WEATHER: You guessed it --- hot and humid
Today's destination was the Golden Triangle. It is about 50 miles north of Chiang Rai. We had tried to find a tour to join to go there, but all of them included activities that we didn't want - like visiting the White Temple, which we already did, or a stop at some caves, which we aren't interested in. And, they were $50US for the day. (Really not bad for an 8-hour trip for 2 people). So, we decided to figure out how to get there on our own.
We went to the bus station and found that they have mini-buses that go there. So we hopped on one for the 90-minute drive (less than $2 each). That is more our style and budget!
On our way, we passed by lots of rice paddies. There were many farmers in the flooded fields, planting baby rice plants by hand.
We even saw a water buffalo in the fields.
We got off the bus at the Golden Triangle. It is really just a place where Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), and Laos all come together on the MeKong River. That is Laos on the other side at this point....
Since there is not much there for tourists, they have built a Buddha statue and of course there are lot of souvenir shops.
After taking some photos, we found a place for lunch. This place was really untouristy. Nothing in English at all. Again, we just pointed to a rice dish on the menu and were rewarded with a tasty platter with chicken, veg, rice and LOTS of hot peppers. Ours was the one in the upper left corner....
We paired it with a Leo Beer, as a nod toward my Uncle Leo.
This area is known for its opium trafficking during the Vietnam War. Thailand and Laos have stopped production but Myanmar is still at it. We had planned to visit the Opium Museum that apparently shows the horrors of opium and showcases the opium history of this area. However, we took the wrong bus and missed the museum.
We hopped on a pick-up tuk tuk with a family coming into a nearby town with bags and bags of produce. We watched as the long boats loaded up passengers and cargo on their way to Myanmar and Laos, just across the river.
It was market day in this town. Someone was selling these roosters.
From there, we caught a mini-bus to take us back to Chiang Rai. Unfortunately the A/C wasn't working well in this one, so we travelled about 90 minutes in an oven. :-(. The police pulled us over at a police checkpoint and a policeman boarded our van. I guess he was looking for drugs or illegals from Myanmar or Laos. He really quizzed a guy in the back. (Also joked with George who must look squeaky clean).
Back home, we took a dip in our swimming pool to cool off. When we first got here a few days ago, the pool was greenish and had a scum on it. They cleaned it up for us so we enjoyed our swim. This is the view of the pool from the balcony of our bungalow....
We went back downtown for dinner, ending up in all places, at a pizza restaurant. It was quite good, and a nice change of pace.
We sat outside and watched the traffic go by on the only really busy street in town.
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