Things continued on at the usual Thai pace, slow. We built a tree nursery and ordered tree grafts for next years planting. Money was going fast, with more bills everyday. Workers, scrub cutters [weed whackers] fuel, poison and I knew this was to be on going for many years to come. Having learned from my first tree planting, it would be different next time. I would higher bulldozers to clear the land, again not cheap. Add to that we were living in a up market hut, sleeping on a board on the bare concrete floor, no running water. Thailand may very well be a hot country and a cool shower is a pleasant relief from the heat, but getting up in the morning and throwing a bucket of what felt like ice water over your head is not what soft white men are used to. Some up grade to living standers was needed, more money. It would only be last year 2010 when we started tapping rubber for money that I would have the luxury of a hot shower.
Food was another unforeseen expense. You may venture down to your local Thai take away and think that Thai food is very good, not so in a village. One of the first things I noticed was the lack of bird life in the village. Any unwary bird who landed in long rife range was shot dead and in the pot. If it walked, crawled, swam or flew it was food. Frogs, snails, bugs. snakes, pretty well anything that was not poisonous would be dinner. This required a daily trip to Buntharik and the one restaurant that served eatable food. Even my wife found much of the food uneatable and hot. Over the years I have grown accustomed to much of the local food,but have to say I am still unable to sit down to a plate of fat ground dwelling bugs fried up and eaten with sticky rice.
The time had come to end our stay in the village and head back to the old world. One week of R and R on Koh Samui was to be our last holiday for many many years.
Back in good old Australia and the number one priority was employment. I didn't want to return to the Prison Service full time. I knew if I left again there would be no getting back in. Even though I had set my sights on life in Thailand, things can go wrong and an exit plan needed to be available. Here again fate played her hand. A friend who had become the Governor of the female prison asked if I was interested in working there. I explained that I was hoping to return to Thailand as soon as the bank looked healthy. He had the solution, seems that the women's prison had a very high staff turn over and that I could go on call as a casual Prison Officer. As a casual you can make yourself unavailable for up to a year and still remain on the books. It was perfect, the place was so short staffed that I often worked 6/12 hour days in a row. To be fair it wasn't a bad place to work, if it was not going to be your life, just a means to an end. I didn't care about the politics etc, just got my money and left. 4 months later we were back on the plane to Thailand. This is how we continued over the coming years, fly in, work and fly out. All was good, then the first baby was born, things would change.
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Land, partys and diead guys
Things had been going along as well as could be expected. 30 Rai of trees had been planted, without the use of shovels or spades and we had bought another 20 plus Rai in 2 blocks. You never new how big a block of land was for sure, one would just walk around the land and have a guesstimate. For the buyer it was always smaller , to the seller larger.
Word had got around that a white man from the south was interested in land. The father in-law came to me with a man who had 50 Rai for sale and he wanted to sell fast. At that time and still to this day village law is enforced. The laws of Thailand take 2nd. place to the local ways. Seems this guy had done something wrong and had been judged. As punishment he had been expelled from his area. You may think, how could that be enforced by the locals. I will tell you if you are told to leave you leave, or you may go for a one way walk into the jungle. It is no use running to the police as there is no uniformed police presents out here to this day. The only time you will see police is when they are accompanied by border/ forestry soldiers. Needless to say that most of the police and soldiers are locals as well.
Next day we set off in the 2 village pick up trucks, loaded with beer, food and people, to see the land and have a picnic. After driving over dirt roads for half an hour , we stopped by a small river surrounded by jungle. Everyone out, beer and food collected and we cross the river and begin to walk further into the bush. When I was near collapse from the heat and the weight of the ice box full of beer we arrived.
The seller lived in a rough stilt house, with 3 walls a roof of rusty old sheet metal and plastic. He lived there with his wife and 2 children. I had thought that some of the huts in the village were basic to say the least, but this place would not have even qualified as a hut. Much of the land had been cleared and 1000s of Makkua Poung bushes planted. There were 2 small streams, it was perfect for rubber. The only problem was access, but was assured there was a dirt track in, it was just that the Headman had not wanted to bang his newish car up on it. The deal was done, a price agreed, all were happy.
