The village houses are made of wood, on stilts. They have no gardens, no fences, no locks and 
are very close to each other, so we saw many different faces coming and going. Children, dogs, chickens, pigs, all mix together. Most children do play but some seem to work from a very early age, doing the house hold chores, fetching and carying water, pushing carts, looking after siblings, tending animals. One woman and 2 boys (approx 7 and 10 years old) were working in the rice mill. The boys were carting the bags of rice from the mill on a motorbike, the 7 yr old smoking a cigarette and the 10 yr old driving the motorbike. We also saw 4 children making charcoal, the youngest was 3 the oldest 9).
Most homes have a satellite dish for the telvision but the rooms are unfurnished. You eat cross-legged on the floor, the meal is served on a raised tray. One evening meal, John flicked a beetle away from his plate. Judi (Mrs Tem's 3 yr old nephew was as quick as lightning: he picked it up and put it in his mouth! We deduced it was a delicacy...)
The bathroom was outside, a little brick box 4 feet x 4 feet x 6 feet high with 3 steps up. Inside, a squat loo with a concrete water tank at the side from you you laddled water to flush the loo or wash yourself. This bathroom was a luxury as some other villagers had to wash outside by the communal pump. All water had to be carried (2 pails on a yoke) mostly by children. None of the paths or roads were tarred, just dirt. Some people had a motorbike (250cc) which carried everything.
People usually got up around 5 o'clock, lit the charcoal fire to make the rice. The pace of life is slow or very slow and the children all seemed very happy and were adventurous and polite. People laid down to sleep in the afternoon and became active again when the sun began to go down. Just as we were ready to go to sleep they became very noisy, chatty and turned their music on!
In our particular village, which was unusual, the elephants would appear on the paths, being ridden by their mahouts. They lumbered along but could also go amazingly quickly, almost like a hovercraft, their bodies appearing to almost float.
The village is surrounded by rice paddies but there were no water buffaloes. We suspect the single cyclinder tractor they now used have done away with them.
are very close to each other, so we saw many different faces coming and going. Children, dogs, chickens, pigs, all mix together. Most children do play but some seem to work from a very early age, doing the house hold chores, fetching and carying water, pushing carts, looking after siblings, tending animals. One woman and 2 boys (approx 7 and 10 years old) were working in the rice mill. The boys were carting the bags of rice from the mill on a motorbike, the 7 yr old smoking a cigarette and the 10 yr old driving the motorbike. We also saw 4 children making charcoal, the youngest was 3 the oldest 9).Most homes have a satellite dish for the telvision but the rooms are unfurnished. You eat cross-legged on the floor, the meal is served on a raised tray. One evening meal, John flicked a beetle away from his plate. Judi (Mrs Tem's 3 yr old nephew was as quick as lightning: he picked it up and put it in his mouth! We deduced it was a delicacy...)
The bathroom was outside, a little brick box 4 feet x 4 feet x 6 feet high with 3 steps up. Inside, a squat loo with a concrete water tank at the side from you you laddled water to flush the loo or wash yourself. This bathroom was a luxury as some other villagers had to wash outside by the communal pump. All water had to be carried (2 pails on a yoke) mostly by children. None of the paths or roads were tarred, just dirt. Some people had a motorbike (250cc) which carried everything.
People usually got up around 5 o'clock, lit the charcoal fire to make the rice. The pace of life is slow or very slow and the children all seemed very happy and were adventurous and polite. People laid down to sleep in the afternoon and became active again when the sun began to go down. Just as we were ready to go to sleep they became very noisy, chatty and turned their music on!
In our particular village, which was unusual, the elephants would appear on the paths, being ridden by their mahouts. They lumbered along but could also go amazingly quickly, almost like a hovercraft, their bodies appearing to almost float.
The village is surrounded by rice paddies but there were no water buffaloes. We suspect the single cyclinder tractor they now used have done away with them.
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