Exhibition Day at School (2-25)

Sunday morning Khun Dakom called to invite me to go with them to Wat Hua Don. I knew they were staying at Khun Kwan’s house for the weekend, as Kru Oy was in Chiang Mai, and I was thinking about calling and inviting them to lunch. But going to the wat was just as good. Even better, as I didn’t have to prepare lunch. Of course, I was given plenty of advanced notice: He said they’d pick me up in 20 minutes.

The first stop was Khun Somlan’s house for breakfast. I learned that the housewarming for the house he’s having built for his mother has been delayed till March, since the house isn’t finished yet. At breakfast, 9:30, I was told that we would have lunch at the wat. I wondered what the occasion was, since the feeding of the monks is usually early for breakfast. Khun Toy couldn’t answer my question; so I waited. Another car with some relatives and Khun Dakom’s mother (age 85) also arrived when we did. They got out pans and food to make Korean barbecue, and the monks started cooking their meal. The women also started cooking for the rest of us. The group was only the people who came in our two cars. I guess they had arranged to feed the monks that day. After a short time, at 11:00, I was told to eat lunch. I decided to walk around the forest first, as I wasn’t ready to eat again yet. And I do enjoy the forest.

After lunch we walked to the old temple so everyone could see the new roof that is being put over the foundation. Khun Dakom’s mother went along. I marveled at how strong she is now—walking and chatting. She really looks good. I remembered the first times I saw her when she was not well and could hardly sit up for more than a few minutes. She was so frail that it didn’t seem like she’d live much longer. And here she is. She recently returned from visiting the son in Chiang Mai.

In addition to the new roof, the wat has two other changes since I was last there. The first one I noticed was the addition of a green jade Buddha on the altar. Then I noticed that there is a new building beside the main one. Later Phra Tong took us in to see the new library.

This was the first time I’d been to the wat since I moved. When they go from the village, it’s out of the way to pick me up and bring me home. I have missed going there, as it is one of my special places here. So I was really happy for the opportunity to be able to go again. It was really good to be out of the city and to walk among the trees. And to see Phra Tong. And to hang out with my good friends.

And I got to see them again on Friday and Saturday. After school Friday, Khun Dakom called to tell me to walk to Khun Somlan’s house for a housewarming. I was surprised, as he had told me it would be on 4 March. I was tired and hot at the end of the day, but there’s nothing like a call from a good friend saying to come for dinner to lift the spirits. And then a student’s mother picked me up and drove me to Khun Somlan’s house, which was an added treat on the very hot day.

When I arrived, I learned that this was the moving in ceremony and the house blessing will be on the 4^th. He has had a beautiful house built in back of their house for his mother-in-law (age 93).

 Friday they moved her things from their house into the new house. People carried items and we walked around the house three times. Then we put the items into the appropriate room: water and some food in the kitchen, pillows and altar items in the bedroom. 

There was a bowl full of flower petals and coins that were spread on her bed. Then she lay down for a few minutes. Afterwards, the two young boys were told they could search for coins, and they were happy that they found a handful each. Then we all ate dinner.

Khun Dakom told me that we would make our bi-monthly trip to the hospital on Saturday, as the scheduled date is on the 4^th and we’ll be at the housewarming. I was surprised to see that he stopped drinking around 7:00. He sat next to me and said he stopped drinking because he had to have his blood checked on Saturday. He also went home early, as he wasn’t drinking with his buddies.

Saturday morning we arrived at the hospital at 7:20 and had our blood taken half an hour later. We then ate breakfast and waited to see the doctor. It was noon before our numbers came up. It was a new doctor again, but she said next time I will see the one I saw in December. Next we waited to pick up our meds, as we finally left at 1:30. Then it was time for our reward: lunch at the Chinese duck soup restaurant, which is always a treat.

Khun Dakom told me that Khun Yindee had reported that I plan to teach in Vietnam. When I explained that I will do that for two or three months and return here in September, Khun Toy was very happy. That confirmed again that it is important for them that I be here, and I’m really glad that I will be. I wondered if they had thought I would be teaching and would not return. What I’m actually doing is keeping busy until September so I can be here for her retirement.

