..both Hmong and Karen (Kaa-ren) villages a couple of years ago. Sadly, these are desperately poor people who used to grow the opium poppy as a main cash crop but can no longer do so and have turned to other crops that are not necessarily as lucrative. Both Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai are main cities located in what used to be known (is it still?) as the Golden Triangle region.

Their plight is severe. Many of the exquisite handicrafts made by these people are sold by middle men who pocket most of the profit. It's a sad business.

Tourism has had both positive and negative effects. There is a tribe towards the Myanmar border up north (I can't recall the name of the tribe or its exact location) but they are known in Thailand as 'the long-neck people'. To maintain tourist interest, the awful practice of extending the neck by the slow addition of metal rings continues. It starts with girls as young as five. Arms and lower legs are also gradually encased in a succession of graduated metal rings. This practice continues as it is seen as a way to trap the tourist dollar - and again, sadly, the tribes people are manipulated to do so by those who stand to make a profit on the tourist dollar. The rings cannot be removed as the neck snaps. So much for tourism...