That was it, the tree planting season had finished, the amount of land that I deemed to be enough to supply a reasonable living had been purchased and the bank account was not looking as health as a few months earlier. It was time to party.
Before I get to the party, it seems that the wifes Uncle had died 2 weeks prior. I was told that a tree fell on him. Many years later I found out that was not the truth. He had been killed in some form of illegal activity in Bangkok. What activity I have never been told.
All the workers, neighbors, Uncles, Aunts and people of some importance were invited to the party. The Lao Kao, 100 pipers and beer flowed. A small pig had been dispatched and was used to give burnt offerings to the gods on my BBQ. People came and went, other came and passed out. My memory of the night is some what dim, but I do recall dancing around the floor with a large and hopefully dead snake around my neck.
The next day and I am not feeling 100%, the daughter of the dead Uncle comes around and starts speaking to the wife. I could sense something was wrong and asked the wife is there a problem. She replied that the girls father was not happy as I had not given him any whiskey or pig last night. I said I thought he was dead. Yes said the wife, but he came to the party. I didn't know if she was pulling my leg or not and said I don't see dead people. The Mother and Father in-law were sitting at the table at the time , They all looked at me as if I had some sort of visual impairment, how could I have missed him, he was the only dead guy there. To this day whenever we have a party I ask the wife if any dead ones are coming. Then I can leave a drink and some food for them.
Word had got around that a white man from the south was interested in land. The father in-law came to me with a man who had 50 Rai for sale and he wanted to sell fast. At that time and still to this day village law is enforced. The laws of Thailand take 2nd. place to the local ways. Seems this guy had done something wrong and had been judged. As punishment he had been expelled from his area. You may think, how could that be enforced by the locals. I will tell you if you are told to leave you leave, or you may go for a one way walk into the jungle. It is no use running to the police as there is no uniformed police presents out here to this day. The only time you will see police is when they are accompanied by border/ forestry soldiers. Needless to say that most of the police and soldiers are locals as well.
Next day we set off in the 2 village pick up trucks, loaded with beer, food and people, to see the land and have a picnic. After driving over dirt roads for half an hour , we stopped by a small river surrounded by jungle. Everyone out, beer and food collected and we cross the river and begin to walk further into the bush. When I was near collapse from the heat and the weight of the ice box full of beer we arrived.
The seller lived in a rough stilt house, with 3 walls a roof of rusty old sheet metal and plastic. He lived there with his wife and 2 children. I had thought that some of the huts in the village were basic to say the least, but this place would not have even qualified as a hut. Much of the land had been cleared and 1000s of Makkua Poung bushes planted. There were 2 small streams, it was perfect for rubber. The only problem was access, but was assured there was a dirt track in, it was just that the Headman had not wanted to bang his newish car up on it. The deal was done, a price agreed, all were happy.
That was it, the tree planting season had finished, the amount of land that I deemed to be enough to supply a reasonable living had been purchased and the bank account was not looking as health as a few months earlier. It was time to party.
Before I get to the party, it seems that the wifes Uncle had died 2 weeks prior. I was told that a tree fell on him. Many years later I found out that was not the truth. He had been killed in some form of illegal activity in Bangkok. What activity I have never been told.
All the workers, neighbors, Uncles, Aunts and people of some importance were invited to the party. The Lao Kao, 100 pipers and beer flowed. A small pig had been dispatched and was used to give burnt offerings to the gods on my BBQ. People came and went, other came and passed out. My memory of the night is some what dim, but I do recall dancing around the floor with a large and hopefully dead snake around my neck.