Friday was exhibition day at school, so no classes. There were exhibits and activities most of the day. 

The opening ceremony included a few dances, as usual. 

Then everyone walked around the exhibits. Several were selling food students had made. The math department was selling the geometric balls students had been making for two weeks. I don’t think many were sold. The science department had students doing science “tricks.” The English department sold sandwiches made to order. They also had a booth where students could shake a stick out and identify the flag of an ASEAN country and/or read the word for greeting in that language. Kate and Lovely worked there. When I went to relieve them, they said they wanted to stay. So I hung out in the office for half of the day. My interest level in these exhibitions is about three hours. I went back down and walked around and asked if I could help a few times and went down for the closing ceremony.

At the end of the day, Khun Toom gave me the schedule for exams. I’d been trying to get it all week so I would know what classes I have to teach next week. It turns out that they’ve moved exams again and everyone will take them on the same days; so I have to teach all the classes Monday to Thursday. I’m done teaching and the students are done learning. So I’ll review yet again and basically give them the exam questions to study for those who bother to study in or out of class. I do what I can to help them.

When I was walking home Thursday evening, my eye was caught by what looked like me. It is me. I’m featured on the new banner advertisement for the school. There’s one on each corner. Two weeks ago I was called out of class to have my photo taken in the Sound Lab. I had no idea what it was for, but it was urgent, as Sister Viphaporn wanted me there “now.” The banner focuses on the Sound Lab with a picture of me teaching and students listening. I suppose they are advertising their Sound Lab and native speaker teacher at the same time to appeal to potential parents to enroll their students next year.

The weather cooled down early in the week. I had to get the comforter out again for two nights and wear a jacket to school two mornings. But it’s back to being hot—near 100 degrees—again. The fan stays on all day and night these days. It is time for the hot season to begin, and it’s here.

Happy Valentine's Day (2-16)

Life has been pretty quiet recently. A few highlights.

Monday morning Kru Tang was very excited to tell me that the school is a champion in Hero Mission. I had a vague memory of hearing about this project before and Kate confirmed it: Hero Mission is a Facebook contest. Kru Tang had asked me to vote, but I was not able to do it. Nine teachers at the school won and will go to Bangkok next week for some special recognition. At the school, each of the nine teachers was given a framed certificate and an artificial bouquet during the morning assembly.

Tuesday was a big day: Valentine’s Day. It was also Lovely’s birthday. Students had been making cards for the occasion all last week. Tuesday morning three of my 7^th grade students came to the office and gave Lovely candy and an artificial bouquet for Valentine’s Day and her birthday. I jokingly asked why my students were giving her gifts and not me, their teacher. When the students left, Lovely explained that they try to talk to her when she is tutoring in the garden after school, and she had told them it would be her birthday. She is also much younger than I. A few minutes later the students returned with a rose for me. I felt a little bad for having shamed them into giving me something, but it was very sweet of them to do that.

During the day I was given small candies by several of the 7^th grade students. On Monday I had told them that in America people give chocolate on Valentine’s Day and I wanted chocolate. One girl who often gives me little candies gave me a Hershey’s nugget bar. It was really sweet of her to listened and acted on what I said. A few of the other students gave me little flowers in an envelope with a couple candies. The 8^th grade girls gave me a bunch of sunflower seeds in the shells. That may have been because they were eating them when I walked to check on them; so they gave me some.

Since it was Lovely’s birthday, she invited us to their house for dinner. When I arrived at 7:30, she was cooking and there was a lot more cooking to be done. We snacked on the fried chicken bits she was cooking while she and a few friends cooked more chicken, pork, fish, and hot dogs. While they cooked, we listened to Carpenter’s music, which all of them grew up with because their mothers and grandmothers love it. It was fun to hear it again. We sat down to eat at 9:00. Lovely had also made chicken in a Filipino sauce. It was quite tasty. One of her friends brought two big pans of brownies. She sent some home with Tony and me. It was a pleasant evening.

