5 Dec
Ban Kam Kueng Kao. Started early, we hired a truck to Newt’s hometown—the last place where her Father, Liab, settled, and where her siblings (except Sue) live to this day. It was to be a bittersweet homecoming, as the main purpose was to bless her Father’s gravesite, and also acknowledge the 100th day anniversary of her nephew’s untimely death. Also, we were to visit with nieces and nephews, and other in-laws.
The Trip. From Ubon, we drove south through Warin Chamrap, a nice-looking, clean town with modern touches. Then eastward, we passed through the outskirts of Phibun Mangsahan. Just before the Sirinthorn Dam, we drove by “Little Pattaya,” where most of the waterfront thatched-roof shelters appeared to be unused or in disrepair (maybe December is their off-season). Sirinthorn is an impressive expanse of water, but we couldn’t see a massive, concrete “dam” from the roadway. The roads were surprisingly good, 4 lanes most of the way. There are obvious asphalt patches—some inexpertly done—but only the shoulder-side margins consistently show the wear of heavy trucking. After 90 minutes of travel at moderate speeds, we arrived at the village of Kam Kueng Kao.
Village Welcome. We arrived at Lawan’s home, and met nieces and nephews and in-laws while having lunch. The eating and getting re-acquainted went as well as could be expected. However, there just wasn’t enough time to chat individually with everyone. After lunch, the village chief performed a welcoming ceremony that involved string, a hardboiled egg, beer and rice. Oh, and a banana leaf and candle centerpiece. The ceremony ended with the head-man, and then others, tying white-string bracelets around each other’s wrists.
The Farms. The siblings have very small farms. Ken and See walked Lawan’s and Kamtan’s farms; both are mostly rice. Lawan does have over 100 cashew nut trees, but they are young and smallish-looking, and it’s hard to imagine they produce much of a crop. Her largest fish pond is unused—she complained that it’s too far away from the home, and others were stealing the fish. So, another (smaller) fish pond has been dug closer to the house, but it is not lined or stocked yet. Besides the chickens and vegetable plot, Lawan has a few cattle (but we’re not sure if they’re raised for beef—they seem too thin to be dairy cattle).
Kamtan’s farm is like Lawan’s, but the land under rice cultivation is more extensive. Also, his farm has a small stream that flow through it. Besides a few cattle, Kamtan also has a buffalo. A few years ago, we provided most of the funds for Kamtan to buy a 2-wheeled, walk-behind tractor that is used (somehow) in rice farming. However, he was able to sell the tractor when he got a non-farming job working as a mechanic and driver for some part of the provisional government. Besides his sons, his grown daughter and her husband help with Kamtan’s farming. Having a non-agricultural job helps Kamtan better provide for his family.
We didn’t walk through Noi’s farm—her spouse (who seemed agreeable when we met) has a bad reputation amongst the siblings for being a disagreeable drinker. We had beer available during lunch, so… We saw Sue’s unfinished home—when her husband took ill and died, she stopped work on the house in order to care for him. After he died, Sue moved to Ubon, and lives with her sister-in-law. The land her Ban Kam Kueng Kao home sits on is too small to be farmed (it’s so close to her neighbors, it hard to imagine where her home garden would be). We believe that the local government administration gave her some farmland, which she was obligate to improve (erect a “home”) and farm. But enough time has passed, and now she either wants to sell the farmland, or has already done so.
Next: some pictures, then the Wat ceremony, and sightseeing.
No comments:
Post a Comment