Chiang Mai (Northern Thailand) Tourist Guide

We were cruising down the raging, mightily dangerous, Salawin River, heading towards a small village called Tha Tafang, having already spent half a day on dirt roads - the wind volleying all round us and the spray droplets stinging cheeks and eyes: cold-feeling, braced to hold ourselves in the bucketing boat, but enjoying being very much alive and a part of wild nature.

Looking forward too to reaching our destination. A friend of mine had told me about this village where the locals get together to form a so-called ecotourism-based community and provide limited home-stay services for travelers. I was also told this village was radical in many ways, including their approach to environmental management, and that at times strangers are not welcome there. Since hearing this I've been yearning to see it for real.

And there I was, part of the magnificent landscape of the Salawin River that forms the border between Thailand and Burma. The Burmese side obviously richer in terms of natural resources.

"Once, not too long ago, the trees on the Thai side were as many as theirs, but then illegal loggers came in and started cutting trees. These logs were taken across the river, and imported back to Thailand, through appropriate outposts and customs stations so they became ‘legal'. The locals here have been fighting to keep the forest. That's why they decided to have the home-stay business - to let people come in and see how they live their lives in self-sufficiency and with deep respect toward nature," our guide down the river, his eyes deep with regret for the past, told us.

After the long trek from the river to the village, there was little time left before the sun set. So, we decided to walk around the village. Some Karen children ran behind us like a tail asking us to take their photos. These were no hilltribe kids you see on Doi Suthep that you have to pay for their photos, but all the same we felt sympathy for them. Before leaving Chiang Mai we'd stocked up with plenty of goodies that you can't get out in the deep country. And when we handed out those 30-baht packets of brightly-colored snacks, the boys and girls looked puzzled. They sniffed them and looked at us like, ‘What is this?' Finally we gave up and bought them some peas that are sold there at five baht a time and they just grabbed the bags and ran merrily away.

Then we unwound in the wooden house where we were going to stay that night. We could hear the sound of the rice pounder outside and the young girls happily chatting while working it. Thanks to the generous support by the government, some of the people here enjoy the luxury of solar-powered electricity at lower rates than it actually costs. However, some that did not have enough money even for that have to make do with candles. In the place where we were staying, the electricity condenser had broken down and my friends and I had a very romantic candlelit dinner. If you're boozers like us, you need to buy your liquor before coming, because this strictly-Christian village strongly prohibits the selling of any intoxicants. The head of this village came to join us and we had a very good chat, giving us the feeling this was a very special occasion, above all offering us a chance to get lots of information about this and other similarly remote communities we otherwise wouldn't have known about. One of the questions I asked the headman was why this village hadn't participated in the state-promoted reforestation program, like others had.

"We just use what we have here," he told us. "There's no need for more forest. Our simple rule here is, if anyone needs to cut down a tree, he or she has to plant five more to replace it. And the new trees have to be taken care of too. No-one lets the newly-planted trees die. So, we don't want a lot of big trees. We just want to save what we already have," explained the village elder.

Then our guide teased him about the pomelo tree from Nakorn Pathom province that he'd been trying to grow for some years now without success, whether that showed he wasn't satisfied with what he already had. He laughed at that and said, "It's better than spending money on buying something new, anyway."

I'd almost forgotten the last time I woke up early enough to see the dawn, to hear the chirping and tweeting birds, and to feel this freshened up. We took a morning walk by the river to the tourist information center and just watched the morning clouds shifting their colors in the light of the rising sun. Fine, fresh but not cold weather, and nice to be out in the country - that was the feel of it.

Then we walked back to the village for breakfast. I couldn't help noticing some deserted houses. Soon enough, I was told that anybody wanting to stay for good could just tell the head of the village, fix the house and move in. Quite tempting, wouldn't you say?

But it wouldn't be that easy. I'm too attached to the more comfortable life in the city and have too many obligations there to just run away like that. Still, I can imagine that the kind of life on offer out here would suit others right down to the ground.

	Contact For more information, contact the Mae Yuam Tambon Administration Organization Office at least one week in advance at 053-682047.
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	Cost Cost for home stay: 100 baht per person per day, with 50 baht extra per meal.
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	Water The locals there drink boiled water from their reservoir. If you want more premium grade hygiene, buy bottled water from outside. Also bring flashlights and any personal stuff.
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	How to get there 1. Use Highway 108 to Mae Sarieng (198 km) 2. Turn left into Mae Sarieng - Mae Samlab road (46 km) 3. Get a boat at Mae Samlab pier. To leave your car there, you need to pay 30 baht per night as fee for watching over your car. To rent the entire boat for your journey, the fee is 1000 baht. For a one-way boat ride, the cost is 60 baht per person.
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	Some points to bear in mind for visitors The people in Tha Tafang are dependent on agriculture, while tourism is only an extra source of income. They therefore can't accept more than 40 tourists at a time, given their limited resources. Furthermore, after a biggish group of visitors have left, they need a break of some time to get back to normality, before receiving more guests. Hence the need to plan ahead and use the information sources available (above).