17th October, 2023.
Hitchhiking in Thailand: Lampang
Camping in Thailand
The thing about hitchhiking small distances in Thailand, like inside cities, is that most of the times, people will take you where you want to go, even though they are not going that way, or all the way there. And it doesn’t matter if you try to explain to them that they don’t need to, they simply feel good by helping you. The man who stopped the car for me was not going all the way to the White Temple, but he drove me all the way there anyway.
It is an easy way out of the White Temple to a hitchhiking spot. My sign it says Sukhothai and something inside me tells me that very few people will understand that they can simply drive me one or two hours, towards Sukhothai, even if they are not going all the way there.
With that in mind, I start mentally asking for a smart Thai, some Thai people who is really smart and can help me in somehow to fix this issue. And I get one! A really smart Thai!
When this young man stops his red songthaew and comes out, I already make him a refusal sign. But he asks me anyway where I am going. When I tell him Sukhothai, he tells me he is going back to Chiang Mai, so if I was going there, he could take me for free. Noticing that he has certain good logic, I ask him if he can drive me at least a small portion until where the roads split into different directions towards Chiang Mai to the right, and Sukhothai to the left. He immediately understands and tells me to hop in the back of his songthaew, which now he opens because it was already closed.
It is a short drive, of about 10 minutes, but quite enjoyable. I am actually happy to finally be able to travel in this very traditional public transport for Thailand, plus the views are even better from an open vehicle.
When we stop, the young man has a marker and some paper sheet in his hands. He writes three different signs for me, all in clear and big Thai letters, which stand for the very next town, Phayao (about 1 hour driving from here); Lampang (about 3 hours driving from here); and my final destination, Sukhothai. And after doing that, he numbered all the three paper sheets, to make sure that I know which one is which. Didn’t I tell you that I got a real smart Thai? Laugh. I am in shock! The power of your will goes beyond your imagination. I just wish that it could work all the time and I could meet Aamir Khan again. Crying.
The extension of our mental power keeps on surprising me. While waiting for a lift, I am looking at the cars passing. Many of these pick-ups in Thailand carry their employees, or any workers, on the back, from one site to another, one city to another. The weather is warm and the wind makes things more bearable, so I imagine that it would be nice to get a lift in the back of a pick-up, just for a change, because the skies are clear and no signs of rain on the way.
A pick-up stops, and there are 2 men, a woman and two children inside. The driver tells me, excited, that he is a Youtuber, to what I respond, in a sarcastic way, that it is great and I am not one. We agree that they can take me to Phayao, but I let them know that my final destination is Sukhothai and they can read my sign which also says Lampang. Because of the lack of space inside, I get in the back of the pick-up. Great!
It is a nice adventure. Due to the speed, the wind gets strong, but totally acceptable and even enjoyable. I do wear my raincoat though, to avoid getting a cold or something.
When they stop for toilet at a PTT Station, I think that this is the end of my lift, but then the woman tells me they are going all the way near Cambodia border, so they are driving all night. What? She asks me if I want to come as close as Sukhathai as possible, but I tell her that I rather stop somewhere for camping and sleep during the night. Even though she can speak a bit of English, it is difficult to explain to them that I can stay somewhere near Lampang for the night, because they are not going that way. Finally, after I grab the husband’s phone and make a point in the map where I can be dropped off, we resume our journey.
We stop at some point for dinner. There is a noodle stall, and they all get something with meat from there. When I ask for a vegetarian option, the ladies seem not very happy to help and unable to understand someone having noodles without meat. I walk to the next stall, where they are preparing meat sticks, and I find out they have tofu sticks, so I ask them to prepare three for me, while I walk back to the noodles people and order a vegetarian one. It turns out to be very delicious, and the grilled tofu I added on top, is a perfect combination. Before we depart, I can’t help myself but buying another fresh soy milk, this time with green tea. It is superb!
The division of the road where they drop me off is empty apart from a gas station and a temple. Coincidence? No. In Thailand there are temples everywhere. When I ask two lady workers from the gas station, if I can go and ask to camp in the temple, they tell me it is not a good idea. Surprise! But I decide to go anyway. When I am leaving though, one of the ladies run after me and tell me I can pitch my tent by an empty building beside the gas station, which used to be a cafe but now it is unoperated. They have toilets in the back of the station, and she tells me that the station will be open all night. I decide to stay.
I am too tired to clean myself up, so I decide to go to sleep and do that tomorrow morning. Even been right by the highway, I manage to get some hours of sleep.
Next morning, after washing myself at a sink and also washing some clothes, I walk to a hitchhiking spot.
10 Years Around the World 