Land of Smiles

We're at the country house now and I spend the days riding my bicycle around the neighboring villages.

When you ride your bike around the Thai countryside, you really understand why Thailand is called the Land of Smiles. First of all, the sight of a big, gangling white man, riding a giant bicycle, wearing sunglasses and not much else, completely unafraid of the sun, is very amusing to Thais. So they smile; they also laugh, giggle, chuckle, point and honk their horns. Some yell out "Hi" or "Hallo" but the most common salutation is "You!". Occasionally I get:

"You! Good!" accompanied by a thumbs up.

It seems universally acknowledged that it is both strange and noble for a farang, who must able to afford a motorbike, to choose to ride a bicycle instead.

Occasionally I get a question: pai nai? or where you go? in English.

"To the forest!" I respond, and this always elicits laughter. Apparently, there is nothing more absurd than a white man riding his bicycle into the forest.

There are many Karen villages around. The Karen are not as friendly, and more inclined to stare rather than smile. They stay to themselves in untidy villages built mostly of bamboo and straw, and the children are always playing in the street. The women paint their faces with a yellow cream made from trees. I think they originate in the Tibetan plateau because they have those striking features, particularly in the eyes.

Yesterday I taking a water break and I noticed two Karen girls staring at me. One of them was beautiful, with a very pretty face, so I stared back at her. Then I thought to myself, "what are you doing? that girl isn't more than 13 years old!"

But as I turned away I noticed her belly and thought to myself, "OMG!" (that's right, I think in Valley Girl language), "she's about eight and a half months pregnant!"