Overnight my cold had developed into more of a nuisance. I was congested and had a sore throat when I got up to get ready for our Golden Triangle day. Perhaps us burning mosquito coils in our room that were designed for outdoor use only wasn't such a good idea given that we don't have any ventilation in our room! But at least we didn't get bitten last night!
The minibus collected us from Homplace Guest House and we toured Chiang Mai collecting other passengers then proceeded North through Chiang Rai to Mae Sai. We had stopped somewhere along the way at some hot springs. Small children were tyring to sell baskets of eggs for us to cook in the hot springs, which were at a temperature of 85 degrees. I was feeling groggy and we had some breakfast during the 10 minute stop which perked me up. Back in the minibus we fell asleep again.
On arriving at one of the hilltribes people's villagess I popped some more painkillers and we staggered around in the heat through the village. It was another tourist site, unfortunately. Lots of loud, modern music could be heard, the likes of Westlife... We went on to another hilltribes people's village and this one was a little less hostile. The women wore traditional clothing and were producing craft work but not only did they not try to sell you someting from their stalls, they also didn't object to having their photograph taken. I took one discreetly, from a distance and amongst a crowd. We had a look around the village by foot. Ian was being followed by everyone, much to his annoyance.
At Mae Sai we had a quick look at an old temple that was burned by the Thai people to prevent the Burmese people using it when they invaded. I felt horrible at this point and our guide asked me 'is there a problem, miss?' and told me to let her know if she could help me in any way. From that point on I had both Ian and our guide checking on me, which was sweet.
At Mae Sai we met the Mekong river and had our first glimpse of Laos and Myanmar, formerly Burma. We hired a long tail boat and went up the Mekong river to the Golden Triangle, a sandbank in the middle of the river bordering Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, the site of much trade, particularly opium.
When we had been around the top of the triangle we docked alongside Laos, Don Sao island, which enjoys good relations with Thailand. It was another tourist set up and was full of stalls with crafts for sale. The most amazing thing for sale was the many bottles of snake whisky, each with at least one dead cobra in it! We refused the purchase, thinking that friends might not be too pleased to receive such a gift! There was a small girl who quietly asked for TBT 500, not money in her own currency.
To land on Don Sao island cost TBT 5,000 each, not a huge amount of money given that we have now been to and stepped on to another country! It's a shame we didn't get a passport stamp but it's a tourist specific visit not an immigration point.
We had a buffet lunch just outside of Mae Sai along the Burmese border which was nice. It was so hot and humid we were grateful for the respite. Then it was time to head back into Chiang Mai, which took a while.
The tour included a trip to the most Northern point of Thailand on the way to which we passed a mountain range dividing Thailand and Burma. Our guide commented that the 'sleeping lady' so aptly named because of the appearance of the range, will be the tallest mountain in the world one day. A passenger in the vehicle asked, 'how?' 'Well, when she stands up' came the reply. Three of our companions, two of which were English and spent the entire day discussing their unfavourable financial status and expressing their opinions on the outrageous cost of everything out of Thailand, went out of Thailand across the border into Burma so they could extend their stay in Thailand by returning and earning another thirty day visa by reentering from Burma. We had a little wait while they did this so perused the market stalls and bought an ice-cream. I got in a huge mess! My cornetto biscuit broke almost straight away and I was left trying to balance a soft ice-cream on a broken biscuit cone while I ate it as quick as I could but slower than it was melting. It got very, very messy! Before we boarded the minibus I used the facilities at the hotel we were sat outside, waiting for the three travellers to return from Burma, and washed my hands. To reach the toilets we had to walk across a small footbridge built over raw sewage. The restaurant was right next to it!
The street was hectic with South Thai people who were on their holidays and had taken coach trips to the Burmese border to take advantage of the cheap markets.
When we were dropped off we dumped our bags in the guest house and went next door to have a very spicy dinner while catching up with the situation in Iraq. I still felt a bit yuck and went to bed early leaving Ian to write his journal.
Copyright 2003 Helen Fuller. All rights reserved.