It’s officially hot. Temperatures have been around 35 degrees C, which is close to 100 degrees F. Hot.

One of the 7^th grade boys has been helping me after class, carrying my bag to the office for me. On the way, he chats a bit to use questions he has learned from an English book he studies when he finishes his work. And probably other times, too. It’s nice that he now feels comfortable trying out his new English questions and tries to respond when I ask him the question.

Hanging Out with Friends (2-5)

It’s been a pretty quiet two weeks. Last Saturday I had a personal care day. It started with a hair cut at 9:00, which I had arranged on Friday. Because it was Saturday and I had time and needed to get the little pieces off my head, I also had it shampooed after the cut. A shampoo includes a vigorous scalp massage that was quite nice. Then I headed for a massage. I stopped at the place on the main road I’ve seen, but the door opened into a long hallway. I think the doors in the hall may have been for massage rooms, but no one was visible and it felt strange; so I went to the mall to patronize the massage place I’ve seen there. There was a one-hour wait, which was not a problem. After having a pad Thai lunch, which was also on my agenda for the day, I had a foot (up to the knee) massage. It was wonderful. It also took care of the small shoulder ache I’d had for a few days. Cost of haircut and massage: 280 bahts (about $9)

Sunday morning Khun Toy called to invite me to go with them to visit her brother in the hospital. I quickly agreed. The week before she had invited me, but I had misunderstood where they were going and thought they were going to Udon, which is about five hours away, not Det Udam, which is only an hour away. (I was tired and ready to go home and have some alone time when she asked me, and my understanding of Thai is worse than usual in such circumstances.) We laughed about that. I’m sure I’ll hear about it again. After she called, I quickly ate breakfast, as they were about twenty minutes from Ubon. Our first stop turned out to be Khun Kwan’s house, where we ate breakfast—again for me—and changed vehicles so Khun Oy could drive us to Det Udam. Khun Kwan was wearing a dress, which I’d not seen her do before and was not going with us. When I asked what she was going, I learned that she is going to weekend classes to get a Master’s degree. We dropped her off at the university on the way.

After visiting Khun Toy’s brother, which included taking him home from the hospital and hanging out a bit, we returned to Ubon and had lunch at Khun Somlan’s house. On the way there, we stopped at the market and bought fish and shrimp. When we arrived at the house, we had a cooking party. Khun Toy, Bitoy, and I cleaned the shrimp. Then it was decided that I would do the frying while Bitoy arranged the fried shrimp on the plates. The men made a delicious fish soup. In half an hour, lunch was ready. It was fun to help with the preparations, which I don’t often get to do.

This Saturday was Khun Dakom’s 65^th birthday. He had planned to have dinner together but changed it to lunch, partly so I would not have to cancel my students. It was a small group consisting of Khu Kwan’s family and the usual group of good friends—me, Khun Suwit and Khun Teamjan, Khun Somlan and Khun Toy, and another good friend I’ve seen a few times. Khun Oy picked up Khun Kwan at the university so she could join us. She was wearing a dress again. I guess students in her class really dress up, unlike those in the U.S. We ate at a fancy Chinese restaurant in their small room. The room has a big TV on which the men watched Thai boxing. 

We had eight different foods: a crab dish, spicy soup, spicy chicken claw skin salad, fried fish sausage, mushrooms, a special duck dish, fried rice, and a special mixture in a “bird’s nest.” The latter was delicious and had cashews, water chestnuts, mushrooms, and Chinese fruits. 

The duck dish was also a special one I’d not seen before. It came as a deep fried mass with a layer of duck on the bottom and a mixture of rice and other white foods on the top. The mushrooms and duck were chosen for me. Khun Dakom had me look at the pictures and pick out what I wanted. I chose the mushrooms and said duck would be good.

