Photos from my motorbike ride to the Southeast Asia Golden Triangle.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-sign thai stopsign

Golden Triangle sign, with awesome universal Red Stop sign.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-rice-paddies

Rice fields.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-rural-homes Thailand

local homes along the back roads of northern thailand.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-pinapple-fields

Pineapple fields

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-opium-museum

The Opium Museum, Thailand side of the Golden Triangle

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-myanmar-border

Simple barbed wire fence, with random check posts. Myanmar on the left, Thailand on the right.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-mekong-river

Cafe in Thailand overlooking the Mekong River and Laos.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-laos

Laos

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-grilled-fish-pork-chicken-lunch

Road side street meat. Lunch!

Mekong River drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-laos-myanmar-mekong-river

South Eastern Asia. The Golden Triangle of the Opium trade.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbike-ride-thailand-golden-sign

Chiang Saen, Thailand side of the Golden Triangle

southeast-asia-golden-triangle-myanmar-laos-thailand-drewmanity.com

The Golden Triangle. three countries of opium trade/smuggling

Heading into the sunset, a smokey sunset that is.

Heading into the sunset, a smokey sunset that is.

drewmanity.com-golden-triangle-motorbikes-thailand-myanmar-border

Hitting a dead end, Myanmar on the left, Thailand on the right.

More than just a smile

drewmanity-women-selling-nuts

The sun was starting to set, the weather was changing from hot to a slight breeze of cool air flowing over the hills north from the river. I was walking as usual absorbing the environment around me when I came to about 10 meters from two older looking women perched on small stools selling their products out of giant woven baskets.  I instantly smiled as I thought to myself wow look at their faces. What history, and past experiences they must have witnesses and here they are today. I new it would be a great frame to capture for a photograph, but it became more than just a photograph, I felt connected to talk to them.

drewmanity-women-selling-nuts

I just loved this little moment in time.

As I walked closer I fell in love with their skin and their faces. Not the lust kind of love but the love for humanity and the will to survive. These women regardless of who they are or where they were from had energy that connected to mine. I took this picture but then stopped snapping and just smiled and walked up to speak to them.

Was this their hobby? Were they needing this money to survive? Perhaps a little of both. Who knows? I asked but we couldn’t translate each others words, they spoke Burmese, so instead we smiled at each other, laughed and I walked away paying 40 Baht/about 60 cents for a bag of nuts and a good feeling in my heart.