In the morning we took some songtows (pick up trucks with benches in the back) to the Burmese border. Crossed over into Burma, and got about another 5 stamps to add to the passport! Went around the local markets and did a bit of shopping. Didnt really notice much difference between Burma nad Thailand, other than there's lots of kids wondering around trying to sell you viagra and porn. Litterally tons of them everywhere, and all selling exactly the same thing?!?! Went back into Thailand, and down to the Laos border and the Golden Triangle - so called for the massive drug factory's there. Took a long tail boat accross the river to Loas. In Laos got another stamp for the passport, and did a bit more shopping. Here they sell bottles of wisky with real snakes and scorpions in. disgusting but quite cool at the same time. I didnt buy one though, as thought that travelling with a dead snake in my bag for six months, i was bound to get shafted by some customs office somwhere! Back into Thailand (3 countries in one day!!!) and got to Chiang Rai.

We were staying in a real nice hotel, a short walk from the centre of town. Chiang Rai is very busy and bustling with nice night bazzars and markets. Prefer Chiang Mai to here though. We went to the night bazzar for dinner and then everyone went off and did their own thing - a few of us went to thing tiny bar in town called Teepee's. Stayed their till the early hours drinking buckets - the thai's have this drink called a bucket... which is a bucket filled with a bottle of thai rum, two red bulls and coke. They knock you out for about 24 hours and you feel aweful... well i do anyway! Anyway it was a fun night. Next day was spent recovering from the night before, and looking around the markets in Chiang Rai - in the evening there was a huge storm and the whole town got blown to pieces. Chaos with market stalls being blown all over the place lightening forks striking  left right and centre. I have never seen a storm like it! Had an early night, as we had a long journey ahead of us tomorrow