Portraits in a Thai village

These two young men traveled to the village for the New Years celebration with the family of the man on the left. They drove in a wooden backboard converted Jeep, a very common and versatile vehicle in rural areas.

During travels throughout Thailand, I like to spend time visiting with people and learning about Thai life, especially in rural areas. This photo essay is of people I met in the northeast region of Thailand, known as Isan (pr. "Eesahn"). The people were friendly, accommodating, and were happy to share a little of their stories with me. I have included  some of them here with captions; others may be found on my former blog, "Expatteacherinthailand.blogspot.com".

All photos are © by the author, all rights reserved. It is illegal to use any of the images without permission. Please contact me at jsscience@yahoo.com or visit my Facebook photo page, John Stiles Photography at https://www.facebook.com/johnstilesphoto/

This man stands proudly before his large garden that took 4 weeks to prepare. He made sure I noticed the beans growing up the poles and remarked that they would be flowering soon. The village leveled the area around the small lake that serves as the water supply so that residents could plant gardens.

This man is watering chili pepper plants, which are encircled by short stakes to protect the plants from wandering dogs and chickens.

This woman and her son were on their way to the local "wat" (temple) to give alms to monks and help prepare for the upcoming New Year celebration at the temple, which is the village focal point. The celebration lasted well into the evening for several days.

The village head man in his official uniform. When asked where he was going, he replied, "To a village meeting". Head men (or women) are elected to three year terms and oversee village politics.

Three elderly women who have lived in the village their entire lives, enjoy festivities at the temple. For important festivals like this, or for holy days, they spend several hours each day watching the various offerings and entertainment. They had recently had their hair styled for New Years.

A traditional dance company from a nearby town that performed classical Thai dance for the villagers. 

Middle school students from the village performed classical Thai dance during the New Year celebration at the temple.

A Buddhist monk at another temple in a neighboring village prepares to receive offerings from villagers and to give blessings to them. He is holding the traditional bronze bowl that contains water with scented oil that he will sprinkle on the faithful, using the twig brush. The lotus blossoms are the traditional symbol of Buddhism and are found in all temples, as well as in planters and ponds throughout the country.

A man sells sticky rice, coconut and red bean cooked in sections of bamboo. The large one sells for 50 baht (about $1.50); the smaller one for 20 baht ($0.60). He makes the rice treat every day and travels around the village selling it from the back of his motorcycle. 

A woman holds her sleeping grandson outside the family home. The child's parents work full time in a distant province, so childcare is done by the grandparents, very common in rural Thailand. The parents had come back to the village for New Years.

Young boys pose during a break in play. They had been setting off firecrackers on New Years Eve.