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ride a motorcycle in Northern Thailand along the Laos and Burmese Borders? |
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The answer
lies buried in the regions geographical setting and turbulent history dating back almost
two thousand years. Traditionally known as "La Na" (Kingdom of a Million Rice
Fields), the region has for the most of its history been an entirely separate kingdom.
Ruled by the Burmese for centuries before achieving notoriety more recently as "The
Golden Triangle" - a label that conjures up images of war lords, mule trains and
fields of brilliant red flowers - the area has always been a cultural and economic
crossroads. Dominated by the vast Mekong River sweeping down from Central China through
the point where the borders of Laos, Burma and Thailand configure together, the terrain is
lushly forested, rugged and Mountainous. The valleys that carve through this magnificent
scenery are host to a remarkably extensive, modern and lightly used network of roads.
Today , the advent of modern transport and the wane of old trading practices leaves a
region that has renounced its turbulent past but which still retains its rich cultural and
ethnic roots. Add to this some of the finest motorcycle roads anywhere in the world, and
you will understand why those in the know are happy that this remains a closely guarded
secret. |
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