The next day and I am not feeling 100%, the daughter of the dead Uncle comes around and starts speaking to the wife. I could sense something was wrong and asked the wife is there a problem. She replied that the girls father was not happy as I had not given him any whiskey or pig last night. I said I thought he was dead. Yes said the wife, but he came to the party. I didn't know if she was pulling my leg or not and said I don't see dead people. The Mother and Father in-law were sitting at the table at the time , They all looked at me as if I had some sort of visual impairment, how could I have missed him, he was the only dead guy there. To this day whenever we have a party I ask the wife if any dead ones are coming. Then I can leave a drink and some food for them.
Friday, June 24, 2011
The road to Thailand
At this point I may diverge from the Rubber story's and inform anyone who may accurately read this, a little more about me. My father had contracted the traveling bug at an early age, when he ran away to sea as a merchant seaman. Then came the army and postings around Southeast Asia.
After I was born in the UK he couldn't wait to leave the country, so at the tender age of 5 weeks we were bound for the wilds of British Columbia, Canada. Over the coming years we drifted east and when he ran out of land east, it was time to give the UK another try. On the way across Canada I had acquired 3 brothers and one sister.
The UK was not what he hoped it would have become, so off we went to the sunny shores of Australia, where another sister was born. I think my father would have moved again, but the thought of shifting 6 kids was just too much.
Now unlike my brothers and sisters, I had inherited the travel bug. This would see me living in different countries and jobs for much of my adult life. A thing I learnt early was that I did not like working. This lead me into Government employment, often in one type of uniform or other. It paid the bills, but after a time I became bored and the need to move on to newer things would overcome me and there was so many things to do and see. I knew that one life time would never be enough.
I have seen and done things that most only dream, chances missed, loves lost, but I would do it all again. Moments that can not be lost in time like tears in the rain. [Pardon my miss quote from Blade runner.]
At the rip old age of 44 I was in another uniform, but the bug was at me again. I knew that at that age good jobs were not easy to find. So I sold my house and quit the job, knowing that the Prison Service allowed you to return within 2 years. Loss of rank of course, but I really didn't care, I wanted one more adventure in my life, before I was too old to climb mountains enjoy drinking beer on a beach and see things, not just on the TV. That is how I found myself in Thailand.
After I was born in the UK he couldn't wait to leave the country, so at the tender age of 5 weeks we were bound for the wilds of British Columbia, Canada. Over the coming years we drifted east and when he ran out of land east, it was time to give the UK another try. On the way across Canada I had acquired 3 brothers and one sister.
The UK was not what he hoped it would have become, so off we went to the sunny shores of Australia, where another sister was born. I think my father would have moved again, but the thought of shifting 6 kids was just too much.
Now unlike my brothers and sisters, I had inherited the travel bug. This would see me living in different countries and jobs for much of my adult life. A thing I learnt early was that I did not like working. This lead me into Government employment, often in one type of uniform or other. It paid the bills, but after a time I became bored and the need to move on to newer things would overcome me and there was so many things to do and see. I knew that one life time would never be enough.
I have seen and done things that most only dream, chances missed, loves lost, but I would do it all again. Moments that can not be lost in time like tears in the rain. [Pardon my miss quote from Blade runner.]
At the rip old age of 44 I was in another uniform, but the bug was at me again. I knew that at that age good jobs were not easy to find. So I sold my house and quit the job, knowing that the Prison Service allowed you to return within 2 years. Loss of rank of course, but I really didn't care, I wanted one more adventure in my life, before I was too old to climb mountains enjoy drinking beer on a beach and see things, not just on the TV. That is how I found myself in Thailand.
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Shovels and trees
The curse was cast and all I had to do was make it work. How hard could it be to give up everything you have , leave the world that you know, with it's security and order to start anew. There would be some small problems I knew, language, cultural and a mindset of the locals which was totally alien to my western ideas. I new nothing about rubber farming, but how hard could that be. You stick a load of trees in the ground, wait 7 years and your in the money, simple. Little did I realize the trials that awaited and the hours I would spend banging my head against a tree. Here things have been done this way or that for 100s of years and no silly Farang [ white man ] was going to change that.
