"Crossing the Border into M ..." a Mae Sai Travel Page by BorderHopper

From a hillside temple in Mae Sai, Thailand we could look out over a forrest covered, rugged valley with the northern most Thai city of Mae Sai on the south side of the Sai River. On the north side of the river the small Burmese city of Tachilek was spread out before us. On a south facing hill, on the west side of Tachilek, Myanmar we could see a Chinese cemetary spread out on a steep hillside. Further north I was able to see a large hill side that literally had its face sheared off. Tachilek has a large gem mining operation and this mutilated hillside was the result of mining by the Myanmar government. On another hill in Tachilek a large spired golden pagoda stood high above the frontier. The Thai town of Mai Sai, much larger than its counterpart across the border, lined up right to the banks of the Sai River only 25 yards from their Burmese neighbors just across the muddy, brown river.

While hanging out by the river on the Thai side I notice some Burmese locals ferrying goods across the small river using a rope to guide them across. They didn't use boats but chose to walk across the chest high water. The sight of them moving their goods this way left me wondering why they didn't use the border crossing bridge only a few hundred yards away which would have obviously been the safer way to move their goods. I thought that the Burmese may have wanted to avoid the border guards on the bridge but if secrecy was their goal then that would have been thwarted thanks to the Thai customs officers near the spot ib the river they were crossing. Maybe it is a legit crossing for locals but it sure seemed far more dangerous. In the photograph of the Sai river you may notice trash strewn about the banks of the Sai river on the Burmese (right) side. I saw countless Burmese empty basket after basket of trash into the river from their side and most of it would flow down a few hundred yards then get tangled in the other debris along their side of the river. I hardly saw a Thai do the same thing but I'm sure that Mae Sai has a better system for collecting trash than the people of Tachilek do.

Just before the Thai side of the border bridge crossing we came upon a sign indicating the "Northern most point of Thailand" which seemed like a good spot for a souvenier photograph. Before entering the tall archway on the Thai side of the border you must pay a small fee in baht to the Thai immigration officers set up in a kiosk nearby. You'll then be waved through the Thai border after handing in your departure card to the Thai authorities. The bridge is adorned with both Thai and Myanmar flags, and you may notice monks, Karen minorities, Thai, ethnic Indians, Chinese, and even beggar children streaming back and forth across the bridge. Before you cross under the large blue "Union of Myanmar" sign you'll have to stop by a small room designated for collecting fees from foreign visitors. You'll have to pay the Burmese guard $5 usd and leave your passport with them. Most people crossing at this bridge will only be allowed to stay on the Myanmar side of the border until 5 pm. You can re-claim your passport upon exiting Myanmar.

Walking into Tachilek you'll notice a tree lined street with pedi-cab and samlor drivers vying for your business. They offer tours of Tachilek for about 350 baht but you should be able to negotiate as we did. On the right side of the road is a large market area with cheap goods from China, Thailand, and Myanmar. If you wander around this area you may find some good deals on Burmese theatrical puppets and other interesting curios. You will also notice animal skins, skulls, and other poached remains which most people avoid buying.