Songkran in Chiang Rai
13 April, 2009, 03:10 am in "Thailand"
Kids attack a truck
Rowshan and I had armed ourselves a couple days ago. Two other foreigners bought water guns at the place we bought ours-- a streetside shop with a big trash barrel of water, a curtain of water guns in plastic bags shielding the owner/shopper from the water fight going on in the street in front. The two other foreigners bought huge triple jet water uzis, requiring pumping. Rowshan got a smaller gun with water reservoirs and I got a classic cheapie water pistol. The foreign guys laughed at me and informed me I would get drenched.
The water gun shop
The streets were crowded with pickup trucks carrying tanks of water and yelling, bucket wielding, neon colored aloha shirt clad people. When two went by one another, the water flew. Meanwhile, people also had set up water stations by the side of the street. These were generally more of a hazard to us pedestrians than drive by dousings (though we did get nabbed a couple times by those). Me, armed with my tiny water pistol and Rowshan with his gun with flawed water reservoirs were no match for the water uzi toting kids with plastic water tanks on their backs.
Drive by water battle
Well armed children
From the safety of a cafe, we watched trucks of boisterous drenched people go by. Then we headed off to the center of the activities where we'd seen them putting up arches with hoses across the road.
Chaos in the streets
We got there just in time for a small parade with ornate floats. It just went the couple blocks through the arches with water pouring down and the sprinklers and hoses spraying water into the street. Even a couple floats of musicians went through. One of the drums was covered with plastic but the xylophone and zurna were exposed. The zurna player didn't miss a beat as the traffic caused the truck to be stuck under the water arch-- water pouring down onto the musicians.
Musicians getting a shower
Dancers in the parade
Armed and ready for action
Water everywhere
We walked back through the market to avoid more dousings. There, some women were dancing while a man was singing karaoke to a popular catchy but terribly inane song. When Rowshan went to film them, they called us over to dance, serving us whiskey. I tried to refuse so they just gave me a small amount... then another.... We danced a bit but they were so drunk Rowshan and I thought we'd best get on our way.
We got home only a little drenched because a little girl had chased after us with a water uzi and a couple people got us from trucks.
Back at the hotel, we switched on the TV and saw scenes of Bangkok. There, the only water dousing the people were from water canons held by police and military. A state of Emergency had been declared to break up the protests of the Red Shirts who are trying to get the current PM to resign (just as his party got the last PM to resign by taking over the airport. The red shirts broke up the ASEAN Summit and things are getting uglier in the capital. On TV there are scenes of flaming buses being sent at the military and the military firing above (and perhaps into) crowds.
We got home only a little drenched because a little girl had chased after us with a water uzi and a couple people got us from trucks.
Back at the hotel, we switched on the TV and saw scenes of Bangkok. There, the only water dousing the people were from water canons held by police and military. A state of Emergency had been declared to break up the protests of the Red Shirts who are trying to get the current PM to resign (just as his party got the last PM to resign by taking over the airport. The red shirts broke up the ASEAN Summit and things are getting uglier in the capital. On TV there are scenes of flaming buses being sent at the military and the military firing above (and perhaps into) crowds.
Songkran festival in Chiang Rai
Chiang Rai and the Hill Tribe Museum
12 April, 2009, 03:29 am in "Thailand"
Clocktower
Buddha at one of the wats
Nagas adorning a wat
The Hill Tribe Museum is part of a center run by the PDA (Population and Community Development Association). After we bought our tickets we were ushered into a room and shown what turned out to be an interesting film about community based tourism called, "So Human a Zoo". It focused on a couple (Burmese and French I think) who were investigating opening an eco-lodge in Patau, in the North of Burma and their trip to villages (some which had never had foreigners visit) to discuss how they could involve the villagers and contribute to their community.
It addressed many of the problems with tourism I've been noticing. i.e. the economic development and outside influences brought by tourism eventually caused the community to lose their traditional culture which then brings about the demise of tourism (which in turn brings about the demise of their financial source). As one person in the film said, "Having satellite TV might be more important than retaining a traditional way of life."