School is winding down. Only one month of classes left before final exams in early March. Most of the students are done trying to learn. Attendance in 8^th grade is down, and many of those who are there aren’t even trying any more. Now instead of copying their friends’ work they hand in blank papers. Even a few of the better students have stopped doing their best. Khun Toom told me that her 6^th grade students, whom I have for math, have stopped studying and just want to talk about their futures and write in their friendship books. They’re still doing the work for me so far. 7^th grade is still doing OK. I’ve actually noticed that a couple of the students who used to copy everything are starting to try to do the work themselves. One boy has even asked for help a few times to make sure he knows what to do. This was a nice surprise.

I remain content with my decision not to stay here another year. There have been days or moments (usually after a few good lessons, which does happen) when I think that I could teach here again and it would be easier because the students are used to me now. But I know the overall situation will not change much. The good 7^th grade class will probably be divided into two classes. They are really two classes but are together because there aren’t enough students for the school to have two classes this year. But the school will take in new students for 8^th grade, and the new students will be mostly those who have had problems or failed at other schools. (That happened this year, and many of the new students are the ones who are big problems in the 8^th grade classes.) This will, of course, change the dynamics of the “good” class. I’m just not interested in dealing with that. Last week they changed the students’ seats so they are now separated into the two classes, one on each side of the room. I wondered if this is in preparation for dividing them into two separate classes next year.

I will miss some of the 7^th grade students, though, as they’ve been a good class and they have become “mine.” It helps that Bank  tells them to be quiet sometimes and translates when I tell them how “bad” they are being. It has also been good because I teach them English four hours a week instead of two because the school didn’t have enough English teachers to assign a Thai teacher to teach the class. This gives them a consistent English program instead of having one program with me for two days and a different one with the Thai teacher for two days. So they have really made progress and learned what I’ve taught.

Scout Camp and Celebrations (1-22)

The first Scout Camp was on Friday. This one was for grades 4-6, which meant that I didn’t see two of my Friday classes. It was held at the school. I was wondering how it would work at this school in the city. In the morning, students did large group activities in the common area. The loud speaker was on and was very loud, making it difficult to teach in the classes above it. 

In the afternoon, they did the usual “challenge” activities in the open area across from the school. They some of the same ones my other schools always did 

and a couple activities I hadn’t seen before—walking across a single rope holding onto an anchor rope that moved along with the walker and hoisting a student sitting in a bicycle tire up to a bell in a tree. Unlike the country schools, where students walked in the country five to ten minutes between activities, these students walked about 20 seconds between activities. That was the difference between Camp in the city and in the country. After the activities, they set up their tents in the field beside the blacktop and among the trees on the other side of the blacktop. 

In the evening, they cooked dinner and had the “campfire.” I watched them cook for a few minutes and was given a taste of one group’s food. Then I went home.

The Camp for grades 1-3 is Monday and is only a one-day Camp. The Camp for grades 7-9 is Thursday and Friday. So no classes with them for two days, meaning that I’ll miss five of my classes next week. They’ll sleep at the school two nights.

Saturday Khun Toy and Khun Dakom had a blessing ceremony and lunch for Khun Kwan to celebrate her new status as a government teacher. They are quite proud of her. The lay leader who does the ceremonies in the village came. Many of the teachers from the village came. The student dancers from that school performed. Khun Kwan’s friends also attended. The party was also to celebrate Bitoy’s birthday on Thursday; so there was a table for her friends, too.

Kru Oy drove me to the hotel at 10:00. Khun Kwan, Khun Joy, and the girls were the only other people there. Others started arriving after 11:00. The ceremony began at 11:30. The lay leader chanted a blessing, mentioning Khun Kwan’s name several times. Then we did the string tying for Khun Kwan and Bitoy. Lunch was served: fish, sweet-sour pork with fruit and mushrooms, fish soup, and a couple dishes I couldn’t eat. Then the karaoke began. I sang my song and enjoyed dancing. As is usually the case, we left long (over an hour) after I was ready to leave.

