Heading for Ottery St Mary and all east...

I thought that I had written the last about the Hmong granny and her funeral but  seems not.  Apparently the final funeral rites, where her spirit was willed away to heaven did not take place. I assume the day was not propitious; the chicken feet were not right or the bones fell in the wrong fashion. So her spirit, is I guess earthbound for the moment (more on spirits a little later). Now it seems they are going to wait for my return to Laos in April, to send her on her way, which seems a bit hard on the old dear, as I barely knew her. But maybe I have been identified as a spiritual or holy person....well after being revealed as romantic a few weeks back, I suppose anything is possible.

Khamphone visited and wanted to watch clips of Gen.Vang Pao’s funeral on the internet. There seems to be no shortage of coverage. I am afraid I rather lost interest when an elderly US politician made a speech in which he described Vang Pao as “a good friend of the CIA”, which rather summed up my feeling about him, but in my case such remarks would not have been intended as complimentary.

Khamphone is a tour guide, and an excellent one. He sometimes shows me the feedback sheets he gets; they are glowing, with the result that he is in much demand by tour companies. He was so happy when he came round on Saturday. One of his clients had told him he was brilliant and that he wanted to reward him. He had given him a silver coin, which he said he could change at the bank. He showed it to me...in fact, he gave it to me once I told him how much it was worth. It was a Singaporean coin for 20 cents.....worth about 10 pence!  This is a crowded planet and there are a few people we could easily manage without.

I went past the Cock Pit on Saturday afternoon. I did not have time to stop but there seemed to be a good turnout. I guess that ‘Mighty Spurs’ must have been taking on ‘Iron Beak’ as the top of the bill.

One of our students popped in a few days ago complaining of a fever. I gave him the last of my  paracetemol and sent him on his way. He came back some days later, cured. But not by falang medicine; instead his granny called up the sprits and they sorted him out. She had tried to reach his grandfather, being the most senior spirit known to him, but he was not available for some reason. In the event she found his mother’s spirit...and boy, was she mad!  She had caused the fever because went he went to his home village the previous week he had not left her some rice and water and fruit. Oh these mums, you better not mess with them, even when they have passed on. Some appropriate donations for her spirit and all was sorted. In fact, it was probably as well that grandfather could not be reached as he demands that cigarettes are left for him before he will deal with any family concerns.  When my time comes I think I shall let it be known that I may be contacted via a piece of pork pie and a glass of rioja.

There is much ground clearing and preparatory work going on for a new house being built on the plot outside my home. As you can see from the photos we have already lost several coconut trees, I hope we do not lose many more. At present they seem to be levelling the site, which, as for my house, is done my building up the front with boulders rather than reducing the height up the hill. I hope that most of the noisy work will be done in my absence.

Another before and after set of photos now. I posted the first picture of the village well in October, and the second was taken a few days ago.

I have begun what might with a bit of exaggeration, be called a keep fit campaign. That is to say I go out for a short run each morning. I have to time it very carefully. If I go at 6.45 I can just about get it done without running into the village ladies coming back from alms giving, and before the children start arriving at school. I had thought 7am would be fine, but some children are on their way to school very early and the sight of the crazy old falang our running produces rather more mirth than I feel comfortable with. I planned to keep it simple with a few laps round the school field, but what looks quite a smooth surface is in fact one designed to catch and sprain an ankle at every stride. I do not know how the kids manage to play on such a rutted and uneven surface. So I have had to take to the road. making sure  to avoid the monks, as I am not sure whether it is acceptable to overtake them, should that prove to be possible. It has actually been quite encouraging to put heart and lungs to a modest test and find them in reasonable working order. I suspect it is my liver that I ought to be concerned about about, but I’ll worry about that another day and in the meantime have another glass or two of wine.

My orange seedlings have gone the way of the grapes....this time passed away from over watering.  I have replaced them with lemons and expect a broadly similar outcome. The chillies are looking good, and the tomatoes and the beans will be ready to eat...while I am away. More forward planning needed in the agriculture department it seems.

One would have thought that ‘boule” or “pentanque’ would have been a quiet kind of game. But not in our village this weekend.  The rinks, or courts or whatever they are called are adjacent to the school field at the furthest point from me. On Friday about 9.30am they were taken over by the police for an all day event. The entire zone for watching, playing and drinking beer can be no bigger than a tennis court. But what did they arrive with? Yes a huge great sound system, which would easily have served the needs of Bangkok airport.  The “DJ” really had no need of amplification systems...he could merely murmur than now he was going to play “The sky is dark and stormy over the heads of the counter revolutionary forces” and we could join in the chorus.  I know they are the police, but had I been the head teacher I would have strolled across and had a serious chat with them. To expect the kids to be able to study with that noise under their windows (well, what would be windows if they had glass in them) is absurd, and quite unfair on the teachers.  I speak of course with only the welfare of the school in mind, without any selfish regard for personal peace and quiet.

We have had no further rain, though on several occasions all the signs of an imminent storm were present. The latest situation with the river is that it has risen ever so slightly, but that a further fall is expected in the coming week. I no longer have confidence in my thermometer, but let me just say that it is seriously hot. I have started using the electric fans again, which have been out of use for 4 or 5 months. This morning  I left my breakfast plate out on the balcony table. When I went to tidy it up at about 10.30 it was so hot that I needed a cloth to carry it; just as if it had came out of the oven.

I stumbled across this rather charming ruin of a temple in the grounds of a newer temple on the outskirts of town.The presence of a pile of fresh bricks next to it suggests that some attempt at restoration is being considered, but I cannot help but think that is an impossible task; the very ‘triumph of hope over experience’.

This is me signing off from Laos for the next few weeks. They do not know it, but I am depending on my sisters to make their excellent Shepherd’s Pie and steamed meat pudding, while the owner of the African restaurant in London can expect a run on goat curry. I am quite looking forward to the peace and tranquillity of London as compared to the noise and bustle of Ban Nar Laung.

Best wishes

Alan

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