Recently, North by North East Tours escorted a group of 8 Australian wholesale tour agents and Alan Hill, a travel writer, on a Fam (familiarization) trip through the southern and eastern Isan Provinces of Thailand's northeast. The trip was sponsored by the Tourist Authority of Thailand (TAT), Sydney and North by North East Tours.

Lintel Depicting Vishnu, Phnom Rung

Nick Ascot, creator and director of North by North East Tours, has put heart and soul into promoting Thailand's northeast, almost single-handedly for 6 years. Isan comprises in landmass and population about a third of the entire country and has within its 19 provinces some of the country's best National Parks and without a shadow of a doubt the most splendid and fascinating archaeological sites in the entire country.

The world's earliest known bronze-age culture developed within present-day Isan and there are several archaeological dig sites open to public viewing. The best examples of the glory of the Khmer Empire outside of Angkor Wat are to be found in southern Isan along the ancient Royal Road (which extended from Angkor to Sukothai).

Perhaps most unappreciated are the Isan people themselves, without a doubt the friendliest, most genuine people in the Kingdom. Isan people are per capita the poorest in the country and are of ethnic Lao stock: perhaps that is why the area has until now been almost entirely neglected, by both the TAT and travelers. The few visitors who come are usually 2nd or 3rd time visitors to the Kingdom, who having experienced the ‘major attractions' look for something deeper, within the Kingdom and themselves.

“So near yet so far away” is the way Wayne Robertson of Nirvana Tours described this Fam trip through Isan. Isan is closer to Bangkok than Phuket, Koh Samui or Chiang Mai – places already so well known that they need no promotion. Yet the TAT has consistently put most of its budget and energy in further promoting well-established destinations, rather than concentrating on the parts of the country that most need promotion. While long overdue, it's encouraging that finally the Tourist Authority is beginning to pay attention to this part of the country.

Khmer Temple Phimai Actually Predates Angkor Wat

On the first day the group went to Korat (also known as Nakorn Ratchasima) 3 and ½ hours northeast of Bangkok and visited nearby Ban Than Prasat, a bronze age archaeological site dating back 3-5000 years. From there they proceeded to Ban Phimai, a Khmer temple complex dating back 1000 years, actually predating Angkor. The Department of Fine Arts has done a wonderful job of restoring this splendid site. That night the Sima Thani, Isan's only 5-star hotel, provided traditional dancing for entertainment.

Ban Dan Kwien, a village of potters east of Korat was the first stop on the second day. Many of Dan Kwien's products can be found on the shelves of expensive shops from Paris to Sydney, from Cape Cod to Cape Town; they can be purchased here, directly from the artisans, for a tiny fraction of the prices found abroad.

Recently Fired Pots in Ban Dan Kwien Pottery Village

Continuing east, the next visit was to Phnom Rung and Muang Tham Khmer temples. Nearly a thousand years ago these were important centres of trade and culture on the Royal Road. Built on top of an extinct volcano, from which the Dongrek Mountains on the Cambodian border can be seen, Phnom Rung dates back to the 12th century. At the base of the mountain, is Muang Tham, The Lower City, another exquisite and well-preserved example of the legacy of the sophisticated and mighty Khmer Empire, built approximately in the same time frame as Phanom Rung. They are both awe-inspiring. Ayutthaya pales in comparison.

Royal Causeway and Naga Bridge at Phnom Rung, 12th Century

The second night was spent in Surin. Last stop for the evening was the Farang Connection Pub, run by Martin, an expatriate Englishman who serves a fine selection of English bitters and lagers. The very well-run Thong Tarin Hotel hosted the group.

Day 3 began with a trip to a Suai ethnic minority village. Traditionally the Suai – people of Mon-Khmer ethnic stock – have since the Kings of Angkor and later those of Ayutthaya, been the Royal Elephant catchers and keepers. Despite the heavy monsoon downpour, most of the group was game to climb aboard the pachyderms for a ride around the village. Australians are game like that!

In the Wet - Wayne Robertson of Nirvana Tours

Heading further east to Ubon Ratchathani in the wet, the next stop was at Kwao Sinarin silk-weaving village. This village consistently produces the finest hand-woven silk to be found in Thailand and has received several awards from Her Majesty the Queen. The charming Miss Aw, from TAT Sydney bought one of the loveliest pieces – I wish I'd seen it first! Several silversmiths producing high-quality jewelry also live in this village. We spent the night at the excellent Thong Tarin Hotel in Ubon.

Leaving Ubon on day 4 the first stop was the Thai/Lao border at Chong Mek. No visa is required to walk across and explore the extensive fascinating market on the Lao side. Within the market can be found antiques, basketry, silks and cottons, jungle produce, locally produced and imported duty-free booze and just about anything you could ever need. The brief hour spent there could only scratch the surface of what this extraordinary frontier market has to offer.