We now had 30 Rai of land, 8 Acres or 3 Hectares. On the first day of planting I set off with my backpack to walk to the plantation. At this time I was still very fit and enjoyed hiking in the jungle or bush walking as we say in Australia. When I arrived at the land I stood stunned at what I saw. There in the field were 15 or so workers of unknown gender, they were all clad in heavy trousers, thick coats, wearing balaclavas and big straw hats. They would have been warm in the snow, never mind in the heat of the jungle. Add to that they were digging holes with little shovels, no more than 3 inches wide, made of bits of flat steel or pipe attached to a stick. Didn't know whether to laugh or cry, the whole scene reminded me of the kids TV show the Smurfs. This would never do as my plan was to plant 8000 trees over next few years.
Next day with wife in tow we headed to our nearest town Buntharik, about 27 km away. Now one would think that a shovel, not an uncommon tool anywhere in the world would be readily available in any town with a hardware shore. Not so in Buntharik, high tech tools like shovels had not made it here yet. So off we go to Det Udon, 50 or so km further on. Now Det is a biggest town around here and has many hardware stores, again we were shown little sticks with bits of steel attached. I was beginning to think the wife was not explaining what I was after. One more hardware store and silly Farang digging imaginary holes in the floor and the woman went and returned with a spade, it would have to do. Buying the entire store spade supply 5 we set of back to the plantation.
The workers were paid by the hole not the day, so you would think the introducing of this labor saving spade would have brought smiles all around, not so, blank looks were all I got. I picked up a spade, stabbed it into the ground, stood with my two feet on the back of the blade, wiggled it side to side until the blade cut deep into the ground, then pulled the handle back lifting a big piece of dirt from the ground. Still blank looks, as I was about to go and find a tree to bang my head against , the wife started talking to the workers. After what seemed like a hour of discussion she turns to me and says. Jim they are not stupid they know what a spade is, but they can't use it as they don't have boots. I looked to the ground and every worker had a pair of thin rubber sandals on. I won't go into the work boot saga, but suffice to say if you have never had a pair of shoes on in your life no Farang is going to get you to wear work boots.
We now had 30 Rai of land, 8 Acres or 3 Hectares. On the first day of planting I set off with my backpack to walk to the plantation. At this time I was still very fit and enjoyed hiking in the jungle or bush walking as we say in Australia. When I arrived at the land I stood stunned at what I saw. There in the field were 15 or so workers of unknown gender, they were all clad in heavy trousers, thick coats, wearing balaclavas and big straw hats. They would have been warm in the snow, never mind in the heat of the jungle. Add to that they were digging holes with little shovels, no more than 3 inches wide, made of bits of flat steel or pipe attached to a stick. Didn't know whether to laugh or cry, the whole scene reminded me of the kids TV show the Smurfs. This would never do as my plan was to plant 8000 trees over next few years.
Next day with wife in tow we headed to our nearest town Buntharik, about 27 km away. Now one would think that a shovel, not an uncommon tool anywhere in the world would be readily available in any town with a hardware shore. Not so in Buntharik, high tech tools like shovels had not made it here yet. So off we go to Det Udon, 50 or so km further on. Now Det is a biggest town around here and has many hardware stores, again we were shown little sticks with bits of steel attached. I was beginning to think the wife was not explaining what I was after. One more hardware store and silly Farang digging imaginary holes in the floor and the woman went and returned with a spade, it would have to do. Buying the entire store spade supply 5 we set of back to the plantation.
The workers were paid by the hole not the day, so you would think the introducing of this labor saving spade would have brought smiles all around, not so, blank looks were all I got. I picked up a spade, stabbed it into the ground, stood with my two feet on the back of the blade, wiggled it side to side until the blade cut deep into the ground, then pulled the handle back lifting a big piece of dirt from the ground. Still blank looks, as I was about to go and find a tree to bang my head against , the wife started talking to the workers. After what seemed like a hour of discussion she turns to me and says. Jim they are not stupid they know what a spade is, but they can't use it as they don't have boots. I looked to the ground and every worker had a pair of thin rubber sandals on. I won't go into the work boot saga, but suffice to say if you have never had a pair of shoes on in your life no Farang is going to get you to wear work boots.
