684 REJOINDERS AND COMMENTARY Asian Studies, jointly with the Canadian Council for Southeast Asian Studies, Vancouver, October. 1993 Catalyst of Economic and Political Change. Tourism in Highland Minorities in Ladakh (India) and Northern Thailand. Internationales Asienforum 24(1-2): 21-43. Submitted 10 February 1994 Accepted 20 February 1994 OlSO-7383(94)00071-91 zyxwvu Further Comments on Fieldwork in Thailand Philip Dearden University of Victoria, Canada zyxwvutsrqp It is flattering to receive a commentary such as that by Jean Michaud, which displays such concern, and this chance to put his mind at ease is appreciated. Over the last decade, as he rightly quotes from the article, “ at least two visits per year to the area, some as long as 3 months each” have been spent in the area. This means that in some years over 6 months has been spent in the field in the area. This includes spending three sabbatical leaves there, giving ample opportunity to gain the “ considerable familiarity” with the area that Michaud objects to. Not all of this time has been spent undertaking research on trekking. Time was also devoted to other roles, such as Leader of the Watershed Management Project of a major linkage between this author’s own institution and Chiang Mai University (Dearden 1992), and supervising the research of four Thai and Canadian Ph.D. candidates working in the area, plus several Masters students. In addition, several months were spent on fieldwork in the area in both 1992 and 1993 (not a “ few weeks” ) and another sabbatical term in the area has just been completed. The interviews used as a basis for the article published in zyxwvutsrqponmlkjihgfedcbaZYXWVUTSRQPONMLKJIHGFEDCBA Annals were, in fact, as stated in the paper, conducted in two 2-month sessions in 1989-1990; however, the co-author who conducted the interviews spent virtually a year there building up experience. In light of the above, it is ironic that Michaud accepts the interview data as reliable, but “ it is when the authors embark upon discussions of the highlanders themselves- their perceptions, their economy, their future, etc. -that they overstep both the bounds of their topic, and their capacity to address this complex issue. . . ” These are the very areas where the considerably larger experiential base of the authors is most important. It is gratifying that during the course of his Ph.D. work Michaud had the opportunity to spend a 15-month stretch in Thailand. It is an opportunity that few scholars, including this writer, can engineer once the responsibilities of academic life become a reality. However, this does not mean that all field research undertaken subsequent to the doctorate must be dismissed as inade- quate. Admittedly, it takes more forethought and experience to bring a re- search project to fruition under these circumstances. But the total amount of time spent in the field has been far in excess of the 15 months spent by Michaud. The publication rate on the basis of this experience has been admit- tedly slow; the situation is so complex that a considerable time investment w as required before rushing to press. The author’s first journal article was not until 1991. Apparently Michaud has no such qualms and was expert enough