Elementary Schools Field Day

Bem Leads Baan Tahsang Elementary School Students

One of our favorite end of the year events here in Isaan is the Elementary School Field Day.  Actually the athletic competition between schools is elementary and secondary schools within the various sub-districts.

Tahasang Village is part of Tambon Nongwha (Nongwha Sub-district).  There are seven elementary schools within Tambon Nongwha.  Each year, typically at the end of December, the seven schools will gather on a rotating basis at one of the schools for a sports day.  This year, the Field Day was held on 10 January in conjunction with Thailand's Children's Day on 11 January 2014.

The Elementary School Field Day commences with a parade of the participating schools along the public road to the site where the competition is being held.  This is not a parade of the athletes like during the Olympics.  It is a parade of the student body from each of the schools.  The schools are very small so everyone gets to participate in the procession.  Tahsang Village Elementary School has 45 students which is about the size of the other schools.

The contingent from each school is lead by a drum majorette a couple of standard bearers, a student carrying a picture of the King, and the school band, a group of girls all dressed and made up in fancy party outfits with the student body dressed in their school uniforms marching in formation behind them.

Tahsang Village Student Body

The students from all the schools march on to and stand in formation before the pavilions where the local government officials are assembled.  There is a formal flag raising ceremony, singing of the national anthem, singing the King's anthem, chanting of a Buddhist prayer, and many speeches.

After the completion of the speeches, the hosting school performs a routine.  Last year, Tahsang Village as the hosting school performed a choreographed Muay Thai exposition.  This year, in consideration and anticipation of the upcoming creation of the ASEAN community in 2015, the hosting school performed ethnic dances to music unique to representative countries of the ASEAN association.

The next event was the lighting of the Olympic cauldron.  I know that only the "real" Olympics can have an Olympic torch, Olympic cauldron, or even refer to competition as "Olympics".  I know that they have taken legal steps to stop others from "infringing" upon their "brand".  However, this is Thailand, more specifically Isaan, where life is more simple and there are far less concerns about 3 to 14 year olds infringing upon a staid organization like the International Olympic Committee.

At this Olympics, there were no concerns or restriction regarding sexual orientation.  Some of the girls wearing fancy dresses, and highly made up were actually boys.  No one cared and people focused on supporting their school and ensuring that they had a good time.

The cauldron at these Olympics was not fueled by high pressure natural gas.  Our cauldron was actually a rather heavy large metal bowl placed on top of some scaffolding.  The bowl was filled with locally produced charcoal.  A runner ran around the sporting field with an Olympic torch, climbed the scaffolding and set the charcoal on fire.  After a short time, the flames died down and the Olympic flame was more an Olympic smoldering for the remainder of the day.

Once the cauldron was ignited three fireworks were shot high into the air to signify the start of the games.

Each school had their own separate grandstand for students, teachers, and family members.  The grandstands were highly decorated and in individual color schemes.  Family members set up sahts on the ground beneath the grandstand - an area protected from the overhead sun, a great place to eat, drink and rest.

Tahsang Student Prepared for Relay Race

She's Off!

The first competition of the day was the races.  Elementary schools have students aged 3 and up to 14.  In addition to individual races there were relay racing.  I always get a kick at the efforts expended by race officials, teachers, and supporters to first set up 4 and 5 year olds into staggered start positions and trying to hold the eager runners or motivate the not so eager runners to take off at the proper time.  It is great entertainment.  False starts are sometimes called but more often if it reasonably close they are not.  It all doesn't seem to matter all that much because the runners, all of them, seem to have a great time.

The children enjoy themselves competing to the best of their ability - no fancy clothes - no fancy running shoes - just bare feet. Pure racing for the fun of it all.

Tahsang Village Passing the Baton

Bem Runs the Anchor Leg for Tahsang Village

Each contingent of supporters brought their own sound system and selection of music to the games - a sort of unofficial competition.  Music blared across the field from seven different sound systems.  Each school's students who were not competing in an ongoing event typically joined in dancing in front of their grandstand.  Some of the schools had a choreographed dance team providing entertainment. Little brothers and sisters, too young for school, often joined in the dancing. It was a grand sight.