The film (and information in the museum) also addressed the exploitation of "long necked" Karen people in Thailand. The long necked Karen people are actually from Burma. The Thai Karen do not wear neck rings. However, Thai entrepreneurs have created long neck Karen villages and brought Karen people from Burma or refugee camps to populate them. These Karen, the women only , are paid about 1000 baht a month (about $30) to "live" in the village and wear neck rings. They are often not allowed to get Thai ID cards so are trapped in the villages (to travel to anywhere else requires an ID). Tourists are charged a lot of money to visit the "villages" but the village owner is the only one to benefit. The film mentioned a true CBT project--the only one in the Chiang Rai region that provides direct benefits to the village-- called Ban Lorcha.
The museum had a lot of info about opium (we are near the Golden Triangle) and several individual sections on each of the tribe's architecture, traditions, tools, etc. The last room had displays on traditional culture.
It addressed many of the problems with tourism I've been noticing. i.e. the economic development and outside influences brought by tourism eventually caused the community to lose their traditional culture which then brings about the demise of tourism (which in turn brings about the demise of their financial source). As one person in the film said, "Having satellite TV might be more important than retaining a traditional way of life."
The film (and information in the museum) also addressed the exploitation of "long necked" Karen people in Thailand. The long necked Karen people are actually from Burma. The Thai Karen do not wear neck rings. However, Thai entrepreneurs have created long neck Karen villages and brought Karen people from Burma or refugee camps to populate them. These Karen, the women only , are paid about 1000 baht a month (about $30) to "live" in the village and wear neck rings. They are often not allowed to get Thai ID cards so are trapped in the villages (to travel to anywhere else requires an ID). Tourists are charged a lot of money to visit the "villages" but the village owner is the only one to benefit. The film mentioned a true CBT project--the only one in the Chiang Rai region that provides direct benefits to the village-- called Ban Lorcha.
The museum had a lot of info about opium (we are near the Golden Triangle) and several individual sections on each of the tribe's architecture, traditions, tools, etc. The last room had displays on traditional culture.
The Trip to the Thai Border
9 April, 2009, 03:57 am in "Laos"
View of Thailand from Laos
We got a tuk tuk to the bus station and were dismayed to see that the bus was already full, including the seats in the aisles. They were still selling tickets. 4 backpackers stood outside of the bus looking rather lost and hopeless. They had bought tickets but couldn't figure out how to fit on the bus.
Rowshan went to the counter to try to find a solution. There were 6 of us that wanted to go to Huai Xai but did not want to stand squeezed into a few inches of floorspace for 4+ hours. The next bus wasn't until 1:30 (though people also said it was at 2). The 1:30 bus was a big bus which stood empty behind the packed small one. "Can't you send everyone in the big bus?" They said "no." With a bit more discussion, Rowshan chartered a minibus for the 8 foreigners who couldn't fit on the bus. Even though we had to pay more, we'd get to the border before it closed for the day.
As we were loading the van, the ticket woman came up grasping the 800,000 R had paid her and informed us that since we paid 800,000 we could take the big bus which would leave at 12. Rowshan shouted, "Do you think we are stupid?!!! We just paid 800,000 for a van now. Why would we want to pay double the ticket price for the regular bus?!" (which contrary to what she said would probably leave when it was full). Anyway, we left in our minibus.
The road wound back and forth but was smooth and fairly new. This turned out to be a bad thing because the driver was having way too much fun driving on it. He sped doing his best to drive in a straight line along the winding road even if it meant driving on the wrong side for a bit. When he couldn't cut the curves, he sped around them, sending everyone and thing flying back and forth. I was grateful the bus had seat belts. I got the feeling he was like a kid driving a toy car-- foot to the gas--- quick extreme steering technique. He just needed to be making "vroom vroom" noises.
