Long neck Karen village

Over the last couple of weeks we've seen a number of hill tribe villages, most of which are now doing rater well through employment in horticultural or botanical projects, growing fruit, vegetables, tea and coffee, and through trading with tourists.

The Long neck Karen village near Chiang Rai is a collective project where tourists pay to look at five different tribes going about their business wearing traditional dress and can buy their handicrafts. We left the project with misgivings about many aspects and feeling decidedly uncomfortable about the women in the long neck Karen tribe who have these heavy coils fitted round their necks as babies and so have no choice whether to wear them or not. By the time they reach middle age they have to continue wearing the coils as their necks aren't strong enough without them.