I wonder how many years ago this type of transport was used in the country hamlets of England. Quite a few would be my guess. In Wonderful Wi’s village in Udon Thani this mode of transport is mainly used for work but it’s not uncommon to see a family travelling this way on a trip to the small local town or next village. At times I have to pinch myself to realize I haven’t stepped out of a time tunnel into a land a long time back. It’s not quite Bedrock and the Flintstones but definitely a village holding back the years.
Sure enough the sound of mobiles ringing are frequently heard and brand new karaoke machines beat out their rhythms accompanied by youthful voices, teenage wannabes and drunkard herds, but it’s some of the other things which make me think this village is one that’s never stepped out of the past.
When your kitchen tap only runs with cold water you get the feeling you’ve stepped off the sidewalk of life’s easy street and hit the cobbled stones of the older part of town. Tap water is unfit for consumption but the source for what most villagers drink has its very own season in Thailand named after it. The rain laden clouds of the Rainy Season.
Rainwater is collected by every family in giant earthen jars (photo right) and is distributed daily into plastic bottles or containers for use throughout the day. It’s rare the village shop has pure bottled drinking water in stock but according to the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) Thailand guzzles it by the gallon.
A report by the IBWA in 2008 placed Thailand in the top twenty rankings of per capita bottled water consumption by the worlds leading countries. Thailand was ranked 13th and surprisingly the only Asian country in the top 20 with 118 litres of consumption per person each year.
Mexico (268 litres), Italy (245) and the United Arab Emirates (180) were the top three in the table. Germany ranked 5th, France 6th, USA 10th and Bulgaria 20th with a per capita of 105 litres. China had the third largest market but a lowly per capita consumption rate of just 17 litres.
However, I would strongly suggest Thai villagers annual bottled water intake is considerably less than the country’s average. Rainwater is a free resource which has nurtured rural rice crops and quenched workers thirst for centuries, and clever marketing campaigns from the big water companies isn’t going to change the village persons reasoning. That’s enough about water, let’s get back to Bedrock.
Living off the land and livestock is not alien to developed western countries even nowadays, but its advocates are becoming thinner on the ground unlike 50 years ago when the practice was as common as village muck. In contrast Thailand’s villages are alive each and everyday to the sound of chickens clucking and the gentle thud of papaya fruit hitting the ground.
In Wilai’s village there are very few in-house kitchens with almost all cooking done outside, and early evening the smell of spices and meats mingle together all around. The spices and vegetables are often distinguishable as their flavours waft through the evening air as they simmer away in woks and pots heated by charcoal fires. The meats are a little more difficult to tell.
Most forms of hunting are now banned here in the UK, even fisherman are lucky to get a chance to eat their tall tales. Thailand is a different kettle of fish altogether. The country’s many rivers are hunted for their stock, which has a seemingly never ending supply. Frogs, snakes, rats and chameleons are hunted too and the hunters weapon is sometimes only a catapult. I can’t recall the last time I saw a lad in the UK playing with a catapult but I do remember taking aim with one many times myself during my schoolboy days.
Thai Life in Phana recently posted Hunting down dinner in Isan and is the story of a young man harnessing his keen eye and perfect aim to hunt chameleons in a Phana village. The hunter of food is still using man’s basic instincts in the rural parts of Thailand. Seasonal work opportunities and low wages makes the hunt test of survival just as much for the huntsman as the reptile.
Regular power cuts in Wilai’s village take my thoughts back to the UK in the 1980′s when the coal miners strikes hit the country’s power resources. The Thai’s take the blackouts with a shrug and a smile. Life rolls on and the years roll back.
The UK has lost much of its skilled workforce to modern computerized industrial machinery which has stripped the nation bare in the basic skills of survival. Skilled workers have been replaced by high tech machines and simple arts such as basket weaving, moulding and wood carving have been lost to many and jealously guarded by those few who practice but only selectively teach them.
The photographs (above left and right) are examples of the fine craftsmanship which is still very apparent in Thai villages and Thailand itself.
Weavers, furniture makers and all manner of building trades are a few of the crafts which every village has amongst them. With the bare basic tools a village tiler can lay a floor as level as any city contractor, he just might work a little slower. Why rush when time’s stood still.
The strong religious beliefs of England’s past have subsided and given way to a fast paced and credit rich society with little time for the sacrifices needed to devote themselves to Christianity. Religion runs through Thailand’s veins with a beat matched by few if any of the west’s major nations. Buddhism brings many villagers together on a daily occurrence with their early morning temple call. Thailand’s numerous religious festivals gather even more of the village community side by side and act as a big reminder of England’s past when the closer knit communities of our cities, towns and villages seemed a better and safer place to live.
