Mae Sai: Myanmar Border

I originally had no intention of crossing into Myanmar (formerly Burma) when I was plotting out my route a few weeks back, but with my tourist visa expiring shortly, I figured a quick stopover wouldn’t hurt. The lonely planet sells Mae Sai (on the Thai side) short in many respects, claiming the town lacks charm and “is little more than a modern trading post.” Though I suppose this is in part true, my guesthouse (creatively named Mae Sai Guest House) has more than made up for it with its well kept, quaint little huts along the Thai-Myanmar border.

My hut in the above picture is hidden behind the two trees on the left. The border runs smack dab in the middle of the Mae Nam Sae river. Thailand is on the left, Myanmar on the right.
Because this section of the river is only knee deep, Burmese illegal immigrants have become a huge problem. A police checkpoint has been set up not far from my guesthouse to counteract this but I doubt it’s effective - I spent a couple of hours on the veranda watching illegals wading across not long after sunset.

I’ll be crossing into the town of Tachilek (legally, of course) on the Burmese side tomorrow. I hope I don’t run into any problems.

Another one of the more interesting accommodation options:

Pai: Elephant Rodeo

Prior to today's jungle expedition, I had always thought of elephants as I would have any other large herbivore. That is to say, they’re big, dumb and smelly. Well, they certainly are big.

My rather negative opinion of the animal evaporated almost instantly when Phanom, my elephant for the afternoon, considerately helped me up onto his back by lifting up his foot as a stepladder. He had noticed I was having difficulty climbing up. I also watched his colleague “Ot” pick up a dropped hat and return it to its rightful owner.

I got to ride shotgun.

A little advice to anyone considering riding an elephant bareback: wear long pants. Elephants are really bristly and my legs were chafed after the 2 hour ride.

Halfway through, we were given the opportunity to stop in the nearby river to bathe the elephants (I’m not really sure who was bathing who because they kept spraying us with their trunks) and take turns getting thrown off rodeo style. It’s strange that even though they weigh two to three tons, I never felt that I was in any danger.

Phanom trying to pick me up. Actually, I was just hiding a banana behind my back.
Following too close for comfort:

Pai: Rót Maw-Toe-Sai

Most of the attractions (for the non-hippie) in Pai are located well outside of the town’s boundaries. They aren’t spectacular enough for tour companies to offer trips out to them but they’re interesting enough to check out nonetheless, especially if the alternative is to hang out in boring old coffee shops all day.

Luckily, I chanced on a promotional sticker on yesterday’s bus ride claiming the following:
-24 hour scooter rental: 140 baht (about $4.00 CAD)
-Free helmet rental
-Insurance service provided: additional 60 baht (about $1.70 CAD)
-Additional 6 hours rental with mention of this ad

Considering all the factors, the decision was pretty simple.

Before heading to the rental agency this morning, I made a quick stop at the store to restock on my snacks – I indulged last night and ate my asse (that came out wrong, didn’t it?).

I will tell you this: having never ridden a motorbike before, I wasn’t prepared to feel the complete exhilaration of tearing through winding mountain roads with the cool wind in my face and an undeniable sense of freedom. Needless to say, a stupid grin was plastered on my face for at least the first couple of hours riding. Many of the villagers reciprocated with the signature Thai smile as I drove past and a couple of children even came out to wave at the farang passing through. Despite the lackluster sights, I think today’s been one of the most memorable to date.

Today’s photos (Nothing too exciting here. I was too preoccupied with the bike):

I'm glad these signs were at every major intersection close to town. I kept forgetting:

WWII Memorial Bridge

Burmese statue, Wat Phra Tat Mae Yen:

Obligatory Hobbes Photo

Pai Canyon. You can suffer a pretty bad case of vertigo on these narrow paths:


Lisu tribeswoman:

Tha Pai Hotspring. You can go for a hot bath fed by the springs in the nearby spa but I doubt they get much business during this season - the temperature was hovering in the thirties today.

For future reference, this sign means fun ahead.

The 'e' is Silent

The town of Pai bears more semblance to a North American hippie community (like Canmore, for example) than it does a small Thai town. Specialty coffee shops and restaurants dot the main street, their occupants more likely sporting Rastafarian dreadlocks, hemp knit clothing and multiple body piercings rather than contemporary Thai fashion.

Unfortunately for me, that particular demographic’s demand for vegetarian/vegan/organic/imported food has created a vacuum of inexpensive local cuisine (stickmeat in particular) in its wake. Case in point, I was stalking the aisles of the local grocery store this afternoon, looking for some snacks to include in tomorrow’s picnic lunch. Most of the items stocked catered to the hippie/foreigner pallete and were therefore well beyond my budget. I decided to break the bank when I happened on this one (80 baht – the equivalent of two street vendor meals including drinks). The ‘e’ is silent:

This one was just around the corner for another 15 baht:

I imagine lab coated Japanese scientists spending months perfecting the recipes for these products, sacrificing evenings and weekends with their families, losing sleep over ingredient ratios, their hair greying with each passing day until the products are finally ready for the assembly line. Then Keiichi in marketing goes ahead and names it after a portion of his lower digestive tract.

Mae Hong Son: People Watching

The lazy afternoon hours were wiled away under the shade of a tree at the nearby Wat Jong Kham temple. The temple itself is humble and most tourists bypass it altogether. It is, however, set beside a lake and food stalls gather on the adjacent street, making it the perfect place to people watch.

Play time for the novices came soon after lunch.

I suppose this picture could be taken out of context. For the record, it’s just a toy.

Also: Fido Dido was so early nineties

Ancient Buddhist texts housed at the neighbouring Wat Jong Klang :

Mae Hong Son: Longneck Tribes

Luck was on my side late last night when my bus finally pulled into Mae Hong Son’s tiny bus station. The raging thunderstorm that had plagued the last leg of the trip had subsided to a drizzle (though it raged on in the next valley over, creating silhouettes of the mountain range). A friendly local tour guide operator gave me a free lift out to the guesthouse. As we talked along the way, I learned that she had a seat available for a trip out to the nearby Paduang village (one of my main reasons for being in the region). The price was right so I signed up without hesitation.

We kicked things off this morning at Wat Doi Kong Mu, the Buddhist monastery overlooking the town.



The region’s architecture reflects Burmese influence due to its close proximity to the border.

Watching the monks doing their thing:

I initially felt a little guilty about going to the Paduang village. As a tourist one could treat it much like a human petting zoo. An admission fee is paid, you hang around the village and interact with its inhabitants and photos are taken. On the upside, tourism provides a steady (and legitimate) income for the village. I was relieved to see that the villagers were quite comfortable going about their business despite the tourists.



A New Year traditional dance. Each of the village’s four different tribes, represented by different coloured headbands, took part. Few get to witness this, I’m told.

The anticlimactic last stop was at the Pha Bong hot springs/spa. My two options there were:

-Sit around and bake in the sun for half an hour
-Pay 60 baht ($1.75 CAD) for a mudpack.

I went with the latter. Embarrassing pictures exist but I’d rather they not fall into the wrong hands.