Northwest Thailand

NOTE: If you are going to the region expecting to find untouched hill tribe villages, than you are deluding yourself - they simply do not exist. The Thai government seemingly has made a concerted and successful effort to link virtually every small hamlet and 2-bit village to it's already impressive road system. You will find either regular roads, cement side roads, or at least motorbike/4-wheel drive accessible roads everywhere. Don't be surprised if after trekking for hours through the wild Thai jungle/forest that upon arriving at some seemingly remote village you discover a minivan with well-groomed tourists who have come up the mountain on a nicely paved road! You will find that most villages now have electricity and are likely to see the locals transfixed watching the latest Thai soap opera. The thatched roof, flimsily built houses are also quite likely to have a motorbike or pickup truck under their landing. This is not to say that you won't see poor villages with pigs and chickens and dogs and kids all running around - but don't expect the untouched wilds that you might be imagining. I personally always felt a bit awkward and uncomfortable walking around these hamlets - I mean, how would you feel if a bunch of tourists showed up in your neighborhood and started taking pictures of you and your house!!??

SPECIFIC PLACES:

• Chiang Mai. No doubt you will start any trip to this area of Thailand from Chiang Mai. There are plenty of accomodations, restaurants catering to western tastes, and classes to attend. Everyday at around 5:30 pm the monks chant/pray at Wat Phra Singh, which I found to be very peaceful. I liked staying in the Old City better than outside because the streets are narrower and subsequently everything is a bit quieter and slower. My favorite attraction was the Sunday night Tha Pae Gate street market. You'll see just about everything there if you look hard enough!

• Pai. This once sleepy town has now become the place to be. It has an incredible number of guest houses to choose from and no lack of restaurants. You can use Pai as your base to do all the main sightseeing activities: trekking, hill tribes, rafting. Indeed, due to this fact and it's proximity to Chiang Mai it has now eclipsed Mae Hong Son as the tourist center of the area. However, success has it drawbacks, and the town now has a bit of an artificial feel about it. The whole place was something of one big construction site when I was there during the "off season" as the town was upgrading some sewer or water lines and seemingly every other guest house was building more rooms. During the high season expect packed out streets and a big party scene. That being said, Pai is in a beautiful valley with some nice temples in the area.

• Sappong. If you wish to escape some of the craziness of Pai, just jump on the bus and two hours away you'll find yourself in this still sleepy one street town. Presently there are only a handful of guest houses in Sappong, and as I didn't see any new construction, it looks like it'll stay that way for at least one more year. I stayed at the Lemon Hill Guest House right across from the 'bus station.' It has a beautiful setting right on the river, but during the wet season be forwarned that the rooms can be a bit musty smelling. It just doesn't dry out in Soppong! I did have a wonderful veranda with table and chair overlooking the river, and for the price I couldn't complain. Other favorites were the Soppong River Inn and the Little Eden GH, which features a pool!! You can arrange treks and rafting trips from the guest houses. Renting a motorbike and simply driving up to some of the local villages is a definite option. The local hill tribe villagers come into town to shop and sell, though the market is quite small. Soppong is a great little place and still retains it's authentic atmosphere. I personally liked it a lot better than Pai, though if you're looking for nightlife, this is not the place for you.

• Mae Hong Son. I found MHS to be a lovely, clean city situated in a beautiful valley. For me it struck just the right balance of having enough tourist facilities to make it 'user friendly' but without being totally overwhelmed by travelers. The guest houses on the north side of the lake have dramatic views of the Burmese influenced Wats on the south side where there are some rather bizarre figurines on display. Inside one of the temples I was rather surprised at this sexist sign - but hey, what can ya do? There are also many other impressive temples in MHS to satisfy the most avid temple goer. You can arrange day trips and longer treks, which usually include a Lisu village and the nearby touristy Long Necked Karen villages. MHS has made a special effort to be tourist friendly with the best street and tourist site signage I've seen anywhere in Thailand. And of course there's the Crossroads Bar featuring western music and an English speaking staff that seems to draw just about every farang and ex-pat in town. I can imagine that during the high season it's quite a scene! MHS has an airport so for a very reasonable fare you can fly straight from Chiang Mai - thought if you fly in both directions you'll miss the dramatic mountain scenery inbetween.

• Mae Sariang. Maybe I was a bit tired of the trek/temples/mountain thing by the time I got to Mae Sariang, but I didn't find it to be anything special. It has a few guest houses that offer the usual trekking tours. I stayed at the See View Guest House and some of the people that went on their river cruise found it rather dull and over-priced for what they got. (NOTE: I didn't go on this day-trip myself - your mileage may vary!!).

• Mae Sot. Or Mae Soggy as I like to refer to it, as during the wet season this place seems to get quite a bit of rain. Most people probably come here to do a visa run across the border to Miyawaddy, Myanmar, and indeed it's quick, easy and relatively inexpensive (U$10 - or 500B). The town itself has something of a frontier feel about it due to it's proximity with the border. It's also one of the more interesting cities just to wander about in with it's large ethnic population of Myanmarese and Muslims. It also has a flourishing gem trade if you are interested in that. Tourist wise, though, there's really not much to do and see. The Canadian Restaurant is a good source of tourist info and has delicious food. I stayed one night at the Mae Sot Guest House and got about a dozen bed bug bites. The nearby DK Hotel, though lacking in atmosphere, is a relatively good value - my only complaint being a lack of hot water showers, and believe me, in Mae Sot you'll want hot water during the cool season.

Comments? E-mail me at [email protected].

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