I tried asking Mao about what other animal sounds he could make besides the civet but he misunderstood and just made more civet noises for me. I couldn't think of any animal sounds that I can do well so I impressed him with my water drop sound like in Ferris Bueller.
We heard some gibbons whooping in the distance but never managed to see any wildlife besides a squirrel.
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| Wild guava |
We took a more direct route back and got into town around 11:30. We stopped at the waterfall on the edge of town and had lunch and talked about Rat's job at the school. For 4 hours of work each day he makes $1.25. He has a wife and 2 kids. He's very happy that the Wildlife Alliance has started the ecotours as it has given him a better source of income. He taught himself English and studies whenever he can.
We returned to the lodge. I tipped Mao and Rat $10 each, and Rat teared up a little. He invited me to visit the school that afternoon to see what it was like. I first went to check out the shower conditions at my guesthouse and found them to be very low - essentially a big tank of water next to the toilet with a questionable source (possibly rainwater) and a large cup to pour the water over one's self. I decided I wasn't ready to try it so I went to visit the school. There was a big field with school buildings along three sides of it. All the kids were playing barefoot in the field - either soccer, volleyball, tag where the person who was "it" had to run on one foot, or just hanging out. Rat's small house is in one corner of the field, and I sat with him on the wooden platform outside the front door. I helped him translate a children's book of animals into English so he could teach the kids.
His friend Vunny that is also a teacher showed up with a full plastic water bottle of homemade rice wine, and Rat's wife fetched three cups. Vunny started pouring and a dead bee came out, which he casually picked out and continued pouring. We said cheers ("jurl muay" in Khmer) and drank our rice wine and ate some mystery bbq'd meat on a stick and some papaya salad. We finished the bottle, and out of nowhere a ten year old boy on a motorbike showed up and delivered another bottle of rice wine. Another older man had joined us by this point so the four of us kept saying cheers and drinking and the older man left and came back with some homemade pickles. Again, we finished the bottle (just a plastic water bottle) and the boy on the motorbike once again appeared with another bottle. We drank that one, too, this time paired with some fish. Rat was the only guy that spoke English, and his is rather limited, so it was mostly a lot of smiling and nodding and drinking. The older man looked me very earnestly in the eyes and gave me a long explanation in Khmer about how happy he is to have the Wildlife Alliance in Chi Phat, and that it has vastly improved life in town (translated by Rat). It was really touching and we toasted to it.
After that bottle everyone pretty much dispersed as I think we were all feeling pretty buzzed. I played with Rat's kids for a little bit, then got up the courage to shower at my guesthouse. I got dinner back at the lodge after that, and then Rat came by to hang out and drink beer with me and practice his English.
It was a great day, especially drinking with Rat and his buddies. It does appear that the NGO has had a really positive effect on the community, although it still appears to be a very poor area. The people were some of the friendliest I've met though, and hopefully the ecotourism continues to benefit everyone.
Photo album: https://picasaweb.google.com/108933817613007660268/20130708ChiPhatDay3?authuser=0&feat=directlink
All this from the kid who was afraid of spiders! Ugh -- think leeches would be way worse!
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