One of the most memorable moments on our trip to Thailand was when Sgt Kai took us into the mountains where the Hmong and Karen Hilltribes resided to get a REAL taste of tribal life. We were brought to a number of very out of the way villages where few visitors are lucky enough to see. Sgt. Kai was absolutely the BEST. He knew exactly what we wanted to see and delivered 200%!!!
The cool thing was , he enjoyed our day in the hills as much as we did. He has a true passion for the indigenous tribes of his country and it shows.
This video I pieced together was done with my little Canon IXUS 65 by Diana while stood by and took the still shots with the Canon Rebel XT and a 105mm zoom. We stood VERY still so as not to spook the cattle and water buffalo as they made their way up from the rice paddies in the valley to the hill side where the villagere/herders brought them to be safe for the night.
The memories of that 20 minutes or so where the procession filed by us….bamboo cow bells clanging and shepardess calling to her flock………..well it was enchanting as well as primal. As they disappeard from sight up the hill into the forest….tears in all 3 of our eyes…..all we could think is how we hoped this wouldn’t change………..but sadly for tradition’s sake, the village had just gotten electricity the week before. For their comfort it is most certainly a good thing. Still it made Diana and I sad (and extremely blessed) to think that we may be the last outsiders to see this village at it’s most pristine and authenthic state.
BELOW IS THE VIDEO LINK
….I put it on UTube to make viewing hopefully easier for most.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WLVMYeyskTU
