Near the Golden Triangle

Tonite (8:30pm Monday 12 December in Thailand) I am sitting in an internet cafe in a nice hotel in Chiang Rai in the extreme north, near the Golden Triangle. Very interesting day...visited an orchid farm, a teakwood furniture factory, a place where they make paper products from elephant dung (really!), an elephant training camp, an hour ride on an elephant into the thick forest, a boat ride on the Mae Kok River and visited 3 hilltribe villages. Tomorrow we go to the Burmese border and explore the Golden Triangle and then return to Chiang Mai. I hope to be able to post some pictures on Friday when I get back to a Marriott in the beach resort of Pattaya....or sooner if I can find an internet cafe that can read the CD that I backed up my pictures to.