Not far from Chong Mek, where the Mun (pronounced moon ) River meets the Mekong is the small town of Khong Jiam. Several floating restaurants specializing in locally caught fish line the banks. For lunch the piece de resistance was the humongous and superb baked freshwater prawns – some weighing nearly half a kilo! After a most satisfying lunch, a short trip by long-tail boat brought the group to the Tohsang Khong Jiam Resort on the banks of the Mekong. This is a 5-star resort seemingly in the middle of nowhere. For peace and ambience it is unparalleled in the entire northeast.

Tohsang Khong Jiam Resort on the Mekong

It was so nice, that the entire group opted to spend the afternoon there rather than explore nearby Pha Taem National Park beside the Mekong, renowned for its prehistoric cliff paintings and strange rock formations. (Though perhaps the thunderstorm had some influence on their decision – game as they were). It doesn't take much to get Australians to sing. Much of the late afternoon and the night were spent in bibulous song and revelry.

The destination for the 5th day was Mukdahan, a large provincial capital on the Mekong across from Savannakhet, Laos. A visit to a monkey sanctuary in the small village of Ban Panna, dedicated to a famous Buddhist ascetic was the only stop on the way. After lunch in Mukdahan, several of the group crossed the river to Savannakhet for a brief survey of this once-bustling French Colonial town while the remainder explored Mukdahan and the riverside Indochine Market.

While in somewhat a state of advanced entropy, Savannakhet still mirrors the colonial charm of its recent past. Having visited the Provincial Museum, the Dinosaur Museum, the busy central market, looking at the colonial architecture and a lovely Lao temple it was time to go. The warmth and hospitality of the Lao people can be felt immediately, beckoning one to stay longer, but the last boat back to Thailand left at 4:30. The night was spent at the Ploy Palace Hotel, with the charming and articulate director, Pi Rawat, acting as host.

Decadent Savannakhet

Greeted by yet another wet morning, the group's spirits remained undampened. (Gotta love those Aussies!) Sixty kilometers up the road, the bus pulled into the village of Ban Nong Hoi Yai, home to Nick Ascot's wife Kaew. This is a very traditional Isan village where the women still weave their own matmee (a form of ikat) cloth. Local schoolchildren danced to traditional Lao acoustic accompaniment before the village elders performed a Bai Sii ceremony for the guests. Incorporated into the local Buddhist idiom, the Bai Sii is a purely Lao ceremony, animist in origin. Its purpose is to ensure that the 32 protective spirits remain within you, keeping one from ill health and misfortune.

Bid a fond adieu by the villagers, the next stop was Wat That Phanom, one of most revered Buddhist sites in Thailand. Local legend puts the building of the original temple just a few years after the Buddha's death, nearly 2,500 years ago! From there it was only a short drive to the town of Nakorn Phanom, another provincial capital on the Mekong and home to North by North-East Tours. For 9 years, the Secret War in Laos was staged from the U.S. Airbase here, now used solely for commercial flights.

Rachel Imber of World Expeditions Spinning Cotton in Ban Nong Hoi Yai

After another fine lunch at the View Khong restaurant, an hour's leisurely boat cruise upstream delivered the group to the River Beach Resort, where North by North-East's general manager – and master chef – Yves Berton, served a splendid buffet banquet. The TAT of Nakorn Phanom organized a troupe of dancers from the Saek minority village of Ban Asamart to perform a most unusual dance.

Saek Minority Dancers in Nakorn Phanom

Men and women sit facing one another, each pair holding two wooden poles that are spread and clacked on two parallel poles on the ground and then whacked together, producing the rhythm for the dance. The dancers nimbly whirl, stepping in and out of the clacking poles. The Aussies (never let it be said that they're shy) joined in and escaped with only minor bruises to their ankles. Some of them returned to the Riverview Hotel after dinner while others opted to continue the party and sample Nakorn Phanom's nightlife.

The Lovely Miss Aw of TAT Sydney

On the last morning – only moderately damp – after a brief tour of the town, the group visited Ho Chi Minh's house where he lived hiding from the French between 1923 and 1930. Nakorn Phanom has an interesting cultural mix: Thai, Lao and Vietnamese, not to mention the 7 ethnic minorities within the province. Approximately 40% of the town is of Vietnamese extraction. During the Viet Nam War, most families had at least one son fighting for the North Vietnamese and at least one other family member working on the U.S. Air Force base!

The group went from Ho Chi Minh's to the airport. Time to say farewell. The old airbase now has only one flight a day whereas in its heyday there were hundreds, dropping bombs on Laos as fast as munitions factories in the United States could supply them.

I hope that this trip will have a positive effect on the future of tourism in Isan and that the TAT will continue to show interest in its development. The signs are encouraging. Every provincial TAT office now has slick, glossy, well-written brochures with brilliant photographs of each province's attractions. TAT Australia largely sponsored this promotional trip, sending some of the most influential people in the Australian tour industry. The infrastructure is all in place. Will tourism in Isan begin to flourish? Time will tell. It's certainly about time.

Cheers Mates! - Photo by Wayne Robertson