The decision had been made and I was going for it, rubber was my out. I am a bit like a dog with a bone, I won't let go. The wife, Bell was a little less than enthusiastic about going all out in the rubber game. She was more than happy to buy the 15 Rai of Government land and plant rubber, but the idea of life in the village, had not filled her with joy . She had many valid points on her side, she was not a village girl, knew nothing about rubber, nor did her family. Rubber had only been recently introduced to this area and no one was sure if it would really be viable. I had a secure job, we had a nice car and lived in a nice house. Life for a Thai girl in Australia was good. She had Thai friends to talk to and my sisters treated her as a sister, taking her shopping and eating out. It was all fun from her side and she wanted children. In her mind the village would not be the place for babies. Australia had good schools, medical etc. I on the other hand had spent many years as a child growing up in rural Canada and felt that life in a jungle village would be magical compared to life in a city or worse suburbia. The decider was work, I said when we have a baby it will cost and she will have to work. As most of the Thai girls in Geelong work part time in Thai restaurants and have full time jobs in the chicken or fish factory. No way my wife was going to work gutting fish or killing chickens. A Buddha monk had told in when she was 16 teen. She would marry a man from far away who wore a uniform and she would live a easy life. She was sold, rubber would save her from 20 years of dead chickens.
A family conference was called, we or wife explained that we were going to try and make the big switch from visiting to living. Mother in-law was over the moon at the though her only daughter was coming home to stay. The Father in-law who by the way is employed by the Government as a county coroner [ not medical examiner ] was just happy that I said we would take over the payments on the pickup truck, as we would need to use it all the time. Now I was committed, it would be all or nothing. It was a win or die trying gamble and if you are afraid to die then you are afraid to live.
A family conference was called, we or wife explained that we were going to try and make the big switch from visiting to living. Mother in-law was over the moon at the though her only daughter was coming home to stay. The Father in-law who by the way is employed by the Government as a county coroner [ not medical examiner ] was just happy that I said we would take over the payments on the pickup truck, as we would need to use it all the time. Now I was committed, it would be all or nothing. It was a win or die trying gamble and if you are afraid to die then you are afraid to live.
Monday, June 20, 2011
There I sat on a wooden bench, a morally spent emotionally bankrupt Prison Officer watching dirt poor, but happy content villagers going about their day. Knowing that in a few short days we would be on a plane back to Australia. I pondered life the universe and everything. I was 44 years old and thanks to the wise Government I would be allowed to put on my blue suite for another 20 years so I could get a reasonable pension, or retire early [55 ]on a dog food and baked beans pension. I am no dreamer and knew that there was no way I could stay here and live a locals life. A diet of sticky rice, chilli paste, frogs and bugs while living in a hut and sleeping on a board was going to do, plus my wife would have been on the first plane back home. How could I make it work, there was enough money to last a few years at best, not an option as at the end of the money it would be back to Australia, older, broke and starting out again.
In life chance, fate or serendipity often pass us by, we are too busy to see it or too scared to try. On this day sernendipity walked in the house in the form of the Village head. The Village head actually spoke English and had acted as my cousin in the wedding. We opened a few beers and talked. He sad to me that I must be happy to be heading home soon, as he knew it is very hard for a Farang to stay in places like this. I said, I would be happy to live here if I could make a reasonable living. Hearing my reply he said, the Government is selling cheap land for the planting of Rubber trees. With those words Rubber Trees, memories of my father came to me. My Father had been in the British army for many years and was posted to Malaysia. He had always told me that the only reason he was there was to keep Dunlop Rubber's plantations safe. How could I say no to Rubber. Here was my get out of jail free card and it just might work. So began what would be a life changing journey.