I enjoyed seeing and greeting the teachers. Many commented on how good I looked. Khun Pannee suggested that I teach at the school again and live with her. She’s so sweet. Khun Kumtom’s grandson came up to me, said my name, and took my hand. He stood in front of me holding my hand, with my other hand on his shoulder, for a several minutes. Later, when I stopped at the table where he was sitting, he took my hand briefly again. He was my first friend in the village (He was 2.5 years old then), but we haven’t had much of a relationship other than an occasional greeting for a few years, and I’ve been gone almost a year. So I was quite touched by his wanting to connect with me. I wondered if it had to do with the recent death of his father.

The other interesting guest was Gary, the British man I met at my birthday party. He was here then for two weeks to meet the woman he had met on the Internet and see if he wanted to marry her. He returned in November and they spent ten days together in Phuket. They got married on Tuesday. He’s here for three months and then will return to England to work for seven months. I find myself fascinated by this aspect of the culture and the way the women treat the foreign men so much differently than they treat Thai men. And, of course, so much differently than a Western woman would treat the men, which, of course, is why they are looking for a Thai woman. Both get something they would not get from a marriage with someone from their own culture.

What seems to happen with these marriages is that they develop a culture of their own that is neither Thai nor Western. Blending of customs seems to be more toward Western—the male’s—customs. They usually hold hands in public or have their hand on the other person’s body. Thais do not publically display affection. But they also behave in ways that are neither Thai nor Western. An example of this occurred when we were eating with Bruce and Joy last week. They had already eaten and were relaxing while we ate, since we arrived much later than they did. Bruce sat leaning against the rails with his feet in Joy’s lap and she massaged his feet. This is not something he would do with an American; nor is it something that two Thais would do. But it is deemed OK because she is Thai and he is American. It’s what Thai women think Western men want, and it is probably what the men want from a Thai woman.

This is where I have some respect for Tony, who will probably marry Sampong soon. He bought (in her name, as foreigners can’t own property) some land outside Ubon two weeks ago, and she got officially divorced last week. They have been living together for over a year and have established a relationship, and she speaks enough English that they can communicate most of the time. This is different from the men who communicate on the Internet, come for a brief visit and then get married to someone they hardly know and have no common language with. Their relationship is also different in that Tony follows Sampong’s customs. Part of this may be because she is an older woman and is a strong person.

Khun Dakom told me that Khun Kwan would like to have a different job now but there are no jobs available. He added that new graduates are having in many fields are having trouble finding jobs.

He also told me that if I want to teach at the Amnat Charoen school, he will talk to Khun Somlan because the school has told Khun Somlan that they are interested in having me there when I finish at this school. I’m not interested in that school, as their classes have 50-60 students. In addition, I really feel like I’m done teaching here. But it was really sweet of him to ask. They do care about me.

Sunday afternoon I decided to go for a massage at a place I’ve seen on the main road, as my usual woman is gone for a few months. As I was leaving, Khun Dakom called and told me to go to his sister’s house for Chinese New Year. She is married to a Chinese (meaning Chinese ethnic Thai) man, and they were having a special lunch for the occasion. Another big lunch, featuring Chinese foods: duck, bamboo cooked a way I’ve not had it before, omelet with oysters, Chinese fruit for dessert, steamed buns, rice-wrapped sweet cooked in bamboo, Chinese (Mandarin) oranges, Chinese wine. I was sent home with a bag of Mandarin oranges. There were also some Thai foods that I couldn’t eat, but there was more than enough Chinese food; so that wasn’t a problem.

Weather this week was hot. I have a fan on most of the time. Thursday night and Friday morning it rained heavily.  Fortunately, it stopped in time to go to school and didn’t interfere with the Scout Camp. It rained again briefly Saturday evening. This is the first precipitation we’ve had since October; so it is needed.

Vacation in Southern Laos--Champassak (1-16)

After three days on the island, it was time to move on to Champassak. While I was waiting for the boat to the mainland, I met Lior, a young Israeli. She was leaving her friends with whom she’d been traveling for 1.5 months and going to Bangkok  on her own to meet up with an Israeli friend. I think she wanted a companion to ease the transition. We sat together on the bus, and I invited her to stay with me in Ubon for a night. She went on to Pakse, as she had left her big bag there, and I got off in Champassak, but we arranged to meet at the bus station the next afternoon.

