Posted November 16, 2019
The Bus to Chiang Saen
Our bus to Chiang Saen was an hour late, so when it finally did show up, we were very happy (and relieved) to climb aboard. We settled in for our 6 to 7 hour bus ride that would take us to our destination, in the far north of Thailand. Chiang Saen is about 8 miles south of the infamous “Golden Triangle”, where the countries of Burma, Thailand, and Laos meet. It’s a sleepy, rural town, along the Mekong River, and is the site of a former Thai kingdom believed to date back to the 7th century.
Heading north, the bus stopped just after the two hour point at a little Thai open air food court / bus stop, complete with bathrooms.
First Stop
For such a tiny bus stop along a rural road in the middle of nowhere in Thailand, this bathroom sure did have a lot of stalls. There were probably fifteen. And I checked every one of them, pleading to God or Buddha or whoever might be tuned in for just one sit down toilet. Nope. Nada. All pit toilets.
Pit Toilet Defined
The Thai pit toilets I’ve encountered to date are white porcelain, raised maybe 8 to 10 inches off the floor. The toilet design includes two horizontal surfaces, one on each side of the hole (or pit). These flat surfaces, about the size and shape of a person’s foot, have a tread of sorts, presumably to keep the user from slipping. But the treads are smooth porcelain, and most often wet (let’s not go there), which, as far as I can tell, completely defeats the purpose of having treads. The smooth tread gives the user a false sense of security, as well as limiting the user’s stance.
Just Do It
I stared at my one and only option, the pit toilet. I didn’t have much time, since the bus would be leaving soon. The slightly elevated aspect of the pit toilet was perplexing, since it seemed to unnecessarily complicate things. I carefully placed my right foot in place, checking for slippage potential. It seemed alright, so I brought my other foot up. Now I was fully committed.
Then it happened. I peed on my foot. Just a little, and technically it was on my right heel and the back of my sandal. The one size fits all pit toilet, with a fixed stance (take it or leave it), obviously didn’t work for me.
Maybe with more practice I’ll get the hang of it. I’ll keep you posted.
The Night Arrival
After cleaning myself up as best I could, I returned to the bus and told Steve what happened. He looked at me, a little horrified, and I started laughing (somewhat hysterically). Oh well, these things happen. We settled back in and continued on towards our final destination, Chiang Saen.
Main Street
It was night when we entered town, around 7 pm, driving down the main street. We were wondering where the bus station would be in relation to our hotel.
Suddenly the bus pulled over and stopped. We were told this was the Chiang Saen stop, so we got off.
There was no bus station in sight, only a bus curb. We stood, looking very conspicuous, two tall white people standing on the side of the road under a street lamp, wearing Osprey backpacks (note: yes, in Thailand I’m considered tall). There was not a taxi or tuk tuk in sight, in fact, there weren’t even any cars in sight.
There was a little hub of lights and activity across the street and a block down. Some food stalls were still serving locals. Other than that, the town was deserted.
The Rescue Car
I called our hotel, and even though the woman on the phone spoke very little English, and I could barely hear her, somehow we communicated and she sent a car to pick us up. While we waited, two different local men at the food carts came over and offered us help. Neither man spoke English, but it was apparent they had noticed us (I wonder how they noticed us?), and we looked out of place (to say the least).
One even offered information about a hotel around the corner where we could stay for about $5 a night. It was so nice of them to go out of their way to try to help us. I shouldn’t have been surprised, we’ve found many Thai to be very helpful and genuinely caring.
Hunger Wins Out
Just crickets in every direction
It had been a long day, and we were hungry. After checking in at our hotel we walked into town, about a ten to fifteen minute walk. It was strange and uncomfortable walking through the deserted, quiet, suburban streets, after spending the past few weeks walking the intense, chaotic streets of Bangkok and Chiang Mai. All we could see were the long, empty streets illuminated by fluorescent street lights. All we could hear were crickets.
