If you happen to find yourself in the southeast corner of the Isaan region, an afternoon spent at the Rong Kluea Market near the city of Sa Kaew is highly recommended. Actually, the market is on the Thai/Cambodian border with the nearest “city” being that of Sa Kaew. But don’t expect much in the way of accommodations in Sa Kaew. The market is most easily accessible via highway 33 East, which you can reach from Bangkok. The total distance from Bangkok is 214 kilometers.When I visited the market in February of 2008, we had arrived in Sa Kaew quite late in the evening after having driven most of the day from Hua Hin. I don’t recall at this time the name of the hotel we stayed in, though I will update this entry if I do recall the name of the hotel. Not that I would necessarily recommend a stay in this hotel as anything special, but I think it might be your only reasonable accommodation option in this very small town. And the room was reasonably clean and it was cheap.
Anyway, back to the market which is one of the reasons to find yourself this far into the corner of Isaan. 
The market is full of some really nice high-end “knockoffs” including designer handbags, a variety of techno gadgets, digital cameras and top-of-the line cell phones and PDAs. Along with your usual assortment of clothes and sunglasses. But the real reason to consider a trip here is the technology that can be had for a fraction of the price of the real product. And these knockoffs are quite high quality. For a rough estimate, expect to pay about 25% of what you would pay if you were buying the real item (for techno gadgets, substancially less for clothing and sunglasses).
A word of caution. While I was there at the market, quite a few “guides” came up to me saying in English that they could take me on a day trip to Cambodia and all I needed was my passport. I’m not sure, but I believe a visa is required to exit and re-enter Thailand from Cambodia and at any rate, I have heard stories of foreigners held hostage in Cambodia for ransom. Cambodia does not exactly have good relations with either Thailand or America (I would presume it is the same for western Europe and the like), so consider that a day trip into Cambodia especially a spur-of-the-moment trip such as this may be an adventure you don’t want!
Okay, so onto reason number two as to why you should consider travelling this far southeast into Isaan – the beautiful countryside. And this is such a remote area of Thailand and of Isaan for that matter. From the market, I recommend that you take highway 348 north to highway 24. From highway 24 you can head west back to Nakhon Ratchasima (from there you can get back onto highway 2 and get to Bangkok or Khon Kaen easily). Highway 24 is a major highway, so this is not part of your “countryside tour” per say, but highway 348 will take you through some very remote and beautiful areas. Just be aware that highway 348 though well paved at times is at other times little more than a dirt road. And watch out for the potholes! Also a word of caution about the signage – there isn’t any in English, at times it is only Thai sanscrit, so only travel in this direction if you are confident you can read it or find your way. Don’t expect locals to speak any English here. It’s best of course to travel with a Thai speaker. But if you make the couple of hours trek up highway 348 you will be rewarded with a trip that certainly no one in your circle of friends and probably even their circle of friends can remark that they have been there and done that too! For an added adventure, when you reach highway 224 at the intersection of highway 224 and highway 348, you can take highway 224 west. This will also take you to highway 24 and back to “civilization.” But it adds a little more time spent with the beautiful Thai countryside onto your journey. Isaan is a remote destination for most travelers to Thailand, this is the remote of the remote!
