When I think about writing any sort of blog entry I always have a dozen ideas but when it comes down to it I am often tired and have forgotten what made my ideas so good in the first place.
So I will tell you quite simply that I have been TREKKING! It sounds a little more extreme than it is. When it comes down to it, it just consisted of some pretty tame hiking, swimming in waterfalls, rubber rafting, bamboo rafting (excellent fun, especially when it became a waterfight) and then elephant riding!
I am still not sure how I feel about tourism here, or perhaps even the concept of being a tourist. How am I supposed to feel when I go to an ethnic minority village where there a line of stands selling me local trinkets at high prices. Should I feel morally obligated to buy? Am I wrong to want some sort of more authentic scene? This trip wasn't so bad because we actually did walk through a couple of pretty remarkable villages. It's just that this particular brand of tourism seems to result in an awkwardness that permeats almost every participant except for teh guides and the locals themselves. the guide guides because it is lucrative and fun. the locals earn much more than they would otherwise by selling goods. It's just that sometimes the visitors stand on an awkward line between wanting to have fun and the feeling that their presence has fundamentally altered local life. Perhaps this indicates that tourists who go to thailand or ethnic minority villages are a little more culturally aware than average in the first place.
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