Ferocious thai curries

Trip Start Dec 29, 2003

Trip End Ongoing

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Flag of Thailand Golden Triangle, Thailand
Monday, December 29, 2003

Crossed the Lao-Thai border 10 minutes before the immigration office closed in Chiang Khong. I wasn't planning on crossing that night, but met a friendly Thai couple that convinced me to go to Mae Sai with them early the next day. Nothing beats having native speakers to travel with, especially when going out for meals. Thai dishes ordered by foreigners are usually hot and spicy to begin with, but 100 percent tame by Thai standards. Dining with Thai locals opens up a whole new realm of "hot and spicy," the definition of hot doesn't really describe what you feel and experience when eating a ferocious curry. See, when the food is truly hot and spicy, not only do you feel it char the whole length of your tongue, but also when it plunges down your throat. It bottoms out in your stomach and singes the lining, forcing you to use one hand to rub your tummy and the other to wipe the sweat off your forehead. But it doesn't end there, for the burn lingers in your stomach well after you've gulped down your second fruit shake in hopes of appeasing the fire gods. True Thai hot continues to plague the system well into the next day, leaving your bowels and ass feeling like they just experienced a second degree burn. Oh but it's sooo good, the after effects are just a small price to pay.

My Thai friends arranged for us to take a local sawngthaew (small pick-up truck converted into a taxi by placing boards in the truck bed for seats) to the Golden Triangle area, sawngthaews being the cheapest and most interesting way to go.

back of a sawgenthaew

I'd have to say the 2 hour trip in the back of the truck was my favorite part of the day. We were the only foreigners in the taxi sawngthaews, the rest were locals going to work in the next village over or transporting crops for trade. We took small back roads the whole time too, allowing us to see the morning mist burn off to reveal incredible farm land and lush green fields. It was also great because we were all packed in, forcing us to interact, great stuff. Don't know if I would've found this if it weren't for my newfound Thai friends, funny how things work out.

In summary, the golden triangle is a big tourist trap and has been totally exploited by the tourism industry. Yeah it's cool to be able to say you saw Thai, Laos and Myanmar all at once, but the blaring music and hawkers completely ruin what possibly could be an incredibly beautiful and peaceful place. Mae Sai wasn't any better either. The main drag is lined back to back with vendors selling useless paraphernalia and fake brand name clothing. If it's shopping you want to do, no need to buy it here just to lug everything throughout Thailand, just buy all the fake goods in Bangkok before you leave. The real reason I agreed to go to Mae Sai was for the chance to enter into Myanmar for the day. Going to Chiang Mai early tomorrow morning - apparently a great city to do cooking classes in, as well as a great base camp for treks into the surrounding mountains.