Along the perimeter of the competition field, vendors had set up stalls, booths, and motorbike sidecars from which they sold drinks, food, and ice cream,  Smoke rose and filled the air from charcoal fires where chicken feet, pork, sausages, and other items were being grilled. It was a grand party.

At other booths, students could throw darts at balloons for prizes or use air rifles to shoot at prizes.  Further out, children were bouncing up and down as well as between trampolines.  There was even a small merry go round with suspended seats for children to sit in.

Children Putting On A Show.  Duang Is Giving Them Money - Just Like At Adult Shows

Since this field day was also associated with Children's Day, there were also some children events.  The sub-district sponsored a show where children sang, danced, and answered questions for prizes.  Once again everyone, young and old, was having a great time.

Audience Members Dancing and Singing

Off to the side of the children's show there was an area where children and their parents could water color ceramic figurines. This was another popular area for people of all ages.

Mother and Daughter Enjoying Themselves

Back at the competition area, volleyball, futball (soccer), and takraw were contested.

Bem Sends the Luuk Takraw Towards the Net

Takraw is sort of like volleyball - it is played with a woven rattan ball with three players to a side.  The ball, luuk takraw is put in play by a player on one side tossing it away from the net to a team mate who kicks it over the net to the other team.  Using only the head and feet the object is to keep the rattan ball in play.  If your team can not, the other scores a point.

We left around 3:30 PM., tired but not as tired as some at the event.  One of the Tahsang Village students had fallen asleep back at the grandstand - sound asleep in the comfort of his teacher's lap and arms.

There's One In Every Crowd

Scouts Practice Flag Raising Ceremony As A Body Is Cremated At the Village Wat

On Wednesday of this week, Duang and I drove out into the sugar cane growing area of Tambon Nongwha to attend the funeral ritual of one of her friends.

He and Duang attended the same elementary school in Tahsang Village.  According to Duang they spent a great deal of time "boxing" - fist fighting.  They fought each other.  Like Duang he left school after four years to work in the fields to help support and feed their families.  One day when Duang was tending her uncle's water buffaloes she came upon him tending to some other water buffaloes.  Sure enough, they had another fist fight.  Apparently as they both got older they mellowed out and gave up fighting each other.

This week the man died of a heart attack at age 50.

After his funeral ritual was completed we walked from the nearby Buddhist Wat to his home to say goodbye to everyone.  Several Tahsang Villagers asked for a ride back to the village.  After all the goodbyes had been said I headed off down the road to where our truck was parked followed by Duang, and the Tahsang Village stragglers behind her.  Well as the saying goes "Saying good bye is so very hard to do" With 10 people it is even ore exponentially difficult to do.  I very quickly was wandering down the road by myself.

I noticed a school off to my left.  The school property was surrounded by a four strand barbed wire fence.  On the other side of the fence many students were in a big circle.  Since it was Wednesday they, boys and girls, were dressed in their scout uniforms.  Since it was 3:00 P.M., I assumed that they were conducting a flag lowering ceremony for the end of the day. The students were too far away for a decent photograph withe lens that I had so I quickened my pace but knew that I most likely could not get down to the entrance to the school and back up to where the flag pole was located.  When I was just about even to where the students were assembled, I got a break, or more accurately there was a break in the barbed wire fence.  The middle two strands had been pulled away from each other to create an opening that was not to small, not too low, and not too high but just right for me to slip through.

Once they lowered the flag, the students did not fold it up for storage.  Instead, they proceeded to have a flag raising ceremony like had witnessed before in the morning.  Apparently these scouts were being trained for leading the morning start of day ceremony.  The start of day ceremony involves raising the flag, singing the Thai National Anthem, singing a song about the King, saying a prayer - Buddhist prayer, and inspection of fingernails, teeth, and uniform.

As I was photographing the training, I got the idea to take a sort of "artsy" photograph.  Two students out of focus creating a frame for the chimney at the Wat crematorium belching acrid black smoke.  Between the framing students and the chimney were the other uniformed students - sort of a commentary about life going on and the future that awaits all of us.

I squatted down to get the perspective that I wanted for the shot.  I checked my framing, and the other variables that you need to for an acceptable shot.  I took the shot and reviewed on the camera's 3 inch monitor.  It looked good.

Yesterday when I was post processing the shot, I was surprised but not shocked.  I have seen too much of what I saw in the photo to ever be shocked.  I was surprised to see in the back ground of my artsy photograph - a boy busily picking his nose!

