Hello everyone

In the middle of last month my son and I traveled to Chiang Mai for a few days. After that, we went to visit my sister and her family in Tak Province which is in the north of Thailand. This period is therefore at the end of the rainy season and early winter. There will be some fog in the morning but during the day it is very hot. As winter approaches, the sun sets earlier than the rainy season or summer. But I like to go to northern Thailand in winter to see the thick fog floating above the mountain range. Because in the north, the terrain is mountainous, making it colder than other parts of Thailand.

In winter, tourists are popular to go to the north, whether to camp on the top of the mountain, wake up early to see the mist and the sunrise... Winter in Thailand starts around November to February, some years it is very cold with frost in the morning. Thailand has not experienced an extreme cold for many years so when the weather is cold, Thai people are especially excited. The northern region is the region where various types of temperate plants bloom during the winter. I am a person who likes flowers very much and wants to visit the northern region in winter as well. I would like to go to Bua Tong Forest Park where yellow flowers bloom on the hills of Mae Hong Son. I have plans to travel all over Thailand but it's not easy when you're a mam and you have a family to manage, not to mention the cost involved hahaha.

But now I will take everyone to know the way of life of rural Thai people which during this period is the end of Buddhist Lent. Each temple will hold a ceremony of presenting yellow robes to the Buddhist monks at the end of the Buddhist Lent which each temple will have once a year after the end of Buddhist Lent.

At the Kathina festival, there will be a grand procession where the robes and other essential items are presented to the monks, each temple has a different parade.

Chong Khaep, Phop Phra District, Tak Province, is a small village adjacent to the border of Burma where there are diverse cultures, but now, because of the Thailand/Myanmar Border, the area is not peaceful. There was a battle between the Burma Army and the Karen minority so there are more soldiers than usual to maintain peace and safety for the Thai people.

This Kathina procession brings 9 elephants to join the procession with the chairman of the Kathina festival sitting on the elephant's back. These elephants were brought from the BanYaPor Elephant Breeding Center. which is an elephant breeding center of the Karen people. In the past, elephants were used as a vehicle for dragging logs in the forest and on the hills. But now that no trees are cut down, these elephants are bred to show or take tourists on trekking to see the nature of the forest.

The elephants that were brought to join the parade. There is an elephant mahout to take care of the safety of those sitting on the elephant's back. But for those who have never sat on an elephant's back, there may be fear of falling off the elephant. Because when an elephant walks, the seat that is tied to the elephant's back will wabble to the rhythm of the walk. But the mahout guarantees safety that it won't fall behind the elephant for sure.

The distance of the procession is not far, only 1 kilometer. During the procession, there will be a dance and beat "Klong Sabadchai" which will as create great enthusiasm for the parade.

When the parade arrives in front of the temple grounds, there will be a dance show with gentle gestures typical of northern women.

Wat Klongkhaeb is a small rural temple. Last year, the sermon hall in a monastery was damaged by a storm. All damaged, now in the process of reconstruction. Therefore need a lot of money for construction.

When the parade arrived inside the temple. There will be walking around the Ubosot 3 times. After that, the Kathina cloth is presented to the monks.

After watching the parade my sister and I cook noodle soup to feed the people who join the Kathina festival this time. The temple has prepared a place for those who want to make an almshouse this time. We cook boat noodles which my sister and I used to sell boat noodles in Phuket in the past. When the temple has a Kathina festival, we would like to make merit by making delicious noodles for the people to eat. After preparing the equipment and ingredients, boil the noodles and cook them immediately. There were a lot of people lined up to pick up noodles for about 2 hours, the noodles were gone. It's a day that we are happy to join in making merit in this Kathina festival.

We ran out of noodles, so we packed up things to go home to clean. After that, my sister drove me to explore the nature of the countryside. I haven't seen these images in years. I feel so refreshed and happy to have returned to the place that I have been familiar with.

This is the bridge that connects the Sao O District and Chong Khaep District. In this area, you can see the hills, big and small, that are intricate, and the sun slowly fading down the horizon is a very beautiful picture.

90% of the population here is engaged in agriculture. Most of them grow corn for animal husbandry and growing vegetables sold all over Thailand. It is an area with fertile soil and a climate suitable for growing crops.

My family used to be farmers but after my father died my mother couldn't farm alone because she was getting old. After we graduated and chose to work in Bangkok, nobody wants to be a farmer like my parents, the farmer's career in Thailand is a hard-working occupation. Selling the product at a low price is not worth the investment, I remember our family farming corn lose money every year because of low prices. Fertilizers and pesticides are expensive and before planting corn, my father had to borrow money from middlemen to buy seeds. Fertilizers and pesticides caused time to sell when the middleman pressed the price down but my parents still did it until my father died because they do not have the knowledge to go to other occupations. The Thai farmer's career is a very pitiful occupation.

I really like the evening atmosphere in the countryside. In addition to being beautiful, it is quiet and not busy. Maybe I'm getting old, so I often miss my childhood, haha.