THURSDAY 7th:
Check-out day.
Out for a early breakfast (tasty) then finish off packing, sorting final hotel bill and ready for mini-bus pick up at 10:15
Problem free journey up to Phanom Dong Rak, around 6.5 hours, arriving at our house at 5pm.
GREAT to see the family again after 4 long years, two of which were prevented by coronavirus pandemic. Thailand still a bit behind the times with their dealing with with hanging on to the restrictions that the UK dispensed with months ago.
Young Jack straight in a swimming pool his Grandad has made for him. For the rest of it was unpacking, relaxing and waiting for dinner.
So good to be back in our second home again.
FRIDAY 8th:
Bit of a restless night and up at dawn. Took a pre breakfast amble around the farm and took some photos . Quite a few changes since our last vist; two additional lots of pigs (black and usual pink ones) with numerous piglets, more than 10 additional cattle and some calves.
The rubber tree plantation has gone; very little income now from the latex and replaced with casava, banana groves and rice paddies.
Interesting rural Thai breakfast with freshly picked vegetables; in fact everything on the table was from the farm, from rice and eggs to chicken, pork and vegeatables & herbs.
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TOP: The house; our second home.
SECOND LEFT: Mangoes galore.
SECOND RIGHT: Casava plantation in the foreground; hardwood trees in the distance.
THIRD LEFT: Charcoal oven with one of the well-stocked fish-ponds beyond.
THIRD RIGHT: General view across the fields
FOURTH LEFT: Dry rice paddy with some of the farm cattle grazing.
FOURTH RIGHT: Aom surrounded by some of the farm's fowls.
FIFTH LEFT: Aom gathering runner beans.
FIFTH RIGHT: Chet (my father-in-law) making food for the pigs.
BOTTOM LEFT: Chet picking some banans.
BOTTOM RIGHT: Bananas suitably picked.
FRIDAY (continued):
As I’ve said previously, we are in Thailand to stay with family and as such are subject to household chores as back in UK
Today one such chore was to replace a few of plumbing items for the 2 bathrooms. Two replacement shower-heads, and at least two new taps (faucets in USA).
Water is pumped from an underground source and is OK for washing but not suitable for drinking as it is too high in minerals; it’s not toxic, just unpleasant.
My father-in-law spent ages digging out a swimming pool for our son Jack which yielded hours of delight.
Back in 2017 I bought a large Toyota pick-up truck which is registered to me. When in-country Aom and I have full use of this vehicle but the family use it at other times.
Late afternoon I drove some of the family to a Friday Market in the nearest town, Prassat, 30km away. Here, Aom and her mother bought armfuls of numerous vegetables, fruit and some big fish. A top-up of diesel on the way back and it was dinner time with the whole family.
It’s surprising how quickly one adapts to and enjoys a (very) rural farming Thailand.
In bed by 21:30 (it’s pitch dark by 18:30) and up at dawn at 05:30.
Rising early gets the best of the day before the Thai tropical sun does its thing.
Anyway, the cockerels, geese and turkeys make so much racket making lie-ins a no go.
Everything on the breakfast table is produced on the farm; from chicken to eggs; from fish to fruit accompanied by a host of veg, herbs and other odd looking vegetation.
There is a minor downside; the nearest true bar is over 25 miles away in Prasat. But fear not, there are several shops in the village who sell large bottles of Chang beer (or Leo, or Singha, or Tiger…. )
Pretty damned civilized on the whole.
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TOP LEFT: General view of Prasat street market.
TOP RIGHT: Poor pigs.
CENTRE RIGHT: Jack loves pork-on-a-stick.
BOTTOM: All loaded up and ready to head home.
SATURDAY 9th:
As usual, up and about at dawn (about 6am); well it is a farm and farming duties attending to the livestock are necessary.
Fairly relaxed morning just keeping out of the way whilst the farm did its stuff.
Chet, my father-in-law) made up a couple of fishing rods from bamboo, and we acquired some juicy bugs as bait so off we went down to one of the deep pools that exist around the farm
There are 3 well-stocked ponds (one large enough to call a lake) on the farm.
Seeing as there was a lull in activities I thought I’d do a spot of fishing.
So armed with the 3metre bamboo stick, some twine and, of course, a hook I went a-fishing. 10 minutes elapsed then I got a bite and struggled to land this one.
I must look up what type of fish it is.
Anyway, said fish was cooked, seasoned and consumed for dinner that evening.
Late afternoon saw the family driving to Pratas and the big street market there. God knows what Aom and her mother bought, but their bags were bulging with all manner of strange looking foods. Most of the food is for a family party tomorrow where it will be a gathering of the clans.
Dinner at around 8pm and that was it for the day.
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Fishing and a fish.
CONTINUED ON PAGE 3......
