Following the Mekong River


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Asia » Thailand » North-East Thailand » Nong Khai
February 9th 2013
Published: February 14th 2013
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Wat Phra That Doi  SuthepWat Phra That Doi  SuthepWat Phra That Doi Suthep

The dragon staircase - awesome isnt it!
We spent a couple of days in Chiang Mai the capital of the North. It has the most incredible night market where the streets are so full that if you walk down the centre you cannot even see the stalls on either side. Lots of buskers and street food but in the main not special as they were catering for the masses and had pre-cooked a lot of stuff which unless is a stew or soup does not bode well for a Thai meal which is all about fresh, made on the spot stuff. We followed the stalls into a Wat which was a lot quieter and had some dinner there – a delicious curry served by a young girl of about 8 working with her mum and grandfather. She was animated and spoke English very well, and that is because she lives in Sydney and was visiting her grandparents for the summer holidays.

We got our rental car with GPS and went for a drive around the area which is so beautiful. Up the mountains and down the hills and eventually to the top of Doi Suthep which of course has a Wat right on the top. The stairs
Hill Tribe dogs clothesHill Tribe dogs clothesHill Tribe dogs clothes

In the weekend Market Chiang Mai - these poodles wearing traditional hill tribe clothes!
were awesome with their dragon railings snaking their way all the way to the top. The views were lovely and it was sunset and then there was a sprinkling of rain which was very refreshing even though it was not that hot it had been very dusty and this cleaned the leaves on the trees and I felt allowed everything to breathe again.

The next morning we were up early and made our way to Sukhothai an ancient capital. We arrived at about 4 in the afternoon and as our Lonely Planet was a bit out of date we used the Gps to help us find a hotel. This worked out well. 450 Bhat for a big room with tv and wifi. That converts to about R125 in our money. We cleaned up and went to survey the area. Sukothai is on a small river but the town does not use this to their advantage – nothing is built facing it and there is not much on the banks so to speak of only a rather dismal park and the Wat nearby that was scenic more for the monks and a ruined building than for anything else.

SukhothaiSukhothaiSukhothai

Young monks at a Wat


The ancient town on the other hand the next day was superb. Even though quite small the ruins were in very good condition and the park around was lovely. We have been spoilt having already seen Anchor Wat and there is not much that can compare in scale with that. Having said that, we really enjoyed our morning there. I hired one of those portable guides which are so clever. You just plug in the number of where you are and the guide tells you all about it. You can also listen over and over if you can’t take it all in the first time.

After a lunch break we went to the museum which was small but full of finds from the ruins and also pictures of how they found them and the restoration of them. We had been lucky as during the morning it was cool and overcast and while at the museum it started to rain again and we were inside. Perfect!

We studied the map and decided to g up once again to the Mekong. I was last there in 1988 with Terry where we drove around on a motor bike. Not quite
 Temple ruins and dog  Temple ruins and dog Temple ruins and dog

loved the way this dog was sitting on the bench at sunset
to where we were going now but still the mighty Mekong. We made our way to Chiang Khan which the Lonely Planet said was very quiet and not much happening. We never had any expectations and discovered the loveliest of towns with the most charming old wooden Thai houses in tiny lanes and along the Mekong. The main road not wider than a car’s width was filled with stylie shops and not a fa’rang in sight. This is a local tourist resort and I really hope it stays that way. So shhh!!! Don’t tell anyone ok!!!

Our hotel was awesome too with a beautiful room overlooking the river. The windows all opened up and you could see the view from your bed! The river and the other side, which of course is Laos. At night the street is closed to motorized traffic and the buskers come out and the fairy lights go on - it reminded us of Hoi An – where were you Warren!!!! You can buy snacks as you walk along the street and one that I loved was a mixture of ginger, onion, coconut, chilli, peanuts, lime, a dash of syrup all wrapped up in a leaf which you ate. It was so refreshing and delicious and of course I have not seen them again!