You are supposed to always check the background before taking the shot for any items that can detract from the photograph.  I know that.  I have known that for a long time but I guess I had gotten careless, lazy, or too involved in the moment and did not.

The photograph below is a blown up section of my "artsy" photograph which is at the start of this blog.

ALWAYS CHECK YOUR BACK GROUND BEFORE TAKING YOUR SHOT!

As I am sure, every wedding photographer has learned "There is one in every crowd" - some one picking their nose.

I learned a lesson that I hopefully will never forget "Check the background before taking the shot".

Was it meant to be a lesson or was it something else?  Quite often whenever and where ever I see a child picking their nose , I ask them in Lao "Sep bawh?" (Is it delicious?).  The parents and grandparents always have a big laugh and the children are taken aback at a falang speaking to them in Lao.  However I do live in the lands of karma and perhaps this was karma - karma for being such a wise guy.

There is one in every crowd.  Please be sure it is not you!

Hmong New Years Festival 2013

Hmong Young Ladies In Luang Prabang, LPDR

Early in December, we flew from Vientiane to Luang Prabang for a holiday.  We typically go to Luang Prabang in December because it is dry season and the temperatures are very moderate, perhaps even on the cool side.  Most importantly, December is usually the time when the Hmong people of the area celebrate their new year.

Hmong New Year in Laos is a celebration that is the longest and most popular Hmong cultural event that is typically celebrated in December after the rice crop has been harvested and when the moon is darkest.  Traditional it was to start with the first rooster crow on the first day of the new moon in the 12th lunar month.  The celebration can last from four to seven days.  There are many festivals in cities and villages of all sizes.  The actual start day can vary each year as well as each locale and sometimes will slightly change at the last minute.  After stumbling upon the festival on our first visit in 2008, we use local contacts in Luang Prabang to determine the exact dates before finalizing our arrangements.

The Hmong New Year celebration consists of "in house" rituals and public festival.  The "in house" rituals are meant to give thanks to the ancestors and spirits along with welcoming a new beginning.  Duang and I have not witnessed these rituals ... yet.  The "in house" rituals include calling back home ancestor spirits to enjoy the celebration and the the making offerings to the spirits, that guard each home, with the living family members. The young members of the family pay respects to the old and in-laws - asking for blessings from the the elders of the home, elders from their clan, and the elder in laws of other clans.

Among other in-house rituals are offerings to the spirit of wealth, cleaning of the body, if a shaman is a member of the family - a special ritual to the spirit of curing allowing the spirit to have a vacation for 3 days at which the spirit is called back to do curing, a ritual to get rid of all problems, issues, misfortune that occurred to the family in the past year , some special feasts, and a ritual to release the souls of all dead family members.

Hmong New Years festival, the public celebration, is the only holiday shared by the whole Hmong community - an occasion where members of all the clans come together.  This is extremely important to know and understand a major function of the celebration - courting.

Young Hmong Maiden In Traditional Dress

At the Hmong New Year Festival, Hmong people of all ages dress in traditional clothing to eat traditional Hmong foods, drink, socialize, listen to traditional music, play games. and to enjoy themselves.

Young Hmong Play Pov Pob

A central part of the Festival is play a Hmong game called "Pov Pob".  At face value it is a rather simple game of two lines of people facing each other tossing a cloth ball or more typically these days, a used tennis ball, back and forth.  The ball is lobbed gently by one hand in an arc and caught in one hand.  If someone drops the ball, they are supposed to take an item from their clothing and give it to the player opposite from them.  The items can be recovered my singing a love song to the opposite player.

Young Man and Woman Pov Pob Players

The rules are rather simple.  But as in any game, it is the nuances, skills, and manner in which the game is played that define the game.  What one may superficially observe and know of the rules of a simple game often does not give a true understanding of the games subtleties and complexities.

In the case of Pov Pob, many of the players are playing a variation of a game of skill played for thousand and thousands of years by mankind - courting.

In the Hmong culture people are not allowed to marry within their clan.  Since the smaller villages typically inhabited by members of the same clan.  The residents of the villages have very limited access to potential acceptable mates.  However it is during the Hmong New Years Festival that the clans come together in a single location.