Entertainment in rural villages and small local district towns are another throwback to many countries days of old. Travelling mobile cinemas and fairs where the Ferris wheel or big wheel is the major draw bring back more memories of my childhood to me. Some older Thai’s view the big wheel as a frightening piece of modern technology whereas I look at the rusting nuts and bolts with sceptical eyes. I guess their doubts are more pure than mine.
Village life has an endless daily procession of fruit and veg trucks, the fish man on his motorbike and occasional travelling peddlers selling everything from tiger balm to sandals. Sometimes a local man returns with his afternoon catch of small tiny fish, and they’re yours for 20 baht. They always remind me of my younger days when we used to fish with small nets and catch stickleback. At some point of everyday there’s a blast from the past to remind me of days I thought were long gone and buried deep in my mind.
Slowly but surely modern brick houses are replacing the older creaking wooden stilted homes in Wilai’s village but for most the change is many years away. Even the karaoke machines resonate more to the sounds of Isaan’s luk thung country music than the popular music of today.
The much used jargon, ‘out with the old and in with the new ‘ doesn’t really stand up in Wilai’s village. That other one, ‘if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it ‘ certainly does.
© 2010, Martyn. All rights reserved.
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Martyn an enjoyable read that sparked a few childhood memories from rural England in the 50′s and early 60′s.
We did live off the land more in those days(my Granddad was a gamekeeper) and even collected rainwater albeit for the garden and washing clothes(before automatic washing machines).
Although Prachuap is hardly rural Issan the locals do many of the things you mention. They are also very generous when it comes to harvest time with fruit and the like.
BTW the water storage jars are made from concrete here and quite common. I would be reluctant to drink the water from them or the tap for that matter. We buy large plastic bottles of treated water at 15 Baht a throw.
.-= Mike´s last blog ..Wat Huai Luk-วัดห้วยลึก-Prachuap Khiri Khan =-.
Martyn,I was spell bound from the get go , you have such a wonderful way of telling a story , that you had me hanging on every word , I love to compare the old and new and more often the things that bring a smile to my face and a quick awaking to my mind are the things of the past , I feel the same as you in our village sometimes , even here just a few kl. outside our small village it’s like getting out of that time machine that you’ve been riding in this whole post( I hope you had you seat belt fastened) . I must say also that the pictures are great too and look sooo familiar to me too, as I could snap some of the same scenes here in Whang Pho , . Aren’t we blessed to have been one of soooo few, folks in our countries to have been, for some reason or another to have been introduced to Thailand and the wonderful LOS , I’m sooo glad that you like me , LOVE IT.Maybe we’ll get together this trip . Malcolm
.-= malcolm´s last blog ..A LONG , LONG AND WINDING ROAD ( BUT IT WAS WORTH THE RIDE ) =-.
Mike I thought the post might bring back a few memories to you. Washing clothes in those days must have been quite a chore.
I wasn’t sure what the storage jars were made of and concrete is probably right. I’ve had water from them myself in the past without realizing it. When we stayed at Wi’s mama’s house there used to be lots of pure water bottles in the fridge but they turned out to be old ones which were refilled with the rainwater. It took me a few trips before I found out. The big jars are treated every so often with something to stop any viruses and mosquitoes, I’ve see one of the village local government workers apply whatever a few times now. Wi buys the big 15 baht containers of water sometimes as well, they’re excellent value compared to the bottles.
Malcolm I’m glad you liked the post, I really got into it, with my seatbelt on of course. I adore the village life, I reckon it must have been great to have lived in England 70 or 80 years ago, living off the land and everything. Thailand or Siam all those years back must have been a very basic place to live and I would like to find out some real hard facts on those days. No success so far.
The photos aren’t too bad and I do have lots and lots of village life ones with more to come on my forthcoming trip. I’m afraid this trip won’t be taking in the charms of Kanchanaburi, it’s four days in Pattaya and then up to Udon Thani.
Wow. Martyn, what a fabulous post! This is one I’d pin to your sidebar for sure. Five stars.
The contraption in the top photo is (I believe) called a Chinese Buffalo in Myanmar (they come in all shapes and sizes), but I’m not sure what it’s called in Thailand (as usual, I’ll ask and get back to you).
In the olden days (not too long back) Thailand rode on the backs of buffalos. But the cheap engines from China soon replaced the lumbering animals.
Thais hold buffalos in high regard, which is why you won’t find buffalo meat as often as you’d think.
.-= Catherine´s last blog ..Successful Thai Language Learners: Stuart (Stu) Jay Raj =-.
