North of Kratie village

North of Kratie village
Originally uploaded by Asia Trip2007.

This is just one example of some of the photos I got visiting the villages north of Kratie. The mighty Mekong river is just located beyond those trees in the distance and it is a source of much of their survival here. The fishing in the river, the crops of rice and other aquious plants to eat (that thrive in the wet season for half the year when the Mekong floods fresh water through all these villages), are all staples to the Kratie peoples way of life. They are self sufficient and resourceful and still use cattle, mules and handmade cart to help them with much of the heavier work (like piling hay).

The children here all help with the farm work and go to school when the parents have the money to send them (usually when the crop money starts coming in), but many of them learn English first on, to give them a fighting chance to make money when they are older, as more and more western society expectations are now infiltrating the east.