An Elderly Hmong Man Playing Pov Pob

Several games of Pov Pob go on at the same time.  Most of the games are played by adolescents or young adults younger than 18 years old.  However there are some games played by adults - much older adults.  Widows and widowers also have their own Pov Pob - a game of meeting, socializing, and perhaps courting leading to marriage.

Games of Pov Pob are relaxed and low key pastimes.  Although the games are meant for Hmong people, I was privileged to be invited to participate in a game and the young people were eager to teach me how to play.  There were some specific girls and sequence that I had to follow in tossing the tennis ball as well who would be tossing the ball back to me.  It was not, as the saying goes, "It's all Greek to me", rather it was all Hmong to me.  I did what I was told when I was told, laughing and enjoying it all just as the other players were.  Most importantly, for me and my pride, I made every catch one handed of balls tossed my way.

Just as most things in life there is the way that things are supposed to be and the way that they actually are.  I am convinced the same in playing Pov Pob.  I believe that some players purposely drop the ball in order to become better acquainted with some one that they are interested.  Many of the players were softly singing songs without having the need to retrieve an item of theirs - sort of getting right to the point.

One of My Pov Pob Playing Partners

In writing this blog I learned additional rules for playing Pov Pob - by the book.  Boys and girls in pairs set up two opposing lines about 5 to 7 meters (15 to 20 feet) apart.  Boys toss the ball to girls.  Girls can toss to either boys or girls.  However boys can not toss to other boys.  You can not toss the ball to members of your own clan.  You also can not date a member of your own clan - so meeting people at these festivals is extremely important in searching for a spouse.

My coaches for Pov Pob were young Lao men from the United States.  There was a diaspora of Hmong peoples to the United States and other nations in the 1970s.  They say that "Time heals everything".  I am not sure that everything is healed for the Lao peoples throughout the world but they are now welcomed back to their homeland.  We have met many of the original refugees as well as their children and grandchildren during their visits to Lao.

Elderly People, At the Periphery of the Pov Pob Field, Enjoying the View

During our two days at the Festival we saw many examples of four generations of family enjoying themselves.  Even young children and babies wear traditional Hmong clothing.  The clothing is very pretty - intricate patterns, multiple colors, heavy beading, faux fur or feather trim, silver coins, reflective metal disks, extensive embroidery, silver jewelry accents along with just as interesting hats. Some young men wore costumes covered with small highly polished thin metal disks.  The girls and young women also had excellent make-up with particular attention paid to their eyes.

Hmong Young Women Check Out Their Selfie

A Happy Attendee 

On one end of the Pov Pob field there was a line of booths selling all kinds of foods and beverages.  We had lunch one day at Mr Lee's booth.  Mr Lee?  "Lee is actually the name of a Hmong clan.  We and our driver dined on noodle soup, Qwetiou with sides of raw cabbage, fresh mint leaves, and small chili -just like the soup we eat in Isaan.  We also had some grilled sausages, Pepsi, and fresh pineapple.  Later as I was taking photographs came up with a cone of coconut ice-cream as a treat for me.

Hmong Girl Prepare Spicy Papaya Salad -"Pauk Pauk"

Past the food booths, there were several booths made from suspended tarps where people, more specifically young couples, could have their photo taken in front of many different back drops.  If the couple were not wearing traditional clothing, some of the booths had Hmong clothing that they could don for their special photograph.

There were also several booths that were selling Hmong music CDs and DVDs.  Other booths sold various sundries such as ear-rings, hair ribbons, hair clips, combs which were of great interest to the young girls.

A Grandmother Reads A Palm

Over at the area where the elderly people were congregating , at a table selling some herbal remedies, a grandmother was reading the palms of people - no doubt advising them if they had indeed made a "love connection" at the nearby Pov Pob games.

An Enthusiastic Toddler Plays Her Own Game of Chance

Gambling is a big part of culture in the Lao People's Democratic Republic.  Gambling is legal in the LPDR unlike in nearby Thailand.  From our experiences in Lao, it appears the game of choice is a dice game.  The game consists of a plastic cloth with various large printed and colorful pictures on it.  Grid lines separate the various characters on the betting cloth.  Players place their bets on the character of their choice or on the lines that separate the characters for a combination bet.  Three large dice with the same printed characters are placed by the game operators on a hinged shelf inside the lid of a wooden box. The box lid is partially opened to create a roughly 45 degree ramp down to the bottom portion of the box which lays flat either on the ground, platform or table.  After all the bets are placed, the operator or someone in the crowd designated by the operator pulls a string that releases the hinged shelf which sends the three dice tumbling down the ramp to the enclosed area of the bottom portion of the box.  The top exposed characters indicate the winning bets and combination bets.

