for the talks. mostly I got distracted by this cute little thai girl that was sitting next to me.

After church we went back to the hotel and got some lunch and then were picked up for zip lining. We drove for awhile back into the mountains. It was another hour or so drive. Although while we were driving, we watched a clip from the Amazing Race that featured the flight of gibbon (zip lining outfit) and then they played safety instructions. Which was slightly disconcerting like don’t put your hand on the zip line. Or don’t unhook yourself and fall to your death. Basics really.

So we got there and signed waivers which I wasn’t quite sure how that process works in Thailand with negligence and such. I should have probably looked into that before I went. Oh well. And then we met our guides. If the elephant guides we the nature loving hippies of Thailand, these guides were definitely the hipsters. Black rimmed glasses, gauges, funky haircuts plus they were monkeys. Just having a good time and getting paid for it. We went through this 3 hour course (I think) anyway just mostly zip lining from one tree to the next. There were some stairs and bridges which I found more terrifying than the zip lining (I’ve seen Indiana jones temple of doom thank you very much).   The guides also like to pull on your belt as they were taking off on a zip line and saying things like let’s go or push you off (even though the safety instructions clearly stated not too…) one time someone was goofing off and he pushed someone off but they pushed him almost into a tree…the phrase he used instead of oops… oh my Buddha. ha.

Sometimes when I was flying through the air I’d look down and say oh my Buddha and then think about how my sister would be passed out in fear from the height. Actually she would have never gotten that far.

The most difficult one is where they clipped you in with a hook on your back and said ‘step off’…you step off. Essentially we were supposed to superman off and then grab a rope net/ladder and climb up to the platform. That first step is a doosy because you free fall for a bit.  And then swing forward. Yikes. Plus, a rope ladder? I hadn’t done one of those in years. So that was interesting. At the end we ‘repelled’ down a huge tree. Basically they just lowered us down. Afterwards we had dinner and then back to the hotel where we slept. Chiang Mai wins again.