Naked in my office
How delightful to be naked in an open air office! Taking my cue from businessmen Jim from the UK Midlands, and Johari from Kuala Lumpar, Malaysia, I am today writing this article whilst sitting naked in an open bamboo hut called a sala. I am at Oriental Village Resort (OV), just a few miles from Chiang Mai airport in north Thailand. When they get the opportunity both Jim and Johari spend a few days here with their laptops. Office coffee replaced by an iced beer, and frequent breaks to sunbathe, or for a dip in the pool. Excellent wi-fi on site enables them to do international business with ease.
Wives love it too, as they get the opportunity to enjoy the sun and pool whilst their husbands work nearby. I am taking 5 days out after the bustling city of Bangkok. OV is not large, in fact just 14 bungalows, a totally naturist resort at the rural village of Ban Pao Sam Kha. There is no fence, the rice fields meet the lawns of the Resort. As I look towards the steep, densely wooded, hills nearby farmers are scything their rice crop in front of me.
Paolo Richel, a former ski instructor in Savoy, France, saw the opportunity to lease this site a few years ago. It had been built as a rural holiday resort by an entrepreneur, which failed. Paolo saw it for sale on the internet and decided to market it as a totally naturist resort. The curving grounds are beautifully laid out with many flowers, trees and other features. Birds and butterflies flit in and out of the bushes, tiny lizards may be seen if you are quick, and local chickens stroll casually across the grass. Light naturist-type sports are also possible. OV opened 6 years ago and has gone from strength to strength.
Swingers, or ‘clothing optional’ men who want to keep their trousers on and ogle naked women, are weeded out when they contact OV and are not allowed to book. Paolo recognises that some women are apprehensive about naturism. When they come with their husbands/partners they can wear bikini bottoms until they feel comfortable to discard them. For most it does not take long!
OV was the second naturist resort to open in Thailand. It followed the pioneering work done by Chan Resort at Pattaya. The difference is that OV has no fences, apart from the entrance gate. Local villagers are employed as staff, and are very courteous. Unemployment is low, but Paolo manages to recruit, when needed, by advertising vacancies at the local convenience store!
Although OV is set in a rural Buddhist community the nudity – no sex on site – is now accepted by villagers. If any local has the wrong idea, and concerns about people from around the world being naked when visiting OV, they are soon put right by their neighbours who work at OV. I lost count of how many countries Paolo told me his naturist clients come to OV from including, surprisingly, Qattar, India, China.
Herman from Germany with his wife Sui, were at OV, when I visited in November 2016. Also there were Jim and his Thai girlfriend Mai, John and Alida from Australia also Tony and his wife, Johari from Malaysia, Jonathon from California, and several Brits. It is our luck that English is the universal language, and used at the Resort.
Many of the staff speak English, and it is the menu language for the range of delightful restaurant meals. A nice and varied menu of food – at very reasonable prices – offers breakfast, lunch and dinner. There is always plenty of fresh fruit and ingredients and I enjoyed every single meal!
OV is an oasis built for relaxation, and is open all year round. Staff will check whether you wish to have a poolside drink. A traditional Thai massage in the open can be arranged. For this the OV staff have been training in massage to a high standard by frequent visitor Theo from the UK.
In the evening, depending on the time of year and the sometimes cooler weather, guests socialise together. As you might expect from the OV ambience no evening entertainment is laid on. A good TV set with up to 100 channels is available in each bungalow. Insects are not a problem, but do check about mosquitos if you plan to visit in the rainy season.
A walk through Ban Pao Sam Kha village, including visits to its elaborate Buddhist temples, is easy to do. For the more adventurous like me, there are plenty of off-site activities to consider. The ancient walled city of Chiang Mai is easy to visit, with its famous and colourful Thai life. There are plenty of historic temples, Wat Chedi Luang is the city’s oldest. It is next to Wat Phan Tao with its reclining Buddha, and the renowned Buddhist education centre shares the site.
A trip to mingle with Hill Tribes at Baan Tong Luan can be arranged. These include the Lahu, Palong, Akha, and Hmong. Long-necked women are a special feature of the Karen tribe, with their brass neck and leg rings. Depending on your views about captive animals then elephant rides, snake farms, and monkeys are all possible.
For something different, at the Bo Sang factory you can watch the artisans make by hand, and paint with lovely decoration, paper parasols, fans and other items. These make beautiful presents and can be purchased at low cost. In Chiang Mai silk garments are very colourful, I bought several for female friends. The usual hand-made jewellery, wood carvings and perfumed items are also cheap to buy.
For the fit you can drive up a nearby sacred mountain, where hair of Buddha was found, to visit the Muang On Cave. At the entrance you climb down hundreds of steps inside to see stalactites and huge caverns in which are various effigies of Buddha. After the exertion, of climbing up the steps again to get out, a newly chopped coconut provides a welcome refreshing drink.
Keeping in the more relaxed mood it is possible to visit the nearby San Khamphaeng hot springs. As well as bathing in the mineral waters pool and watching the spouting geyser, locals purchase eggs and a little bamboo-weave basket. They then cook their eggs in the hot waters of the thermal stream. A handy notice tells you how long to boil the eggs, according to what type of hard-boiled egg you desire. On the day we visited many local families were dotted around with their hard-boiled egg picnics.
Because of its rural location the OV site is not easy to find. Paolo can provide a taxi pick-up at Chiang Mai airport, by a driver who knows the way, for a very reasonable price.
Clearly, OV is a comfortable rustic styled resort not a 5-star hotel. It offers a way of practising naturism in harmony with nature. You can find more on Oriental Village Resort at www.orientalvillage-chiangmai.com . So why not think of OV as your future holiday destination, for real naturism at a remarkably low cost?
Paolo currently plans to build another naturist resort, his Koh Kho Khao project, near Phuket. That will add to the six naturist resorts currently operating in Thailand. Details of Naturist Association Thailand (NAT) and Bare @ll Magazine can be found at www.ThailandNaturist.com