The one time that I played the game at New Years Festival of the Khmu people near Muang Sing LPDR, I won several times ending up with 40,000 Kip.  I gave my winnings to Duang since she was still gambling.  She returned to where I was taking photographs with no money.  In 15 minutes, she had lost her money as well as my $5.00 USD of winnings.  No matter the loss, it was great entertainment to play and interact with the local people.

Most of the gamblers that played the game with us in the Khmu village were children mostly between the ages of 8 and 14.  Upon leaving the festival in Luang Prabang we walked through one of several gambling tents located at the entrance to the festival.  Each tent had several tables where many people crammed around gambling.  The action was load and very animated.  It was obvious that the people were really enjoying themselves.  At one table that was not in operation, a precocious toddler was imitating the gambling frenzy that was surrounding her.  She would select one of the characters printed on the cloth, pretend to place a bet on cloth, she would then shout out in joy as she celebrated winning.

Our third visit to Hmong New Year Festival had been very enjoyable.  We most likely will return once again this December.  On this upcoming visit, I hope that we are able to witness some. if not all, of the "inside rituals".  We have 10 months to see what arrangements can be made.  There is always something to do and this will be added to the list.

Vientiane Talad Sao

The Busy Vientiane Morning Market

Two weeks ago, we took a special trip to Vientiane, Lao People's Democratic Republic (Laos).  Vientiane is a short 60 miles north of our home in Udonthani.  A forty minute drive transports us from our door step to the Thai border crossing.  After passing through the Thai Border Checkpoint, we take a 15 Baht (0.45 USD) bus drive across the Friendship Bridge to the Lao Border Checkpoint.  Duang has very little to do in crossing into the LPDR.  However, I must fill out an additional form, supply a passport photo, and pay $35 USD to obtain a visa to enter Laos. However once you get off the Thai bus you are approached by men offering to help you in crossing the border and drive you into Vientiane - for a fee.  The fee varies based upon a variety of factors - but is only a little more than the cost of a taxi into town.  The men fill out the forms for you, and shepherd you through the process.  After entering into Laos, they break from you to bring their car to you.  They drive their car up to you and load your luggage as you get into their vehicle.  They then drive the roughly 20 miles into town and deliver you to the door of your destination.

This trip was special in that I was having a reunion with a friend, a direct link from my distant pass, from my home town. We had attended junior high school, today's middle school, back in Connecticut.  We attended high school together and went on to the same university.  We had not seen my friend since 1971 and was excited to catch up life long experiences.  Duang was anxious to meet someone from my long ago past and from my far away boyhood home.

We stayed at a hotel that was a hop, skip, and jump from the current location of the American Embassy (That Dam monument).  The hotel was walking distance from the central city restaurant district, main tourist attractions and entertainment venues. Although not a hop, skip, and jump away from the central markets, the hotel was no more than 4 or 5 blocks form the them.

The reunion was great.  It is always reassuring to learn once again that we are not alone in our accomplishments, disappointments, challenges, and even our failures.  Despite taking very different paths, we share many common experiences and more importantly survived them.  We often feel that we alone and have suffered but if we reach out to others we quickly learn that our experience has not been unique.  Of course to Buddhists the realization and acknowledgement of our sufferings is no surprise.

Our time in Vientiane was limited to two days because Duang had to return to her home village to care for our grandson for the next two days while her mother went on a religious retreat commencing the evening of our second day in Vientiane. Given our limited time day, we spent our morning, the second day, at the morning market, Talad Sao.

We walked the short distance from our hotel to the morning market along deserted streets.  We arrived at the morning market at 7:00 A.M..  Although the area around our hotel was very tranquil, just 4 or 5 blocks away, it was extremely busy, bordering on chaotic.

