A hilltribe village wedding
Trip Start
Nov 08, 2008
1
15
20
Trip End
Jan 17, 2009
Chiang Rai,
Thailand
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
First, I need to report that Nancy arrived on Dec. 27, after some unusual travel mix-ups. (She missed her flight from Bangkok to Chiang Mai.) Because she has more limited time here than I have had, she now gets the final decision on where we go and what we do. That's an adjustment for me, after traveling solo up to this point.
So Nancy has been dropped into the deep end of the travel pool. With only two days of adjustment to being on the other side of the world, she was among a number of other wedding guests (mostly farang...foreigners) in a small convoy of vehicles on the three-hour journey up to Phadang. Nancy rode in the relative comfort of the cab of a pick-up truck, and I made the trip in the back.
Blake, a Canadian, and Sai, a Lahu woman, operate The Lost Hut bar in Chiang Mai. They had a wedding in Toronto this fall, but they wanted to complete the cross-cultural ties by having a wedding in Thailand. They are two wonderfully outgoing people. We all wish them continuing happiness.
Phadang, a small Lahu village between Mae Suai and Fang (for those of you who have a detailed map of Thailand), is very close to Ban Saen Jalearn, the Akha village Jim and I visited earlier. In fact, Fon and her brother Kai attended the wedding celebration in Phadang.
Here's a link to a web site about the Lahu:
http://www.hilltribe.org/lahu/
On our arrival, we set up the tent, sleeping pads and king-size comforter I bought at a sporting goods store in Chiang Mai.
01. Nancy's first foot massage
Some of the 20 or so guests slept in Blake and Sai's bamboo house, and others slept in tents outside. Copious amounts of alcohol and a delicious Lahu dinner aided our sleep.The wedding ceremony the next day was a familiar Christian ceremony. (Phadang is mostly Christian.) Blake and Sai were in traditional Lahu attire. Following the ceremony, villagers and wedding guests enjoyed the food prepared by the villagers, including a variety of meats, from water buffalo to chicken. Canine may also have been on the menu.
Late in the afternoon, as we farang were enjoying more food and drink, we were invited (challenged?) to a soccer game against the village girls team. I haven't played in years and I've never played after several whiskeys, but I was pressed into service due to the shortage of available farang. So, there I was on the hard-packed, dusty football pitch (also the village main square), half in the bag, 60 years old, out of shape, playing without my glasses, in street shoes and facing a team of much younger players. Consider also that our goalie was a guy from Scotland, wearing a kilt in the traditional way. We lost on penalty kicks (I scored on my attempt) when the score was tied 1-1 at the end of much-shortened regular time. Winded but uninjured, I was happy to have had the unusual travel experience.
The game may have served as an ice-breaker with the normally shy villagers. In the evening, around a huge bonfire, after we had released a couple dozen kom loi (the lighted lanterns that make Loi Krathong so beautiful), a small group of village men arrived and began playing their traditional gourd flutes while dancing around the fire. Then a large group of girls, many who we played soccer against in the afternoon, arrived in full traditional attire and makeup to dance in intricate steps around the blaze, accompanied by the flutes and their own drum, cymbals and gong.
The effect was magical. Entranced and enjoying the festive mood, a few farang joined in the dance, including Nancy, jet lag or no jet lag.
Eventually we drifted off to our tents as the celebration slowly dwindled into the dark.
Next morning, we remaining wedding guests packed up for the ride back to Chiang Mai. Nancy and I left the tent, pads and comforter behind as a donation to the village.
More celebration -- this time New Years Eve -- in Chiang Mai that evening. Fireworks, kom loi, rock music at Guitarman, and an early night for older revelers.
Comments
New Year
Happy New Year, you two! Looks like you had a great time at the wedding! Love, Kristi