This installment of Travel Photo of the Week captures a unique countryside scene in Thailand. On my first trip to Northern Province of Chiang Rai in 2003, I had my driver take me to the town of Mae Sai at the Thailand/Myanmar border. About 10KM from the border, we passed by a series of colorful roadside concessions selling a variety of fruit wines as well as strawberries and dried fruit.

Young (and smiling) Thai ladies manned most of the concessions. In order to entice oncoming motorists to stop and sample their wares, many of these girls would stand on the shoulder of the highway holding a bottle or two of wine in their hands.

Charmed by the beguiling smile of a young Thai Lady, we stopped at one these roadside stalls for an impromptu wine tasting session. Before leaving, I purchased a couple of bottles of wine and photographed the young lady as she stood in front of her shop with a bottle of strawberry wine in hand. The bottles of wine in the background create sort of a beehive effect and makes for a great photo.

What about the wine, you may ask? Available in four flavors - strawberry, lychee, mulberry and herb/fruit mix – the wine is very delicious and somewhat sweet (too much sugar) and costs about $3.00 US per bottle.