A Very Small Portion of the Outside Morning Market

I estimate that the Morning Market is about two square blocks in area.  The market is a combination of small shops opening on to a large central open area filled with stalls, booths, and blankets where vendors sell all kinds of  prepared foods, live foods, vegetables, and dry goods.  There is a very large covered structure which was partially walled with a combination of tarps and block.  Adding to the confusion of the market were many passageways and stalls created by attaching tarps and sheets of plastic to anything that would support them.  Where existing structure elements were not available, the vendors had erected wood poles or bamboo to attach the sheets.

Organized Porters Are Used to Transport Goods From Market To Vehicles

To access parking areas for both vehicles and motorbikes, motorbikes, trucks, and cars jockeyed for position with pedestrians along the informal access lanes into the morning market area.  Adding to the confusion were many long two wheeled push carts propelled by organized porters.  Many of the patrons of the morning market are people buying goods for the much smaller markets that they run in their neighborhood or village markets.  I know that porters were organized because just about all of them wore colored vests that had a unique number on the back - just like organized motorbike taxis in Thailand.

Vegetables For Sale In Vientiane

During our foray through the Talad Sao, Duang and I were amazed at the amount and variety of vegetables available for for purchase at the market.  Although we live 60 miles south and and in a larger metropolitan area, our local markets have neither the quantity, variety or quality of vegetables as Vientiane.  During our journey to Luang Prabang Province in December, we saw many vegetables gardens. I have yet to a single large garden here in Isaan.  Many of our vegetables as well as fruits are from China.  I suspect both the closer proximity to China and the flourished commercial ties between Lao and China may also contribute to the quantity and variety in Laos.

Fresh Corn On the Cob

In Isaan, even along country roads, corn for sale has been cooked, typically boiled but sometimes grilled.  However at the morning market in Vientiane, the vendors shucked the corn at the market and sold it by the kilogram.

Egg Vendor

In the large covered structure there were countless vendors selling just about everything including eggs, beef, pork, chicken, canned goods, dry goods, clothing, cloth, toys, household goods along with booths where you could purchase and consume a meal.  It was quite busy and congested.

A Vendor Preparing More Pork To Sell

A Beef and Pork Vendor Tends to Her Stall

Meat vendors were mostly located in the large covered structure.  As is typical in Lao and Isaan the vendors sit upon a raised platform with a small spring scale at their side and behind the cuts that they are offering for sale.  Customers approach the vendor most likely engaging in some small conversation before inspecting the various pieces of meat before selecting their cut and informing the vendor of how much they desired.  Shopping is not an impersonal or quick process.  There is a great deal of interaction between the vendors and their customers.  I suspect that a great part of the effort is to build relationships.  At the market there are always several vendors offering the same goods for the same price.  Quality between the vendors appears to be the same across the market.  Given the lack of distinction between the vendors establishing personal relationships and providing better customer service is paramount for a business's success.  It also makes for a much more pleasurable and rewarding shopping experience for all.

Fish Vendor Along "Fish Alley

In our random wanderings through the inside market place, we eventually found ourselves outside in a very narrow alley that I like to refer to as "Fish Alley". "Fish Alley was set up on the side of the exterior wall of the inside market with tarps covering the overhead of the alley bounded on the other side by more open faced stalls created by poles and tarps.  Fish Alley was lined with vendors selling all kinds of fish.  The ground where it was not covered by pieces of wood, randomly placed concrete pavers or tiles was muddy from the run off of water from the stalls selling fish.  The fish was fresh and there was no odor that one would expect in such a location.

Preparing A Customer's Fish

Duang and I took advantage of the relative quiet and much less confusion of "Fish Alley" to talk to and joke with the various vendors. It was and is always enjoyable to learn about the work and life of the local people.  I also enjoying sharing with them about life in America which they are always very curious and interested in.

A Fish Vendor's Daughter Cooks Breakfast - Fish

As is often the case, the older women asked me about finding a foreign husband.  I am often requested to do so.  I do not know that many single men back in the United States.  I stopped at 98 with the number of requests that I have been given.  I now handle the situation by telling the women how many requests are ahead of them but that I will put them on the list.  I then tell them about some of the expectations the foreign men would have on them.  That always gets them laughing and we are able to move on to other matters.

Fish Still Life or Rather Dead Life

After one and one-half hours at the market, at 08:30, we left the market along with the vast majority of customers. Morning Markets typically become much less crowded by 09:00 or 10:00.  After an intense shopping adventure, the customers and their goods stacked on the two wheeled carts headed to their vehicles or motorbikes for the journey back to their home to complete the rest of the day.

