Lunch at Ban Sobphuan

After running the inventory transects at Ban Sobphuan (see Thin Red Line and Sediments), we returned to the village and were served a delicious, multi-course lunch. The hand on the right side of the image is pointing to the tasty rattan shoots on the plate with the fish. [NOTE: That's Le Viet Tam (WWF Vietnam) on the left and Ou Ratanak (WWF Cambodia) to the right with the colorful scarf tied around his waist].

The young, tender (mostly) shoots are from Calamus viminalis Willd. ("wai ton"), which is grown in small plantings near the agricultural fields outside of town. Lunch was delicious - as were the rattan shoots.

Mouse Traps

Walking back to the village of Sobphouan after finishing the rattan inventory training (see Thin Red Line), I met up with this gentleman who was heading out to his field carrying a bundle of long sticks topped with bamboo tubes. I asked Bansa Thammavong, who I was walking with, what these were and he replied, somewhat incredulous that I had never seen such things, that they were mouse traps. [NOTE: Beautiful, handcrafted tools for pest control, but I don't really understand how they work. Anybody?]