Village Fishing

Yesterday, one of my faculty sponsors took me to a rural village near Khon Kaen. A former student lives there with her parents and brother. The purpose was to go fishing, Thai style. I wasn't sure what to expect. The parents are farmers and they have a small pond on the property. And I mean a really small!

Little Muddy

Several of us piled into the back of a pickup truck and off we went. The brother cut some bamboo poles and rigged them for fishing, like Huckleberry Finn. After chumming the water with termites, we fished with some dough balls. Interesting. I caught the first fish, a shiner. Back home, I would use this for bait. We caught a few others, nothing of any size, and released everything.

Fish or Bait?

Next, they taught me how to throw a cast net. The nylon net was long and had many lead weights along the bottom to make it sink quickly. The idea was to throw it in a circle using a fluid motion. Everything looks easy until you do it yourself. I  have a lot more respect for those who fish frequently. I threw the net twice and miraculously it worked both times. Lady luck was on my side so I stopped. I felt a sense of accomplishment - caught a little fish and cast a big net!

Success!

Afterwards, we all went to a restaurant for lunch. Large shrimp (oxymoron?) were served on platters and mine was in a coconut. The food was spicy, but nothing that ice cream couldn't conquer. Made some new friends today. Here's the takeaway message and it has nothing to do with fish or fishing. Some people that I did not know and will never meet again were interested enough to spend the whole day with me, a foreigner. Are you willing to do the same? Love thy neighbor.

Ice Cream Friends