Porter Transporting Goods Out of the Morning Market

Duang and I returned to our hotel carrying a large shopping bag filled with Khong Kao, woven containers to stored cooked sticky rice or to serve the sticky rice.

Additional photos of this visit can be viewed at the following gallery of my photography website:

http://www.hale-worldphotography.com/Laos/Vientiane-Morning-Market/36736541_rxMrB9

Backyard Smelter Revisited

Aluminum Ingots Melting In Backyard Smelter - 2007

A while back on Facebook, some people shared a link which showed the results of pouring molten aluminum down an ant hill.  The result once the aluminum cooled down, the ant hill excavated, and the resultant mass of metal cleaned up was a very intricate and modern art type sculpture.  The molten aluminum had filled all of the small underground tunnels exposing the complexity and industriousness of the tiny ants.  In response to the link I replied, rather fallaciously, that I would have to give it a try the next time that I was melting aluminum in my back yard.  I had melted lead in the backyard of my parent's home but that was in the days before the EPA and OSHA.  Since my father was a plumber, we had all the equipment required to make cast lead joints in soil pipe (cast iron sewer pipes) or in my case, cast lead sinkers for fishing and lead weights for skin diving.

Although I have neither the intention, need, or equipment to melt aluminum in my backyard, there are people in Thailand who do.  I have written about people here in Thailand who weave cloth, weave reed mats, make fishing nets, weave baskets in their yards.  I have written about the experience of watching people in Laos making knives, moonshine whiskey, bird snares, and rat snares in their yards.  Well this blog is about having your own aluminum foundry in your yard.

Samut Sakhon Home With Casting Cores - 2007

In March 2007, Duang and I visited the Samut Sakhon area.  One of our visits was to the home of Duang's granddaughter.  It was nice to see the child and there was an added bonus - the operating family run aluminum smelter in their backyard.

Samut Sakhon is a province south west of Bangkok.  The area is dotted with many industrial sites ranging from food to chemicals.  There are also many orchards that produce fruits as well as farms that cultivate shrimp.  The land is low and flat.  Just as Thai food is a mixture of flavors, colors, and textures, Samut Sakhon is a mixture, a melange,  of heavy industry and agriculture with the borders of each often touching.

Duang's granddaughter lives with her other grandparents in an elevated wood house down a very narrow rutted dirt road in an area that is crisscrossed with many canals.  They have the family run aluminum smelter in their yard.  The smelter produces various items under contract to many different clients.  It is a small smelter that uses sand casting method to produce various items such a roof drains, heating plates, and equipment parts.

Preparing to Remove Cast Plate From the Mold

On our trip back in 2007, I was excited to see the foundry operation.  It brought back some memories of the summer of 1970, when I worked at ITT Grinnell in Cranston, Rhode Island.  During part of that summer while attending university I worked in the labor pool that filled in for absent workers who were involved in producing cast iron fittings mostly for sprinkler fittings.

In Samut Sakhon, just as in Rhode Island, the casting process involved starting off with a pattern - a metal three dimensional representation of one half of the object to be made.  A wood frame is placed on top of the pattern, and filled with sand or special sand mixture.  The sand is pressed and compacted in the frame which is on top of the pattern.  When the frame/compressed sand assembly is lifted off of the pattern, the pattern has created an impression in the sand for one-half of the object to be made.  The process is repeated for the send half of the object to be made.  The two frames are then stacked and attached so that they create the mold,complete volume, of the object between them.  If the object is to have hollow sections, special inserts, called cores, are placed in the bottom half frame before assembly so that the molten metal will flow around them rather than forming a solid section.  Often the pattern will also contain channels and features to ensure that the poured liquid metal properly flows into and completely fill every aspect of the mold. A pour hole and vent hole at the other end of the mold allows the molten metal to completely fill the mold and provides visual indication the the mold if filled.

For the backyard smelter in Samut Sakhon this molding process occurred in the front section of the ramshackle structure that constituted the foundry.  The structure was single story built out of wood, timbers, and corrugated metal and not necessarily weatherproof - there were many gaps, holes, and voids in the walls.  There were no doors or windows in the structure.  There were door and window openings which provided access and some natural cross ventilation. All surfaces of the structure were covered with a thick layer of fine black dust from the casting sand and smoke of the furnace.  The roof above the furnace was much better maintained for obvious reason - water falling into molten aluminum would definitely ruin several people's day.

