Outside In

For Auld Lang Syne

Bicycled several river delta islands where a more traditional life is still lived. Our group included Brits, Aussies, Dutch and a Swede. Our bikes and us took a 40 minute boat ride through the islands.

Upon landing, we went to a simple traditional wooden house. The left door is for females, the right for males, and the centre (hidden by the shrubs) for the spirits of departed loved ones. During life celebrations, anyone can use the outer doors, but never the middle spirit door.

The interior is spartan. A raised wooden sleeping bed on each side of the main room. A curtain is the door to a small back bedroom. An eating area/bedroom is off to the right. No privacy at all. Once grandchildren are born, the grandparents don't sleep in the same bed. It would be unseemly for the old folk to be perceived as potentially making hanky-panky.

The family shrine to honour the gods and departed relatives is between the two beds. The table is only used as a dining table on significant days - weddings, funerals etc. The large urn is a reworked artillery shell from the wars with the French.

The eating area and bedroom. Kitchen is at the very back of the house.

The calendar represents both the solar and lunar dates. The 14 is our calendar, the 17 is the lunar calendar whose months are either 29 or 30 days long. So every third year the lunar calendar has a repeated month immediately after the regular month so it doesn't get terribly out of sync. This year there will be two Novembers. When inviting people for a visit, weddings etc one has to specify which calendar.

A child is not named until one month old in order to see what their personality is like. At that time the parents are given two coins, each having a white and black face. They choose a name and flip the coins. One black one white is a no. A matched pair is a yes. Parents can flip the coins three times, hoping to get a match for the chosen name. If after a third unmatched flip, the gods have declared that is a bad name and another name must be chosen, and the flipping continues.

Traditional reed mat-making is still practiced on this island. Reeds are grown, dyed and then woven on a home made loom. The "feeder" attaches a reed to a long string, puts it into a black tube, inserts the tube through the shuttle, the weaver grabs the end of the reed, the tube is withdrawn, the shuttle is shuttled and the weaver quickly ties knots on both ends of the reed. They get into a very quick rhythm and can produce 3 products like our guide Phon (like iPhone he said) is holding per day. An all natural straw coloured mat is a funeral mat. Placemats are also produced.

This building sounded full of birds. They are pre-recorded bird calls enticing Asian swiftlets to enter. Once in they can't get out. Their saliva and poop, which they use to build nests is highly valued for health benefits, from maintaining health, curative powers, anti-aging, even curing cancer. A single nest may sell for over $1 000. This structure might make the owners $1 million per year. One does wonder about bird flu.....

This first island has no fresh water, so no rice is grown. They fish, fish and shrimp farm.

This floating fish farm has different fish of different sizes trapped in each square.

We crossed this private floating bridge between islands. Many of the planks are not nailed down so it was a little scary. The owner takes the bridge down when flooding occurs and rebuilds it later. The blue stripe on the tollbooth marks the height of the water in the 2019 flood during the rainy season.

This woodworker made the bed, and did the carved designs in this teeny workshop. A new project for you Bob Alexander!

Basket boats of strips of bamboo are made here. The boats are sealed with a mixture of water buffalo dung and tree sap. An elderly lady led us to the river to ride in the boats. I felt something on the back of my neck that I thought was my bicycle helmet strap and tried brushing it off. Took off my helmet. Then something was in my hair. Tried brushing it off. No luck! Phon said, "Stay very still. There's a big spider on your head." I stood stock still. 😰 Then the whole group burst into laughter. The lady was brushing a twig of blooms on me from behind. A number of years ago someone on a tour asked her age. When she answered 61, the person thought she said sexy one. That is her nickname now. She captained that boat masterfully, standing while rocking and spinning. Some of the group tried out the boat. I had had a turn on my last visit, so declined.

Banana trees are really important to the islanders. The flowers (purple below) can be used in salads. The bananas that grow from the flowers are eaten. A tree only will blossom only once 2-3 years after reaching maturity. The tree is then cut down, the branches used to make roofs, and the trunk is fed to animals. The trees' roots produce new trees.

Bird of paradise growing wild and cultivated sweet potatoes.

This island does have fresh water and therefore rice is grown.

Traditional wooden boat building is an industry here - from small bamboo boats to large tourist boats similar to the launch that brought us to the islands. The eyes on the boats have an ancient history but no agreed upon reason. Phon told us three theories. The eyes allowed the gods to see through mist and stormy waters for a safe journey to shore. The eyes peered under the water looking for monsters to avoid. Phon's theory is that many of the sailors drink beer and rice wine all day and the eyes show them which end is the front of the boat. 😂

Our last stop was the workshop of a gentleman who works with shells. It's an amazing and time consuming process but the results are spectacular. He sands the shells by hand, flattens them under water for three days, glues layers together, cuts them into desired sizes, hacksaws designs and shapes and etches in detail. His wife carves the shapes into wood. He inlays the shells and covers the piece in a tarry gloop of tree sap, ashes and bamboo shavings, then sands it all down so the etching stands out.