Rafting in Luang Namtha

This was a four-day whitewater rafting/kayaking trip down the Nam Ha River in Laos...each day, we stayed in a different hilltribe village. The cast of characters was varied and quite hilarious...there were eight of us on the trip, and seven even made it to Thailand. ;-) (The eighth left us after the second day.)

Credits: About half the photos on this page were taken by Michelle, one of my fellow rafters. In particular, all the good shots of people were taken by Michelle.


Remember the body painting for Farang! magazine? Remember my saying "Well, at least it won't get to Laos before I'm gone, and even if it does, no one's going to recognize me?" Famous last words... This photo is with me and the guesthouse proprietor (who indeed recognized me). A later traveler told me she's been showing the magazine to everyone passing through the guesthouse: "She stayed here!" Between that and the motorcycle incident, I'd better get plastic surgery if I ever plan to visit Luang Namtha again...	We went off in a raft and two kayaks...	...through misty mountains and trees...	...with close encounters of the water buffalo kind...

...and gorgeous sunsets...	Left, one of my fellow-rafters; right, Noy, our guide.	Michelle, who took all the good people photos on this page.	Here's Noy, our guide.

...off into the unknown.	The first day we stopped at two villages. Here are some photos from the first: Nalan Tai, inhabited by the Khmu hilltribe.	The first thing we saw was a woman skinning live frogs. She very carefully removed the skin without killing the frogs, and put them into a bucket, where they jumped about and looked REALLY unhappy. When we asked why she didn't kill them first, she said they tasted better if skinned and left alive. (I have spared you the photo of the skinless frogs, and of her eviscerating one, pulling out its still-beating heart. Even I was feeling queasy.)	The village was a fairly normal village, so I unfortunately didn't take many photos. (I don't feel like I did justice to this village, honestly. I've been teetering both ways on whether to include the few photos I do have.) ) But, here is a bamboo-worker, putting the finishing touches on a dinner-table. Food is eaten at a low table, dipping into communual dishes.

Sadly, I also saw my first tiger here...the village had shot a tiger cub about a month ago, and hung its skin to dry in the sun. Apparently the hilltribe villagers are allowed to shoot tiger--but no one else is, fortunately. Poor thing...	We went on again, past several other villages....	....watched by kids along the bank...	...finishing up in Nam Koy Village, inhabited by a Lanten (Mien/Yao) hilltribe. Here is a young mother, in typical costume.

The kids were cute. I mean, really cute.	Mien people are renowned for their embroidery...	...here (behind the shot of me spinning) is a typical village house. It's elevated above the ground on stilts, and looms, pigs, wood, etc. are stored underneath the house.	This device is used to husk rice. Rice is put in the container to the left, then someone (or multiple someones) pushes down on the right side to raise the pounding-stick. When the beam drops, the stick comes pounding down on the rice in the container. It takes about half an hour of pounding to husk enough rice for the day, so a rhythmic thump-thump-thump is the first sign of life for the day.

Pigs are fed paddy (unhusked) rice and rice husks in the morning, too...	A Mien/Yao baby. Very cute. (Note the embroidered cap!)	I was fascinated by the hairdo, so I asked them to do up my hair like theirs. They thought this was great fun...	...and I went through a "Cousin It" phase along the way...

The finished result (and the artist, behind left). The jacket I'm wearing is not Mien, though--it's Black Tai. (I plan to wear it to my next Black Tai affair. ;-) )	View from behind. They put the hair up into a chignon, with a strip around the sides. The pin is very interesting (you can get a better look w/the woman embroidering): old silver coins (circa 1900-1920) welded to a silver pin. Very neat.	In the morning, they took us up to the field where they practice slash-and-burn agriculture...this hut is where they rest during the heat of the day. I tried getting some photos illustrating how slash-and-burn works, but was stymied by the fog.	The toilet. The door was a bit of latticed bamboo that one picked up and leaned across the opening.

This isn't from any of the villages we stayed in, but I include it because it's my absolute favorite toilet. Do take a closer look....	On the second night, we stayed in a Khammu village. The kids were terrified and fascinated by the Caucasians in the party...they followed us around to watch, but if any of the whitefolks moved or looked in their direction, they would run away... ...I, on the other hand, could wander around without more than a curious glance or two.	A bunch of kids watching us cautiously from over a pile of tree bark, being taken to the market. I never did figure out what the tree bark was; they said it was exported to China to be made into some kind of fabric that was then re-exported to Laos, but I've never heard of any such textile. If anyone has a clue, please email me...	Kids work pretty hard in the Third World. Here, a pair of girls goes by carrying a big load of bark. Notice the carriers: they're forehead-slings!
	In the evening, we were invited to the chief/mayor's house, where we were regaled with lao lao (rice whisky), and required to sing for our suppers...the most hilarious part of the evening was the nannies doing the children's song, "Father Abraham", which involves flapping your arms and legs around rather like a dying chicken.
Another photo of the startlingly large loads that people carry.	After that little episode, the kids had no more fear of us. I wonder why....	This village, in addition to rice whisky, also had "jar wine"...glutinous rice is put in, along with a little starter, covered in rice husks, and allowed to ferment. When guests come, they add several pots of drinking water to the top, stick long straws into the bottom of the pot, and presto! a communal pot of rice wine. It's actually very good, quite sweet--like the slightly fermented glutinous rice you can buy in Chinese supermarkets.	More of the very cute kids, accompanied by an old grandma, smoking tobacco in her pipe. Tobacco is widely grown, as is opium.

A mother with baby...	...and an old woman with kitten. (Take a closer look...her face is very beautiful.)	The third village was considerably more cosmopolitan...they had a dirt road running through the village, with pickup trucks and motorcycles and everything....	...and cute kids. Lots of cute kids. About 50% of the population of Laos is under 15.

Believe it or not, this is a chicken coop. (I didn't believe it, until I saw the hens coming in and out.)	That evening, we discovered that lao lao (rice whisky) is really quite cheap...fifty cents a quart! Two liters of the local moonshine (shared liberally with the villagers) was enough to get my compatriots extremely sloshed...	...while I curled up and went to sleep. (Sadly, my metabolism does not allow for drinking...I have the fast-flush gene in spades, so anything over one drink makes me acutely ill.)	The next morning, while my compatriots were groaning with hangovers, I got up and started negotiating for the exquisite local weaving. First it was just a few women offering to sell me their goods....

....then it turned into a mob scene. At one point I counted thirty women trying to sell me their weaving!! Fortunately, it was all quite good-natured...	As we left this village, some monks arrived in a longtail boat...very pretty.	I forgot to include this earlier...but I got to see an impromptu cockfight. Here they're trying to stare each other down...	....and here are some water buffalo, carefully protecting their calves from the weird strangers.

Finally, too soon, we came to Hoi Sai, and the Thai border. Here's the re-entry to Thailand...	...and the beginning of a new adventure. (This is the way to the Akha village, where I met the silversmith...but that, as they say, is another story. :-) )