I was sorry we had to pack up and leave the next morning. We drove through great country side, the Mekong on our left never far from us. Nong Khai was too close but made a great lunch stop. We got lucky here as the restaurant we stopped had the most delicious soup kept in a steamer all ready in the dishes. The lady then used this implement to take out the hot bowl – an implement I have been on the lookout for ever since as I thought this was a top idea and if anyone knows my kitchen its full of gadgets from my travels and I don’t have one of those!!! (Of course I also think Mavis might need one! google Cooking with Mavis)

I love the farm stalls we pass on the way. One section will be bananas and then all you see are bananas or pineapples or in the higher areas it was strawberry season and I bought a bottle of strawberry concentrate and some strawberry dried fruit sweets – sorry family I ate
Mekong morning mist Mekong morning mist Mekong morning mist

Early morning mist over Laos and the mighty Mekong River
them all!!! Lots of turnips tied up in neat little bunches and garlic in big mounds – I have never seen so much garlic in fact truck loads just of garlic.

So we ended our next day in a funny little place called Beung Khan our hotel had no rooms in the front so the view of our river was from the side but we did look right into a Wat. There was not much happening here and once again it was Thai travelers – no menus in English. We did see a table of foreign older guys who were having a party in the afternoon but they looked like hard core travelers or maybe even lived in the area.

At sunset we sat at one of the Restaurants on the river front but not being able to read the menu did not realize it was a cook your own which Terry does not do!!! He says he can’t understand why one would go out to eat then have to cook it yourself??? So we had a couple of drinks and moved on. I went into the kitchen to see what was cooking this time as I wanted some some fish – a local guy who was eating there jumped up and said he could speak English and helped us get what we wanted – steamed fish and veggies. It was a very good meal and the fish was delish and came with big chunks of pumpkin and eggplant which was not something we had had before like this in Thailand where everything is chopped rather small.

The gong at the Wat went off at 6.30 so it was a good wake up call. We could hear the monks chanting. We packed up and left for our next destination Mukdahan once again the Mekong on our left. We stopped at the friendship bridge just out of town but you could not see much from there except trucks waiting to go across the river. This is the where the Mekong is the widest and at this time of the year the river is at the lowest but wow I can only imagine how wild it must be when it’s in full swing during the monsoon it must be awesome. Mukdahan is famous for its markets selling all sorts and once again one wonders about the amount of stuff
Chiang KhanChiang KhanChiang Khan

This place so reminded me of Hoi An in Vietnam with its shop houses and at night it was so pretty with the lights
around. We got ourselves a great room on the river on the 4th floor and bonus a lift!! with a big balcony where we could watch the sun go down with a sundowner and some pistachio nuts. We went to the night market for dinner and I was so busy looking I nearly bumped into an elephant that was walking around (a baby one but bigger than me!) just following his mahout not attached to anything. I nearly shat myself just as it was so unexpected and I had not seen it coming.

We decided to stay another night here and look around the area. We went up the hill to a wat where they are building the most enormous base that they are going to put a big something (probably a Buddha) on the top. The gardens were superb and the view awesome.

They also have a lookout tower in the city that was built to commemorate the kings reign which we went up. There was a museum downstairs with a few artifacts and traditional clothing of different Thai tribes. The viewing platform had great binoculars so I did get to see the Freedom Bridge number 2
getting ready for dinner trade getting ready for dinner trade getting ready for dinner trade

Beung Khan dinner on the banks of the Mekong
quite closely and also a great peak into Loas.

That night on our way to dinner there were loads of moths and flying ants. I have never seen so many. They had to keep the lights off at the restaurant. In the morning the ground was carpeted with their bodies and it looked like cream snow.

So off we went again but this time it was farewell to the Mekong.


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In the veggie patchIn the veggie patch
In the veggie patch

This area would be flooded in the monsoon and so the banks are really fertile - you saw the veggies being picked and used in the restaurants above
 sunrise mukdahan sunrise mukdahan
sunrise mukdahan

this is where the Mekong is at its widest


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