Thailand

“Hill Tribe” is a term used in Thailand for all of the various tribal peoples who migrated from Yunnan, Tibet, or elsewhere in China over the past few centuries. They now inhabit the remote border areas between Northern Thailand, Laos and Burma (Myanmar). These areas are known for their thick forests and mountainous terrain. The six major hill tribes within Thailand are the Akha, Lahu, Karen, Hmong/Miao, Mien/Yao and Lisu, each with a distinct language and culture.  Of these, we visited a Lahu, Karen and Lisu villages.

The hill tribes are subsistence farmers who use  agricultural techniques to farm their heavily forested communities. Tighter conservation of Thailand's virtually depleted forests, however, has forced hill tribe people to abandon their traditional agricultural methods. Traditionally, hill tribes were also a migratory people, leaving land as it became depleted of natural resources.

Finally, before visiting the tribes, we visited the Mae Malai market.  It is rare to visit a market in such a remote location.  The market was filled with offerings that seemed strange and exotic.  Among the products were larvae, large and small roaches, ants, bees and many animal organs.  This was a great experience, because it was so rare on such a trip.