Suburbia
We walked by shacks, average homes, and even one section of beautiful, fairly large gated homes with gorgeous, small yards full of flowering bougainvillea. There were stray dogs everywhere, mostly large dogs, just like in other parts of Thailand. We startled one sleeping dog, which completely undid me, since I recently was talking about the horrors of getting a dog bite and having to deal with rabies treatments with a new friend we met in Chiang Mai, Gretta from Australia (shout out to Gretta!). Thankfully the dogs left us alone.
Thai Restaurant Protocol
We sat at a small, outdoor restaurant, called Friendship, on the main drag across from the Mekong River. There was a live band playing, singing in English. Their pronunciation was just slightly off, but the live music was a real treat.
The Menu
Our server handed each of us the multi-page menu, and then stood, staring at us. It’s a bit awkward, but we’ve encountered this behavior at other Thai restaurants too. We’re actually getting used to it, and at least we don’t have to wait for the server to return once we’ve decided, since they’ve never left.
There are several other interesting differences (from western restaurants) at Thai restaurants.
Good To Know
- Firstly, the table setting does not include napkins, but instead there’s a Kleenex type box with pop up tissues on each table.
- Secondly, at many restaurants, including Friendship in Chiang Saen, there’s a small, wooden, free standing platform, a few inches lower than the table surface, at the end of each table. I honestly thought it was a high chair, and was surprised to see one at each and every table. Now I know better. The little platform is a serving tray of sorts, where the server puts your drinks, ice, utensils, etc. It saves room on the table and the server doesn’t have to reach over the seated guests. It’s pretty ingenious.
- And thirdly, in Thailand they bring out the food you’ve ordered as it’s cooked, in whatever order that might be. You and your dinner companion may end up eating at different times, and you might get your appetizer at the end of the meal, but everything is always hot and fresh.
Rickety, but Functional
We borrowed the hotel’s rusty, old bicycles several times during our three-day stay. Each bike had a metal basket. Mine also had a bell (that didn’t work), and a light (that didn’t work), and a flat padded seat just behind my seat, in case I made a friend who wanted to join us.
We visited ornate gold & silver adorned Wats (Buddhist Temples), went into town for meals, rode along the ancient city wall and the mighty Mekong River, and just tooled around. Chiang Saen is quite picturesque.
The Ruins
Most wats we’ve visited in the cities are refurbished, since they are a century or more old, but Chiang Saen’s wats are in “as-is” condition .
We saw tons of stupas (huge domed shaped structure), gold and silver multi-headed dragons, Buddhas of all sizes, and glittering golden wats (temples) as we bicycled along the backstreet lanes in town.
Many of the stupas are covered in moss and decaying, which, in my opinion, adds to their charm.
The Orange Moon
In the evening, a dozen or so street food vendors set up makeshift restaurants, including outdoor kitchens, along the Mekong river front. They cover the sidewalk in woven mats, creating a large “floor” for their patrons to sit on at low tables. Per custom, we took our shoes off before walking on the mat covered area.
We had a delicious meal, followed by a breathtaking, bright orange moon rising over the Mekong.
On the bike ride back to the hotel, the moon had risen even higher into the sky. It had lost it’s orange glow, but was as stunning as ever.
Street Markets
We happened upon two lively street markets while in Chiang Saen. One was a permanent market in town on the main street.
The other we encountered on our last night while out on an early evening bike ride. The Thursday night market (I’ll call it) occupied a huge field filled with food, vegetable and fruit vendors. And the entire back half of the field were clothing vendors.
Half the town’s population must have been at the market, purchasing their fresh fruit and veggies, picking up dinner for the family, or looking for that needed pair of pants – all in what was an empty field that morning.
The Hall of Opium Museum
Chiang Saen sits about 8 miles south of the very touristy Golden Triangle area, but it remains mostly tourist free. One day we took a Songthaew (pronounced Song-Tail), a converted pick-up truck with two rows of back benches, and the only public transportation in the area, up to the Hall of Opium Museum, a bit north of the Golden Triangle area.