Champassak is a small town. I was surprised how little it is prepared for tourists. We took a boat across the river, as the road the bus uses is on the other side. Then I walked to the guest house, which was a longer walk than I’d anticipated. I planned to relax and then go to Wat Phu in the morning. At the guest house, I learned that the only transportation to Pakse is in the morning; so I needed to go to Wat Phu then. The owner arranged for his friend—or maybe his wife—to take me on a motorcycle. There are songtaews, but I needed to leave soon because it was already after 3:00 and this seemed like the easiest thing to do. I had thought Wat Phu was closer to town than it is, but it took about half an hour to get there, as the road isn’t very good and she drove slowly and carefully, which is a good thing. When we arrived, the woman told me to return to the parking lot at 5:30. I understood the need to leave then, as it gets dark at 6:00 and I didn’t want to be on the road after dark any more than she did. Although I felt a bit rushed, I was able to see what I wanted to see.

Wat Phu is the ruins of a 6^th century Khmer temple. It is at the base of the mountains, which were lovely in the late afternoon sunlight. On the ground level are two large temples. I read that the one on the right was for men, and the one on the left was for women. 

Then you walk up a lot of stairs to the top of the mountain. The stairs are lined with frangipani trees that had their white flowers on the top of otherwise bare branches. 

The view from the top was beautiful. 

The main sanctuary is at the top. It has a lot of beautiful carvings. 

In back of the building is a cave that has spring water dripping from the rocks. People collect this sacred water in bottles to take home.

After my quick tour—about 1.5 hours, I was just about at the parking lot when my driver came to meet me. It was 5:30. We took a different road back to Champassak. It wasn’t full of potholes, but it was dirt most of the way and had a couple hills. I don’t think she had been on it recently, as she seemed surprised by the depth of the dust. It’s the dry season, and the road had about 2” of dust on top in many places. It was a slow, dusty trip. But we got back safely.

When I went to dinner at the guest house restaurant, I learned that my driver is also the cook.

At 7:20 the next morning, the guest house owner knocked on my door to tell me the minibus was there. I guess he had told them I was there and needed to go to Pakse.

He and another man I asked at the hotel in town had told me that the minibus to Pakse leaves at 7:30 and there are songtaews until 9:00. Since my bus wasn’t until 3:30, I didn’t need to be at the bus station too early and decided to take a songtaew. After getting ready to leave, I took a walk through town, which didn’t take long, since the guest house is in the middle and there really isn’t much there. I saw a songtaew at 7:45 and one at 8:15. This was good. At 8:30 I took my bags and stood by the road to wait for the next songtaew. At 9:00 the owner joined me. We waited until 9:30. Then he asked about a motorcycle. I’d already realized that that was how I was going to have to go to Pakse. He’d offered to arrange one the day before and had reduced the price, but I didn’t want to pay that much when I could take a songtaew for much less. But now it was 9:30 and no songtaew. Since I was going to pay for the motorcycle, I decided to relax at the guest house and go in the afternoon, as that was a more pleasant place to wait than the bus station. So I put my bags in the room, which had already been cleaned, and sat on the chair beside the river for a few hours. Then I ate lunch. It was a relaxing way to finish the holiday.

The motorcycle trip to Pakse was a 40 minute ride, my longest. But all worked out well. Lior arrived at the bus station with our tickets, and we were off to Ubon.

Vacation in Southern Laos--Don Khone (1-16)

The second stop of my journey was Don Khone, one of the islands in the Mekong River at the very southern end of Laos. The area is known as the 4000 islands. Most that I saw are very small. The three largest are set up for tourists. I chose to stay on the one that is described as being quiet. It was a good choice.

The town itself is about 1 km long and is mostly guest houses. Villagers’ homes are outside town. There are a few old French houses in town. There is a school that has ruins of an old house on its grounds. Children play in it.

After settling in at the guest house, I set out on a walk. I found a map at a restaurant/guest house shop that turned out to be a good purchase. The first day I decided to walk to the waterfall outside town. 