In life chance, fate or serendipity often pass us by, we are too busy to see it or too scared to try. On this day sernendipity walked in the house in the form of the Village head. The Village head actually spoke English and had acted as my cousin in the wedding. We opened a few beers and talked. He sad to me that I must be happy to be heading home soon, as he knew it is very hard for a Farang to stay in places like this. I said, I would be happy to live here if I could make a reasonable living. Hearing my reply he said, the Government is selling cheap land for the planting of Rubber trees. With those words Rubber Trees, memories of my father came to me. My Father had been in the British army for many years and was posted to Malaysia. He had always told me that the only reason he was there was to keep Dunlop Rubber's plantations safe. How could I say no to Rubber. Here was my get out of jail free card and it just might work. So began what would be a life changing journey.
My village at that time.
Let me tell you a little of my village at that time, there were no televisions to speak of and people honestly believed they were rich. The rice fields produced more than enough for all, the trees were hung with friut and the rivers teemed with fish. No one went hungery. If hard times befell, your family and everyone was related in some way, would help. The village of about 370 homes had 2 cars, both pickup trucks. One owned by the father in law and the other by the village headman. Most people had never seen a white man and the children would run and hide or burst into tears when they saw me. The elderly would walk up and rub my arm to see if the colour came off. It was a place that time and even Coca cola had passed by, a hippies dream. Now I am no hippie far from it, at the time I was a Prison Officer in the State of Victoria, Australia and had worked for much of the time in the states maximum security prison. Those who say there are no monsters in this world, let me tell you there are.
At this point I will tell anyone who actually reads this a story. Short time before I came to Thailand I was involved in an incident which may have changed my life,
. While on duty in a place we referred to as under the house. An area which contained 26 the most vile specimens of human life that Australia can produce. At the time a one man post. The job of laundryman was given to a prisoner, said prisoner had a sentence of 25 years on the bottom, meaning no parole for 25 years. Now another prisoner who was never going home wanted that job. You may think in your world it is a dog eat dog world, but in this world it's real. Want to be laundryman thinks he can have the job if he kills the laundryman. I having many years experience in this and similar fields know that tension was high and that something was going down, so I place myself not at my desk, but in a place I can observe a wider area . Laundryman is on the phone not more than 3 feet [1 meter ] from me. Want to be laundry man is so focused on what he wants to do he doesn't even see me. Want to be laundryman then punches laundryman in the head. I of cause jump up to break up the fight. In the tussle we all ended up on the ground, which is when I notice that laundryman is spurting blood in my face. Want to be laundryman had not punched laundryman, but stabbed him in the throat with a shive [ knife ]. fight or flight reflexes come into place and I began to smash want to be laundrymans head into the floor until he stopped moving and I get the shive. Little did I know that laundry man also had a shiv as well. There is no capital punishment in Australia, so if either had stabbed and killed me the worst that could have happened to them, except for some rough treatment by other Officers is the loss of TV for 30 days. Here is the crux of this story, it is compulsory after an incident to see the shrink [ psychologist ] which I duly attended the next day after filling in all the paper work. The shrink went over the incident with me and said how do you feel. I said I have been involved and seen worst things and feel fine, just another day on the job. he then said something that made me sit and think for a long time afterward. A NORMAL PERSON WOULD NOT FEEL FINE.
Let me tell you a little of my village at that time, there were no televisions to speak of and people honestly believed they were rich. The rice fields produced more than enough for all, the trees were hung with friut and the rivers teemed with fish. No one went hungery. If hard times befell, your family and everyone was related in some way, would help. The village of about 370 homes had 2 cars, both pickup trucks. One owned by the father in law and the other by the village headman. Most people had never seen a white man and the children would run and hide or burst into tears when they saw me. The elderly would walk up and rub my arm to see if the colour came off. It was a place that time and even Coca cola had passed by, a hippies dream. Now I am no hippie far from it, at the time I was a Prison Officer in the State of Victoria, Australia and had worked for much of the time in the states maximum security prison. Those who say there are no monsters in this world, let me tell you there are.