The museum was very impressive, with a variety of mediums to help convey the complex and extensive history of the opium trade. It was well worth seeing.
Just Wait on the Highway
When leaving the somewhat remote museum, we were told by museum workers to go stand out on the highway and wait for a Songthaew. We stood for a few minutes, but looked up the practically deserted highway and decided it might be best to start walking.
Wild Boars, Tigers, and Tarantulas, oh my!
We headed towards the Golden Triangle area and civilization, wondering if there were wild boar, tigers, or tarantulas lying in wait for unsuspecting tourists walking along a lonely highway in the jungles of northern Thailand.
Actually, it was a great opportunity to get a closer look at a beautiful part of Thailand while other tourists whizzed by us with their hired drivers in their air conditioned Toyota vans.
The views over the jungle terrain across to Myanmar were gorgeous.
We made it back to Chiang Saen unscathed and ate a feast of street food we picked up in town, where the Songthaew had dropped us off. A great end to a great day.
The Language Barrier
For the first time on our SE Asian adventures, we encountered significant language challenges here in Chiang Saen.
Some communication highlights:
Check-In
The manager had memorized her check-in information, but beyond that, when I asked any question, she said some words that didn’t make sense (in English), smiled, and laughed.
The Pool
Heading to the pool one afternoon, I stopped in and saw the cook at the lobby desk (I’ll call her the cook, since she made our breakfast each morning and also worked in reception). I asked if they supplied pool towels. Blank look. I pantomimed a towel and pointed in the direction of the pool. Just as the manager had, the cook started laughing a hearty, full laugh. Right in my face. We held eyes for a few moments, then I turned and left the lobby. I guess I had my answer. I’d be using my REI travel towel at the pool.
T.P.
Another time I went to the front desk to ask for more toilet paper, as we were running quite low. The cook was there. I knew I was in trouble. I asked for a toilet paper roll. Blank look. I said “toilet”, then made the shape of a toilet roll with my hands. This wasn’t working, and I thought about giving up, but the alternative wasn’t pretty, so I had to use extreme measures.
I pointed to my behind. Still a blank look. Nothing registered. In the end (excuse the pun), I made my way around the counter so the cook could see my entire body, including below the waist. I proceeded to mimic sitting on an imaginary toilet, then wiping my butt with imaginary toilet paper. It was humiliating, but it worked.
Logistics
Since there was no bus station in town, and nothing helpful online, we asked at the hotel lobby for information on how to get a bus from Chiang Saen to Chiang Mai the next day. The cook and some random woman that was in the lobby (I think the cook’s friend) were trying their best to help us.
They started by getting up on a chair and taking the lobby wall clock off the wall. Then there was lots of pointing at the clock, and looking up to see if we understood, which we didn’t.
Next they talked very slowly to us in Thai (with more pointing at the clock), slowly repeating what was said, in case we might suddenly understand Thai on the second pass. We didn’t.
Finally, with the help of google translate, some more clock pointing, and some wild gesturing, we finally were somewhat sure we had things set.
Hopefully there’d be a tuk tuk to pick us up at 8 am the next morning, that would take us to some kind of bus out of town. Good enough for us.
My Thai
I know three words/ phrases in Thai, and they go a long way here.
I’ll type them phonetically, since that’s how I remember them. I’ve gotten pretty good at whipping them out, almost always using the right word at the right time.
- Saw-wa-dee-kaaaaa: means hello, or greetings.
- Cob-koon-kaaaaa: means thank you
- My-pen-rye: means no worries , or no problem
I also use the multipurpose word, kaaaa. It’s like an acknowledgement, or saying “ok”.
That’s the extent of my Thai language abilities, but I apparently do a spot-on pantomime of someone wiping their butt, so there’s that. :0