A day trip to Chiangrai and Mae Sai
By Chris Vercammen – Chiang Mai
My Thai wife was born in Chiangrai in the Mae Chan district. Every now and then she wants to take a day off. In other words: “back to the roots”.
The family home still exists and most of the elderly relatives still reside in the district. However, brother & sisters have spread all over the country, even abroad. The number of uncles and aunts is decreasing.
So we took the opportunity to drive to Mae-Sai and so on to the Mekong delta. Mae Sai is for the ภาษาไทย a “shopping place to be”. Then we took a boat trip on the Mekong River.
The boat is rented for 400 baht and it sails to Laos. There you can buy a ticket at the immigration, without passport obligations, for 20 baht.
Beer, statues, souvenirs and booze are plentiful here. The Lao whiskey with the snake in the bottle can be purchased here for 50 baht per bottle. It does smell a bit like glorified gasoline…
A two-liter bottle of wine, which tastes like Spanish Sangria, costs just 80 baht. Three bottles of Lao whiskey for 100 baht is a souvenir for the family members, who like it best.
Here are a few photos to get in the mood.
[Nggallery id = 31]
I think that 20 baht for the visa is only for Thai.
I lost 1500 and another 100 for the police.
The boat does not sail to IN Laos but to an "island" in the middle of the Mekong. There you go ashore and pay 20 baht. You walk around the market and can buy "tax free". Also cheap whiskey and other drinks. You can have a stamp of Laos put in your passport and possibly post a card that will then be sent by Laos post. Of course it is done by many tourists. It's a nice trip. Be careful with the amount of alcohol you bring………