He ran over a rooster which caused me to cry, "Oh No!" but Rowshan insists the rooster survived-- maybe he was in between the wheels. The driver did slow for cattle and people. He even honked at dogs.
One thing I noticed is in Laos there seems to be a certain disregard by animals and humans for the hazards of the road. Kids sit playing on it. Women chat on it. Dogs sleep in the middle. Chickens run back and forth on it. I get the feeling most people regard the road as a sort of community space which conveniently dries quickly after the rain, and is perhaps the only non-muddy outdoor spot. The cars are just trespassers through the village. Maybe everyone is still used to the dirt roads and don't realize how dangerous the speeding cars are.
About 1.5 hours into the trip we passed the bus which had left 1/2 hour before us. Then we had a toilet/snack break. I was impressed we stopped at a place with an actual toilet and not just a spot of non-village space for al fresco peeing. The bus passed us during our break but we passed it again during its toilet break which was al fresco in the field.
I should also add at one point, after everything went flying to the right side of the car after a speedy curve, Rowshan asked the driver to drive slower. The driver apparently didn't understand but took what Rowshan said as a compliment and smiled and said, "Thank you." As we'd gotten down the mountains, the air became hotter and clearer-- great for trekking.
The driver dropped us off in Huay Xai, a block from immigration and the boat dock. He smiled and said, "Thank you" so we smiled and said, "Thank you" as well. It was one of those drives that made me wonder if I'm not tempting fate a little too much and perhaps should go back to the US before I end up dead in a car crash in some developing country. However, I couldn't feel mad at the driver because he seemed so child-like in his blissful ignorance of traffic rules, numbers on road signs, which side of the road to drive on, and how to drive.
We went through immigration easily and took a long boat across the river to Thailand. At the boat dock a group of costumed Thai dancers, a kid's group, posed for photos before returning to Thailand.
Thai dance troupe heading back to Thailand
Thai puppeteer
Soon we were in Chiang Khong and through immigration. Rowshan made a mistake on his arrival/departure card and ripped it up while asking for a new one.
"Very good," said the guard (I guess, with sarcasm or perhaps he just got "good" and "bad" mixed up) "Don't do that." He stapled the pieces back together and made Rowshan correct the mistake on the torn card.
"You very bad," the guard said. He still let Rowshan in and gave us both the 15 day visa exemptions-- enough to hold us over until our flight to the Philippines.
We quickly found the bus to Chiang Rai which ran by a schedule-- leaving whether it was full or not. We got 2 seats to ourselves.
The landscape consisted of dry flat areas and farms with small mountains. Rowshan was happy about "the variety" but I found myself missing the beautiful lushness of the green mountains and red earth (which had slid over the road at sections due to mud slides).
As we drove through towns, kids threw buckets of water at the bus making the ride kind of like a drive through car wash. Songkran starts soon so things will just get crazier. As we drove on through, I thought the kids seemed tired looking as if they had spent the whole day dousing cars and it had become work. Some didn't even stand up to try.
"Very good," said the guard (I guess, with sarcasm or perhaps he just got "good" and "bad" mixed up) "Don't do that." He stapled the pieces back together and made Rowshan correct the mistake on the torn card.
"You very bad," the guard said. He still let Rowshan in and gave us both the 15 day visa exemptions-- enough to hold us over until our flight to the Philippines.
We quickly found the bus to Chiang Rai which ran by a schedule-- leaving whether it was full or not. We got 2 seats to ourselves.
The landscape consisted of dry flat areas and farms with small mountains. Rowshan was happy about "the variety" but I found myself missing the beautiful lushness of the green mountains and red earth (which had slid over the road at sections due to mud slides).
As we drove through towns, kids threw buckets of water at the bus making the ride kind of like a drive through car wash. Songkran starts soon so things will just get crazier. As we drove on through, I thought the kids seemed tired looking as if they had spent the whole day dousing cars and it had become work. Some didn't even stand up to try.
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