In the middle of nowhere

Špela was shaking me trying to get me from the deep sleep:"Martin, the mouse is trying to eat your cookie".

I was trying not to bother as it was around 2 in the morning, but anyways i woke up, crawled under the mosquite net around the simple mattrace on the floor in simple room that was barely bigger than the bed and had walls made from simple few cm thick wood. 

"Here you go, eat it now," I said to myself placing the cookie outside the rook on the fence.

Of course it did not come to eat my present. Why if it can make noice inside the rook and keeps you awake for another hour. And then chicken, ducks and dogs start their daily show at 3.30 keeping you in weird half sleep untill morning.

We were staying in Huay bo, a village one and half hours walking distance away from Muong nuoi that can only be reached by boat from Nong Khiew. For most westerns already Nong khiew is in the middle of nowhere.

Mr.Kee owns a small guesthouse with restaurant and in one of the village chiefs in Huay bo. Apart from that he is a smart farmer who learned to speak english from tourists. They have electricity in the village, powered from individual turbines in the small river above the village. It is enough to power few light bulbs and a tv, but freezers and all other electronic stuff we found logical are missing. That means that meat in restaurant is only available if there is enough people to order the same dish (4 for chicken, more for duck).

The whole setting is very basic with only wooden houses and dirt "road" in between them. All villagers(200 of them) are farmers working on rice fields and owning some chicken, ducks and cows ofpr buffalos. Apart from that they also hunt with homemade guns for squirels and mouse and catch fish with traditional net methods. When the harvest is good they sell the surplus of the rice to the town to get some much needed money for basic stuff.

Way to Huay bo.

Simple electricity plant.

Rice from the fields is carried on their backs and heads.

One might say the village is boring and nothing is going on but just to observe the simplicity in which they live is an interesting experience itself. Mr. Kee is very keen to show guests their way of living so we went fishing with him and made barbecue on the side of the river. You can also help him with everyday tasks like going to the woods, harvesting rice. Depends what is on agenda. Or actually on his wifes agenda, as women seems to be the main working force in the village. "It is good to be man in 

Laos", said mr. Kee laughing while sitting in his hammock while his wife was away in the forest cutting some woods to make fire for dinner.

Daily catch

The feast - and a lot of Lao lao.

With Mr.Kee and his fighting rooster

We could not get the chicken, but the chicken got a bit of our meal

Homemade gun

Heavy trafic on the road to the village

In the evening it was enough people to grill a duck. That meant catching it, killing it on the spot and clean all the feathers. It can not get more fresh than that. Besides we got to taste duck's blood and all the internal organs - yummy:)

From the field directly to the pot.

It was the end of yet another very normal day in Huay bo. We went to our room, this time keeping all the food safely hanged and in plastic bags. Maybe mouse will not smell it.

Shortly after we turned off the light we heard it again. But this time there was no free lunch for it.

Next day we headed back to Nong Khiew, to the "civilisation" again. One might get used to live in small village like huay bo for some time, but the reassurance of modern world only a bit away still felt good!

Main street in Nong Khiew