Thailand (Lonely Planet, 13th Edition) - China Williams [177]
One breakthrough did occur in 2006 when the Thai government granted citizenship to 2000 Mon children in Sangkhlaburi who had been born in the kingdom.
In 2008 Burma’s violent crackdown against protestors and the Nagris cyclone disaster created a fresh wave of people looking to flee the country. The Mon people in Burma continue to suffer and reports of rape, beatings and arrests are common. They are stuck between a country where they are repressed and a country where they have few rights. Because of this, there are fears their once proud traditions and culture could eventually become completely assimilated and lost forever.
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Baan Unrak Bakery (snacks 25-90B) Vegetarians will love this meatless cafe, which has excellent pastries and Thai dishes. The cheese and red bean doughnut is nothing short of spectacular. The bakery is part of the Baan Unrak organisation (Click here).
Shopping
Visitors interested in Karen weaving should spend time at the small store at the Baan Unrak Bakery or the shop outside P Guest House; the products are made by the Baan Unrak women’s cooperative.
Getting There & Away
Right across from the market is a bare patch of land that serves as Sangkhlaburi’s bus station. Ordinary bus 8203 leaves Sangkhlaburi for Kanchanaburi (130B) at 6.45am, 8.15am, 9.45am and 1.15pm, and takes five hours. Air-con buses depart for Bangkok’s northern terminal (1st/2nd class 333/259B) at 7.30am, 9am, 10.30am and 2.30pm on the four-hour journey south. These buses also stop at Sai Yok and Kanchanaburi. To the rear of the market is a minivan office where you can book tickets to Kanchanaburi (180B, three times a day). Stops include Thong Pha Phum (80B). A motorbike taxi to guesthouses will cost around 15B.
The distance between Kanchanaburi and Sangkhlaburi is about 230km. From Thong Pha Phum to Sangkhlaburi it’s 74km.
Around Sangkhlaburi
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Three Pagodas Pass
This frontier town may be within Thailand’s borders but there’s a distinct Burmese flavour to it. The pagodas (Phrá Jedii Sam Ong) after which the town is named are unremarkable, and the main reason many come here is to gain a day pass into secretive Myanmar.
On the other side of the border is the town of Payathonzu, which has a souvenir market and a few teahouses. It’s important to check with locals before coming, as the Myanmar government habitually shuts its side of the border due to fighting between Burmese military and ethnic armies.
If there is no way through, the market on the Thai side is full of traders selling Burmese whisky, jewellery, cigars and bizarre health treatments involving goats’ heads. At the entrance to one noodle restaurant is a time capsule which was buried in 1995 by Allied POWs to mark the 50th anniversary of the ‘Death Railway’. If you’re passing this way on 20 April 2045 you can see it being opened.
Should the border be open, foreigners can obtain a day pass, but it’s not possible to gain a visa extension. You will need to temporarily surrender your passport and provide a passport photo to the Thai immigration office. At the Myanmar immigration office, a copy of the photo page of your passport and a passport photo is needed, plus 500B or US$10. When you return to Thailand, you will receive your passport back. There is a small photocopy shop near the Thai immigration office.
These days things seem peaceful enough, but Karen and Mon rebels used to fight the Burmese army for control of the pass. Any taxes the rebels could raise from smuggled goods helped fund their resistance movements. Even today the pass is said to be an important drug smuggling route, especially for amphetamines.
At the time of writing the