Mike McCabe 2000

The hectic and dangerous Bangkok traffic fades as we drive Northwest from the city limits. The land runs flat and the edges of the small scale, two-lane highway are flanked with strip mall type businesses: Auto repair shops, restaurants, and an occasional glitzy massage parlor. Ten miles out all this also fades into big leafy palms and scrub tropical growth. There are ramshackle, non-descript, cinderblock buildings every once in a while. Slower traffic of small motorcycles pulls to the road edge as we pass. The young women passengers wearing skirts are riding sidesaddle. Smoky fires burn in clearings at the jungle’s edge, pushing back its voracious spread. Red clay soil contrasts the bold green hue of the vegetation.