At this point I will tell anyone who actually reads this a story. Short time before I came to Thailand I was involved in an incident which may have changed my life,
. While on duty in a place we referred to as under the house. An area which contained 26 the most vile specimens of human life that Australia can produce. At the time a one man post. The job of laundryman was given to a prisoner, said prisoner had a sentence of 25 years on the bottom, meaning no parole for 25 years. Now another prisoner who was never going home wanted that job. You may think in your world it is a dog eat dog world, but in this world it's real. Want to be laundryman thinks he can have the job if he kills the laundryman. I having many years experience in this and similar fields know that tension was high and that something was going down, so I place myself not at my desk, but in a place I can observe a wider area . Laundryman is on the phone not more than 3 feet [1 meter ] from me. Want to be laundry man is so focused on what he wants to do he doesn't even see me. Want to be laundryman then punches laundryman in the head. I of cause jump up to break up the fight. In the tussle we all ended up on the ground, which is when I notice that laundryman is spurting blood in my face. Want to be laundryman had not punched laundryman, but stabbed him in the throat with a shive [ knife ]. fight or flight reflexes come into place and I began to smash want to be laundrymans head into the floor until he stopped moving and I get the shive. Little did I know that laundry man also had a shiv as well. There is no capital punishment in Australia, so if either had stabbed and killed me the worst that could have happened to them, except for some rough treatment by other Officers is the loss of TV for 30 days. Here is the crux of this story, it is compulsory after an incident to see the shrink [ psychologist ] which I duly attended the next day after filling in all the paper work. The shrink went over the incident with me and said how do you feel. I said I have been involved and seen worst things and feel fine, just another day on the job. he then said something that made me sit and think for a long time afterward. A NORMAL PERSON WOULD NOT FEEL FINE.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
My name is James [ Jim ] Collister and this is my tale of life in a small village in the southeast corner of Issan Thailand. I came to be here as most westerners do by virtue of a girl. My wife had lived most of her life in a city near Bangkok, she had been sent there at the age of 9 years old to live with her Aunt and attend school. I met her in her last year of University, where she was completing her teaching degree. A whirlwind romance ensued and we were married and ran of to live in Australia. Much to the disappointment of her Mother and Father. After much pleading etc we decided to return to Thailand and have a Buddhist wedding in the village.
We arrived by plane in the City of Ubon Ratchitani and rented a car and driver for the 7 hour drive over pot holes, dirt roads and goat tracks. As we drove the clock turned back until we arrived somewhere in the 18 th century in the village of Ban Sang Hom or the village of the sweet smelling well water. I could see that my wife was having second thoughts about the whole thing The village was nothing but a couple of concrete roads and dirt tracks with rough wood stilt huts, no running water and only a few huts had electricity, It was hot and the air was full of bugs, then add to that few people spoke Thai, this is Lao country and the wife didn't speak Lao, but we were here and the job needed done so all could regain face.
The wedding took place, as can be seen on my Youtube channel and my wife Bell , was happy to leave and return to eatable food, running water and hot showers. I on the other hand had been sitting in the night drinking beer and listening to the sounds of the jungle. I had found my Shangra La, this was were I wanted to live.
We arrived by plane in the City of Ubon Ratchitani and rented a car and driver for the 7 hour drive over pot holes, dirt roads and goat tracks. As we drove the clock turned back until we arrived somewhere in the 18 th century in the village of Ban Sang Hom or the village of the sweet smelling well water. I could see that my wife was having second thoughts about the whole thing The village was nothing but a couple of concrete roads and dirt tracks with rough wood stilt huts, no running water and only a few huts had electricity, It was hot and the air was full of bugs, then add to that few people spoke Thai, this is Lao country and the wife didn't speak Lao, but we were here and the job needed done so all could regain face.
The wedding took place, as can be seen on my Youtube channel and my wife Bell , was happy to leave and return to eatable food, running water and hot showers. I on the other hand had been sitting in the night drinking beer and listening to the sounds of the jungle. I had found my Shangra La, this was were I wanted to live.
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