As green as it can get
It is just 45km north of downtown Chiang Mai, but the contrast Ban Pong presents to life in the city is staggering
- Published: 6/05/2010 at 12:00 AM
- Newspaper section: Horizons
Just an hour's drive north of downtown Chiang Mai is Ban Pong, a farm community nestled in a valley ringed by lush foliage and paddies so peaceful that I immediately took to it because of the contrast it was to city life.
At Ban Pong, farming is the way of life.
Located in Mae Taeng district of the province Ban Pong, aka Muang Kaen Pattana, proved an idyllic hideout off Highway 1323 on my recent visit, with the sight of farmers working rice fields bisected by irrigation canals, children frolicking and buffaloes grazing leisurely accentuating the rustic ambience.
Modernisation has somehow failed to make inroads in Bang Pong, or shall we say just passed by it, for here there are no convenience stores, no factories, gas stations nor state-of-the-art outlets. It is literally a green valley.
Kids enjoy a swim in an irrigation canal next to the Ban Pong community. INSET A fisherman proudly displays his catch.
"We have a clear policy to shun factories and big businesses because they don't go hand in hand with rice farms and, besides, they would constitute a clear threat to our pop-mom shops.
"The gas stations, too, are a nuisance for they allow farmers to buy on credit which results in accumulated debt," said one resident, Taksin Donchai, whom locals affectionately call Klae.
"I am not sure how long we can keep them at bay, but as long as I am around I will try my best to keep things as they are," he added, and I could detect a hint of sarcasm in his tone.
Ban Pong actually has been the rice bowl of Chiang Mai since ancient times. Fed by the rivers Kaen, Ping, and Ngad, the land around it is blessed with rich soil and, according to history, it is the birthplace of Phaya Sam Fang Kaen, the 8th king of the Meng Rai Dynasty, who ruled the Lanna kingdom from 1398-1447.
Ban Pong is also famous for its ceramic and Inthakhin kilns dating back some six centuries. In 1996 the site of a kiln with chimney was discovered in its north, followed by cross-draught kilns and slab-clay structures that looked like jars. Around the site were found light green glazed stoneware or celadon as well as greenish-brown glazed stoneware - high quality products on par with Sukhothai's and easily among the best found in northern Thailand.
That evening Klae showed me around town. "We grow three crops of rice a year. Some farmers grow corn as their main crop. You will see also potato farms sometimes. If you notice carefully, you will see a small area behind their homes where they grow vegetable and fruit for their own consumption. Of course, they are free of chemicals," he explained.
In the absence of fast food outlets, plenty is on offer by way of local cuisine, like khao ngiew, which is rice boiled with ground pork and pig's blood wrapped in banana leaf held in place with a strip of bamboo. And it's incredibly cheap: 5 baht a piece.
"Steam it before serving with garlic and fresh vegetable," I was advised, after I'd bought one from a vendor at the village temple.
I enjoyed every minute of my stay at Ban Pong, including the sight of rice fields stretching into the horizon, stacks of corn and hay arranged in neat piles against the backdrop of elegant temples.
A farmer watering his vegetable garden. Most families in Ban Pong own plots they cultivate without using chemicals, meant strictly for home consumption.
This was life at its simple best, shorn of factories, pollution, modern stores and all the temptations associated with consumerism. The villagers led a content life while children enjoyed open spaces, clean and healthy air.
Ban Pong owes its all-year greenery to an elaborate network of irrigation canals fed by the Mae Ngad Dam, some 10 minutes drive from the village. An earthen dam, its building spawned an artificial lake about 16-sq-km in size straddling Mae Taeng and Phrao districts, and while tourists see it as an ideal hideaway, to the locals the lake is a reliable food bank.
The lake attracts fishermen who come armed with nets and some with harpoon guns, masks and empty plastic tanks for buoyancy.
I watched one of them steer his long-tailed boat to a quiet corner and dive into the lake, only to surface a minute later with fish in hand. While I stood watching he made four dives and met success in three of them, each fish weighing about a kilogramme, and after 20 minutes he had caught enough to ensure his family a decent meal.
Before dawn the next day I was woken up by the temple loudspeaker blaring message about a religious rite scheduled that day. Every second and third day of April the locals converge to commemorate Kru Ba Noi, a former monk who if still alive, would be 114 years old, Klae explained to me. It was a day to celebrate.
A villager with culinary flair preparing meals for Ban Pong’s annual temple feast.
We rushed to the temple to find hundreds of monks from nearby temples and districts converging there. A ceremony was in progress in the main pavilion, but my focus was directed to what's going on outside the temple walls, where villagers were cooking food and preparing for a major feast.
"The food cooked is not sold but given away for free," said one villager. Local tradition holds that those who don't join the ceremony at the main pavilion are obliged to assist in cooking food. The menu includes noodles, sausages, meat balls, rice, local dishes, beverage, fruit and desserts spread out across booths for all to help themselves.
This was easily the best part of the day when the air around the temple was filled with smile, laughter and happiness.
Ban Pong is not your luxury destination but it does offer a few things not available elsewhere, and if you're looking for a change of pace from chaos of the city, this probably is a place you should check out.
Local specialty ‘khao ngiew’, made from rice boiled with ground pork and pig’s blood.
About the author
- Writer: Peerawat Jariyasombat
- Position: Reporter
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น