At the Golden Triangle on the banks of the Mekong River

 
The next day, we drove along the mountain roads from Chiang-Mai to Chang-Rai, a three hour journey that provided us with some of the most enduring images of our entire visit. Mile after mile of highway went past water-logged rice paddies where hardworking peasant farmers wearing traditional straw hats to keep off the merciless sun and neck scarves to keep off sunburn could be seen. By using ancient implements and methods, rice cultivation is the mainstay of this rural economy and involves most of the country’s people.

The mountains created enchanting landscapes as we passed through coconut groves and scores of wayside stalls selling freshly harvested pineapples. We reached Chang-Rai by mid-day but proceeded directly to the northern borders of Thailand to see the Golden Triangle, a place where the three countries of Thailand, Burma and Laos meet.

Our first stop was the ancient town of Chiang Saen whose walls, in ruined state, attest to its occupation by successive dynasties of Lanna kings, each of whom left his mark by fortifying the town against foreign invasion. Though it is a rather nondescript town, Wat Chedi Luang, a 12th century wat still attracts passers-through and its large Buddha image is a definite draw in the wihan. We made a quick stop here and then proceeded to the town of Ban Sop Ruak where the Golden Triangle is the chief attraction. In less than an hour, we were sitting down to a buffet lunch in a resort restaurant right on the banks of the legendary Mekong River that winds its way through China, Laos, Thailand, Burma, Vietnam and Cambodia. Here too, the fresh green vegetation gave the entire region its distinctive ambience, enhanced by the knowledge that we were in one of the world’s most remote outposts.

At Sop Ruak, elaborate stone arches mark the confluence of three countries—Burma, Thailand and Laos. Indeed, Laos is separated from Thailand only by the Mekong and the tail of the Triangle that juts into the river is still a part of Burma (now called Myanmar). The region is called the Golden Triangle because it was once home to a flourishing trade in the cultivation of the local poppy flower from which opium was derived. In recent years, Thailand has invested in heavy crop substitution so that the poppy has been almost wiped out from the region. In Myanmar, the Paradise Casino and Resort is now the main money-earner though gambling is illegal in Thailand.

We were thrilled to discover that only 250 miles upstream along the Mekong River was the border of China and seeing a ferry on the river that sported the red flag of China, we knew how close we were to this huge Communist country. This thought was exciting but we were sorry that we could not enter China on this trip.

Then, after posing for a number of pictures, we left Sop Ruak behind us and proceeded north to Mae Sai, the northern-most town on the border of Thailand (left). Though this is rather a one-horse town, it is distinctive for the numbers of Burmese traders who cross the border daily to hawk their wares in Thai markets. Of course, we could not resist the thought of crossing the border physically into the Union of Myanmar, a very easy walk across a narrow bridge where Immigration formalities are carried out. Obtaining a Burmese visa at the border crossing, we proceeded on foot into the Burmese town of Thakilek and found it to be not much different from Mae Sai. However, there was a striking blue pagoda of a Buddhist monastery in Thakilek and on exploring the town further, I found it to be rather well laid out. It calls itself the “City of the Golden Triangle” and its greatest revenue comes from tourist buses that cross over from the Thai side to buy cheap souvenirs to remember their visit. For more information about our historic crossing into Burma, please click on the Burma link.