Wonderful read Martyn. The top photo really brought me back. I have ridden on the Thai tractor a few times. Mostly in the fields but we did drive it one day to town to pick up some supplies.
The water jars are definitely made from concrete…several in Pookie’s yard are older and broken and you can see the rough concrete inside….with the outside surface being so smooth you wouldn’t think that they were made that way.
Pookie’s Aunt’s farm does have a well but they still collect and drink water from 2 large jars next to the house.
Being in rural Thailand is definitely taking a step back in time but one that is easily taken. Much simpler way of life.
.-= Talen´s last blog ..Children at Play in Rural Thailand =-.
Martyn, I loved this post. Nothing like a bit of nostalgia to grab my attention. Phana is losing some of this but it’s surprising how much remains. And you give more reminders of the ingenuity of rural Thais.
The multi-purpose vehicle at the top is called a tak-tak here. Obvious where the inspiration for that came from.
At our house we always drink rainwater from a big jar like the one in your photo. The first few weeks of the rainy season it is not collected to give the roof a good wash. And you can see the nylon netting sieve under the lid that filters bits and pieces. It supplies us enough for 6 months but when we stayed longer a cople of years ao we had to buy well-water from a village nearby. They put it in big jars and sell it off the back of a truck (OTOP).
A long time ago (back in the 1970′s) Pensri did quality control for Coca Cola in BKK. She tested bottled water and tap water twice a month. Frequently the bottled water contained more bacteria, mostly because the tap water was chlorinated (so drinking it didn’t taste good). The test didn’t distinguish harmful bacteria from harmless, though.
.-= Lawrence´s last blog ..Picnic in Phana turns political =-.
PS
I didn’t thank you for the link, Martyn. Sorry.
Many thanks.
.-= Lawrence´s last blog ..Picnic in Phana turns political =-.
Catherine I have never heard of the Chinese Buffalo before but that’s a really unique name, it makes a lot of sense. A couple of years ago Wilai and I went to Loei for four days to visit the annual flower show at Phu Rua. One day on a trip to the show we stopped at one of the many flower gardens/centres en route and parked up was an older style contraption of the one in the photo. Wilai couldn’t stop laughing at it and said she had to take a photo to show her uncle who’d find the antiquated (my words) machine amusing. She kept referring to it being Burmese and not modern like Thailand’s version. I must admit I couldn’t tell much difference between the two. Perhaps what Wilai saw was the Chinese Buffalo and this one in the post is a more modern version. Maybe. Thanks.
Talen I have also ridden to town in the back of one of the Thai tractors. There’s a bridge and a raised road which separates a river running alongside Wilai’s village and the road leads to the village entrance. Every year during the rainy season the river’s water rises and covers the entire road knee deep or so in water. The road becomes a bit tricky to pass. I once took a trip during those conditions to the local town in the back of the cart. Great fun.
You have reaffirmed Mike’s comment about the jars being made of concrete so that concludes that one. Like you I love the simple ways of village life, it’s so much more laid back than the hustle and bustle of the west.
Lawrence my pleasure with the link and hopefully you’ll get a couple of hits out of it, but to be honest my village posts don’t tend to send the hit counter too crazy.
The tak tak seems a very appropriate Thai name for it. I like some of the short names Thai’s attach to their things. Tuk tuk being another obvious one. As you drink the rainwater yourself then maybe you’ll know a little bit about what they treat the water with. I’ve seen some kind of local government worker come round and treat it once before. The water certainly didn’t do me any harm and I do drink it sometimes now.
Working in the pharmaceutical industry as I do I know that a clean looking water outlet is not necessarily so. A lot of germs can still be there and lead to bacterial contamination of the water. The bottled water containing more bacteria doesn’t surprise me one bit. As Wilai always says about the rainwater ‘ people drink water from the sky many many years now and everybody okay. Is good mark mark.’
The rainwater? Nothing is added to it by us or anyone for us. Same with the deep-well water that the nearby village sells. We’ve been drinking the rainwater for as long as I have been in Phana and never had any ill-effects.
Actually in Phana the piped water supply is probably safe to drink (I always clean my teeth using it, though I know some foreigners who won’t. The pipes are plastic and only 2-3 years old and the treatment plant is that age too and very eficient-looking. Taste because of purification additives is the problem, but that is so in lots of parts of UK too.
.-= Lawrence´s last blog ..Pic of the Day 5 April – 11 April 2010 =-.
Lawrence, the water in Wilai’s village is or was either treated or perhaps tested by some kind of local government worker. I’m fairly sure (incident was about 5 years back) the person put something into the water to stop mosquitoes and anything else from passing on whatever. I do use the tap water myself to clean my teeth but I’m pretty careful not to swallow any if possible.