In June this year we had the privilage to spend a few days in Ban Mali. A small rice farming comunity in North East Thailand. My wife and I were for some, the first white European people that they had met. This was cause for many funny moments as the villagers discovered that we were only brown where the fierce sun had caught us.
We found thatthe lack of Loa language skills really wasn`t an isssue. With hands and feet and alot of laughing we managed to talk to our new friends for hours. Talking about the differences in our every day lives and our cultures. The occasional Bottle of Loa Si Sip a very potent form of Thai whiskey eased the communication channels on more than one occasion.
Ban mali depends on its rice crop for survival. the lateness of the monsoon this year was clearly causing concern. The ground was too hard to plant rice. Also the previous years monssons had washed out the bridge to thier nieghbouring village and surging waters had swallowed 30% of the rice fields. With no help from the Thai government on the way life had become quite hard for the villages and many families where being supported by relatives working in Bangkok. However they made us very welcome and we really did feel like one of the family. Thanks again to Ma and Pa and my friend Suphol Katmala for giving me this experience.
Here is a pictorial record of our stay with the Villagers of Si Saket Province.