I arrived in Pai in the afternoon and I was ready to start the fun. What I knew about Pai is that it is a small, hippie, backpacker’s paradise. Most people end up staying here way longer than anticipated and it’s referred to as “getting stuck in the Pai hole”. I met many people where this was true and it almost happened to me, but I had too rigorous of a schedule that I couldn’t give up. There’s always a jungle rave coming up, or tipsy tubing starting, or you meet someone interesting you like and before you know it, 2 years go by and you’re tan and can’t remember the last shower you had.
I stayed at Revolution Hostel Pai which ended up being exactly as advertised: a social party hostel. Every night the hostel staff would put on some event like a pub crawl, beer pong tournament, or drinking Olympics. They also served a free meal and it was at the dinner table where I made friends.
My hostel-mates were from many countries, but primarily from the UK, Germany, and the US in that order. The age group was generally younger with the median age of 24. There was one adventurous 18-year-old who was having a great time with the help of a self-proclaimed babysitter to help him stay alive. It was a good group and I was grateful to meet everyone after only talking to my computer for the past month.
Some of the things I did in no particular order: watched the sunset at Pai Canyon, went to a rave out in the jungle, soaked in the Tha Pai hot springs, got street food on the walking street, ran 3 miles extremely hungover, didn’t get last in the drinking Olympics, ate avocado toast at Om Garden Cafe, shot pool, napped.
I unfortunately didn’t care to take many photos of things here so you’ll just have to use your imagination. Part of the magic of Pai is the surrounding countryside. It’s hard to describe its beauty, so maybe to see it, you’ll just have to go there yourself.
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