Day five

Three, two, one, PIZZA CAT!!!

It's all downhill from here!  Actually, there's some gradual climbs and it's mostly flat, but it feels downhill after yesterday.  We met our friends again at their church and they fed us more fantastic food.  What a way to start the final day!  I don't know how everyone else felt, but I was giddy and other than a very tender undercarriage I felt like I could ride all day...which was good because we never could peg what kind of mileage we had left for the day.  We made a stop at a bible college at a beautiful town whose name I can't remember.

The pic just can't do the view justice.

We put in some more miles and I saw a sign with a name I did know: Chiang Rai!!  As I was stopping to take a photo of the sign a van full of Americans rolled up.  It was our pastors and missionaries.  It was fun seeing them...heck, everything was fun!  After some more miles, we got into the vans and visited a village way back in the hills.  Once again I was taken aback at the hospitality and generosity offered to us.  I really felt out of place; I'm just a hick kid from Mississippi that some sweet and generous people saw fit to send on a mission trip (something I just couldn't wrap my mind around, but more on that later).

This spread was so cool and delicious.

After our visit to the village, we were on our final leg to the home.  We were all feeling spunky and giddy.  Legs were sore, heinies were reeeeally sore, but nobody cared at this point...I think.  We rolled through the gate to cheers and applause.  Done.  Little kids were everywhere just smiling and giving us the "thumbs up".  One little girl put a very fragrant flower necklace around my neck.  That was probably necessary to mask my stench of riding all day; when you drink one-and-a-half to two 24 ounce bottles an hour and only go to the bathroom once or twice a day, you know you've been sweating.  My goodness, I would take every single one of those young 'uns home if I could!!

My flower girl.

I offered my flower girl and her friends to sit on my bike, but they declined.  I guess the seat being as high as their heads may have been a little intimidating.  It was a hoot watching them giggle and shake their heads "no", though.  I bent down to put on shoes or something and suddenly there was a little guy on my back.  I stood up and started walking up the driveway yelling that I was taking this one home.  He just squealed and laughed...so did I.  Another great day.