TC

We are booked with Eric for a one day tour. He is proposing "Golden Triangle with lunch along the river to enjoy local dishes, ancient city of Chiangsaen and a stroll at the border town of Maesai" This sounds like the typical tourist day. Are there other places more worthy? We will have been at Anantarra for a few days, so will have seen the Opium Museum and done elephants etc. Seems to me that we could easily do the standard golden triangle -- three countries in one photo on our own, saving Eric for something a bit more unique. Any suggestions? I will say, we're not interested in Hill Tribe visits.

Thanks.

Kathie

Honestly, I've never seen a border town that I thought captured the feel of that country. So the small village they take you to in Laos or the border town in Burma does not seem worthwhile to me.

We enjoyed Chiang Sean, the temple ruins, the museum and a wat or two. If you aren't taking the cooking class, do visit the market.

We took a boat ride on the river which is always fun, even if a bit touristy. There are also a couple of wats in the Golden Triangle area.

We enjoyed our trip to Doi Tung. We had our driver stop at all of the various "industries" started by the King's mother to help the hilltribes break their economic dependence on opium growing. So we stopped where they were roasting coffee, the paper-making place, etc on our way to the top of the mountain. Once on the mountain top, we visited the gardens and the Princess mother's home. It's very interesting. You'll be surprised to see the rooms "panelled" in pine - the pine was all from packing crates, reflecting her commitment to recycling and reuse. Do take the time to talk with the guide there, as the "Princess mother" was really an amazing woman. We enjoyed the drive and the scenery. And of course, the big benefit of having your own driver is that you can ask to stop anywhere - for a photo or the food or whatever.

We did not have a guide for our time there, just a driver. We laid out our ideas of where to go and talked with teh concierge about options. The only other thing she mentioned was visits to the border towns which we weren't interested in.

TC

Kathie, How does this connect with the Hill Tribe villages which everyone talks about being akin to a "human zoo". Is that a different place than the "industries" area you mention here? The Princess mother's home and gardens do sound absolutely beautiful.

Kathie

No, the "industries" started by the Princess mother are in not the Hilltribe Villages. We did stop and talk to people working there. It was clear they get very few visitors. We saw no others while we were there. I have the same feeling as you do about the Hilltribe Villages.

KimJapan

We went up to Mae Salong, and it was gorgeous...very green, mountainous. Tea and rice fields. Lots of hill tribe villages that you can stop at if you want.

From there, we went to Mai Sai and crossed into Burma. Mai Sai was not interesting, nor was the immediate border area in Tachilek, but a bit away from the border area the town of Tachilek was really interesting for us. We walked through an old Shan section of town that sees some tourists, then took tuk tuks for about 30 minutes maybe to another area in town and visited a very good afternoon market...no other tourists in sight and lots of interesting edibles for sale, including huge buckets of live bamboo worms which we had tried earlier in the day fried with salt...not too bad, either. Very friendly sellers who tried to convince us to buy various pig parts and enjoyed trying to shock us with mysterious other animal parts on small trays. We visited another market for eating, and they make the coolest "noodles"...like crepes with all kinds of savory fillings. Looked and smelled delicious...but we were unfortunately not hungry and I thought it nicer to not buy them than to buy them and only eat a little of it.

Were we to go back, we would most definitely spend time in the Mae Salong area. It has really interesting history, is largely supported by Taiwan, and has some great tea shops which sell wonderful teas. We had lunch in a great place...side of the road restaurant with 20 baht bowls of chicken curry noodle soup...the most delicious meal we had during our 5 night stay at the Anantara.

TC

Thanks, Kathie. This sounds great. I'll ask Eric to plan a day around it.

Thank you as well, Kim. I'm not sure how I feel about crossing into Burma (Myanmar) right now. I wonder if one can go as easily as before the "trouble"?

Kathie

Given the state of things in Burma, the borders do open and close with little notice. You'll only know once you get there.

glorialf

I would also avoid border towns. I loved Doi Tung and the villages around it and also think Doi Mae Salong is very interesting and very different from other villages and towns since it was founded by Chinese Nationalists. If you can visit some of the Akha villages that are NOT on every guide's list it can also be fascinating.

jgg

Enjoying the responses to this question. TC - how can I get in contact with Eric??

TC

His email address is: [email protected] Eric Kok recommended on this board by Liz and Tim.

Here is his <i>My Space</i> page:

http://www.myspace.com/homestay

jgg

Thank you!