On the way, I stopped at the old wat. I enjoyed watching the water buffalo in the fields. 

And the pigs, which are different from ones I’ve seen elsewhere.

Li Phi waterfall features water coming from several places and flowing among the huge rocks into a narrow canyon. I also walked down the path to the beach on the river. There the water is quiet.

That night there was loud music, which surprised me, since the island is supposed to be quiet. In the morning I went for a walk before breakfast and found the big stage where the music had come from. That day, 30 December, there was a big celebration. There was a market set up in the street. After breakfast I rented a bicycle, which is the main transportation around the island. Almost every place rents them. I decided to ride around the other side of the island to Khong Soi waterfall. 

When I went through the market, I noticed that people were standing around along the river waiting for something. Soon a long boat came by, and I realized that there were going to be long boat races. I watched the boats practice for a while and then rode on.

The road went along a river. In one place there were water buffalo in the river, which I don’t usually see. 

The waterfall is small but quiet. I was the only person there. In the river there was a huge contraption I think is some kind of fish trap. There wasn’t anyone I could ask about it.

I then continued around the island, riding through a forested area to the port from which one can get a boat to see the Irawaddy dolphins. I decided to do this and hooked up with a Swiss couple to share a boat. The dolphins are fresh water dolphins that come to this area between December and May. They don’t come high out of the water, but we were fortunate to see about twelve. We could see several well enough to see their arched backs. The boat goes out into the river and then stops so passengers can watch for dolphins. You really have to watch a spot and keep your eyes there or you will miss the quick jump. Across the river is Cambodia. The boats can only go half way across, as that is where the border is.

When I returned to town, I looked for a tour to Khong Prapheng waterfall. I had decided that I wanted to go there, partly because it is advertised as “the big waterfall” and partly because Khun Dakom had told me about it and how beautiful it is. It seemed like something I should do while I was in the area. I went to a few places that advertised tours, but they didn’t have anyone going. One man told me to find a friend, as they need two people to take a tour. Then another man then agreed to take me alone for only a few dollars more than I would pay if I had a friend; so on I went. He took me by boat to the port on the mainland. Then he put me on a motorcycle with another man. The ride was 30 minutes, the longest motorcycle ride I’d had for over thirty years. I had no idea it would be so far. The sign at the waterfall calls it “the pearl of Asia.” It is the largest waterfall in Asia—or in southeast Asia. I’ve seen it described both ways. I have also seen it described as the widest waterfall in Asia—or in the world. Either way, there is a huge volume of water flowing. It’s amazing to think of that amount of water in the same river that is quiet elsewhere.

The third day I rented a bicycle again. First I went to the wat. Then I crossed the river on the old French bridge that was used by the train to Don Det. Don Det has many more tourist guest houses than Don Khone. They just went on and on. The river looks different there; so I was glad I went. 

I stopped at the wat and ate lunch at a noodle shop. When I returned to Don Khone, I went back to Li Phi waterfall because I decided to buy a silk shawl I’d seen. The woman weaves them there and was happy to have sold one. A man was doing the selling that day, but the woman thanked me as I left. Then it was time to return the bicycle and eat dinner.

Since my guest house was not on the river side of town, I decided to eat dinner every night at a restaurant on the river. Each night I arrived early so I would be there for sunset, and each night I was rewarded with a lovely sunset. Also good food. I had expected dinners to be more expensive on the island because so much has to be brought in by boat, but the prices were quite reasonable. Breakfast was as expensive as dinner, I think because more of the breakfast foods had to be brought in. Bottled water was twice as much as in Pakse. Food always took a long time to come because everything was cooked after it was ordered. The last night I had a local specialty—fish cooked in banana leaf.

The river: People use the river for washing clothes, bathing, and swimming. It is amazingly wide. I read that it is10-14 km wide in some places in this area. Going from Don Khone to Don Det and realizing that both are in the middle of the river was amazing. Seeing the river in Champassak, it is hard to believe the difference.