Loading Aluminum Ingots Into Furnace

Smelting of the aluminum was conducted in a small open topped furnace about the size of a 55 gallon drum - a 55 gallon drum that had been heavily lined with refractory.  Off to the side of the drum connected by a pipe was an electric fan which created the forced draft for the burner beneath the furnace.  There were other drums containing what appeared to be recycled motor oil.  The contents of the barrels were pressurized by a small pump and fed into the burner beneath the open refractory lined drum.  Do to the lack of pollution controls and adequate burner management, heavy dense black smoke billowed from the short chimney that stuck up above the roof directly above the furnace.

The Smelter's Granddaughter

Whereas the front section of the building was filled with three workers, two or three soi dogs (street dogs), an concessional wandering chicken, children playing, and a visiting falang (foreigner), the back section where the furnace was located and partially separated from the front by a half wall was occupied only by the owner of the business.  The combination of heat from the melting and molten aluminum, retching acrid smoke, and obvious danger kept others out.  Once the aluminum was melted and the furnace was throttled back to keep the metal molten, workers from the front entered the area routinely to fill their ladles to pour into the molds located in the front.

Pouring Molten Aluminum Into Mold

 Wearing rubber flip flops, polyester shorts and cotton tee shirts and no eye protection, gloves or any expected safety equipment that you would expect for handling 1200F molten metal, the workers filled the many assembled molds for the day's scheduled pour.  Their clothing and exposed skin quickly becoming caked with sweat, casting dust, and smoke residue - all reminders of my days at ITT Grinnell ( I was fond at the time of saying often "Who put the "grin" in Grinnell?) for, unlike the smelter in Samut Sakhon, it was not a happy place or was there much smiling let alone laughing.

Completed Castings Cooling

The poured molds were left strewn about the cast sand layered concrete floor of the front of the foundry to cool sufficiently before the the frames were removed to expose blocks of hardened casting sand, baked cores and aluminum.  Rods and hammers were used to manually break away the hardened casting sand to expose the aluminum castings.  This work added to the dust already in the air from previous activities.  Metal rods with a hook shape on the end were employed to remove the castings from the casting sand debris on the floor and to relocate the still very hot castings to piles in another area for further cooling.

After cooling completely the workers trimmed excess metal to be recycled in the next charge of the furnace. Hand files and electric grinders were then used to clean up the castings for delivery to the customers.

Well that was then and this is now.  Buddhists believe that every thing changes and nothing exists without change.  We returned to Smut Sakhon after seven years and there had been some changes.  The grandfather, the owner of the business, had died.   His wife was now running the business but not doing the physical labor as her husband had.  The granddaughter who was 4 years old at the time is now a lovely 11 year old doing very well in school.  Most of the workers had been replaced.  The narrow dirt road is even more rutted now and vegetation has encroached upon it making it even more narrow.

As many changes as there were, there were some things that had not changed or rather - had not changed yet.  One of the workers that I had photographed in 2007 was still working there.  Dogs and chickens still wandered about the work area.  The building was no worse for wear but no better either.  The round concrete table and bench seats were still located at the front of the building.  Various materials and items associated with the casting business still were strewn about the property.

We arrived in the early evening after the casting had been completed.  I went in the back to the idle furnace and observed nothing new or even changed.  My stay in that portion of the facility did not last long due to the extreme heat radiating from the furnace and molten aluminum that it still contained.

Removing A Core From Casting

In the front of the facility, men, as the day was coming to an end, were occupied freeing the castings from the hardened casting sand and removing the cores from the castings.

Cleaning Up Aluminum Castings

Chipping Away At A Core

Getting To The Core of the Casting, Chipping Away

It always interesting for me to see how people make their living here as well as the other countries that I have been to.  I especially like to witness people exhibiting their independence and self-sufficiency.  It always astound me how people can get by with so much less than I am accustomed to or have been exposed to.  A principle that drives their efforts is "Fit for purpose"  However I am also very grateful to not have a smelter in my backyard or even in my neighborhood.