Speaking of dogs, I had a real epiphany (light bulb moment), while vacationing in Koh Libong, a small tropical island in Southern Thailand. Most of the people who live on this island are Malay Muslim; outside of the three small Muslim fishing villages, the island is relatively unpopulated.

While visiting two of the villages closest to my hotel, I found it be somewhat peculiar that I did not encounter any dogs. Cats on the other hand were a dime a dozen - it seemed that almost every household in the village had at least one or two.

Later on, I discovered there were five relatively mangy dogs that were kept as “pets” at the neighboring Libong Beach resort. I stayed at Le Dugong Beach Resort. Outside of these five dogs, I believe there was not a single other dog on the island.

Reflecting on the absence of dogs on Koh Libong, I thought about my prior trips to Malaysia – a Muslim nation state in Southeast Asia - and to a number of islands in Southern Thailand which were predominantly Muslim. Strangely, I recall not seeing any dogs on these excursions as well.
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Ah hah, I said to myself, there must be some taboo about dogs in Muslim Culture. Sure enough - after doing some research online, I discovered that in Islam, dogs are considered unclean and unhygienic, and it is forbidden to keep them as pets. Cats - on the other hand - are welcomed as pets in Muslim Culture.

Admittedly, I am very fond of dogs - while I may not agree with this particular attitude towards dogs, as a traveler and an open minded person, I have learned to respect cultural differences.

By the way, the management and owner of Dugong Beach resort are Buddhists and are not part of the indigenous Malay population of Southern Thailand

When I attended the local Carnival in the rural village of Boklua located in Northern Thailand’s Nan Province, it brought back wonderful memories of my childhood and I had terrific time.

The Carnival was a fundraiser for the local medical clinic, so all the monies went to a good cause. A variety of novel games were going on, including one which involved tossing rings on coke bottles. I played one game but failed miserably as my throws were way off the mark.

Another game was drawing quite a crowd and generating a lot of excitement (and noise) so I moved in that direction. Moving closer to the scene, I could see many people gathered around a small makeshift ring with chutes around the circumference. Suddenly, a young lady appeared and jumped into the ring, collecting bets from the frenzied spectators. The bets were in denomination of 5 baht. Not knowing what was going on, at first, I thought it was some version of the old crab race game.

Boy, I was way off base. I finally realized what was happening, when a young man let loose a small furry critter out ofa thick bamboo tube – the critter was a mouse. The little mouse scurried around the pit for a bit, accompanied by banging sticks and the clamor of the crowd, before dodging into one of the marked chutes. I had never seen anything like this before and I had good laugh.

Caught in the Spirit of the Carnival, I decided to make some bets on the next contest. First go-around, I selected only two chutes and I lost; 2nd time around, I selected 8 out of the 12 possible chutes. Pretty good odds, if you ask me! Needless to say, the little mouse dashed into chute #6 – which was one of the many that I bet on, so I came up a big winner.

My prize? It was a bag of sunflower chips which I later gave to a young lad who worked at my hotel. Who said that “an old fart” like me couldn’t have any fun in Thailand?

I met Som, a middle aged lady from the village of Baan Na Tong in Northern Thailand, who labors many hours a day to make some very exquisite and colorful quilts. It takes her up to 60 hours to make just one piece.

Located about 32 kilometers from the city of Phrae, Baan Na Tong is a very beautiful village surrounded by greenery. The village offers homestay accommodations and is one of the areas where the endangered Siamese Big Headed Turtles can be found.

In Phrae (or in the village), the quilts sell for 4000 baht ($121USD) and in USA, Europe or overseas, they sell for as much as 10,000 baht ($300USD). When the quilt sold through a retailer -whether it be in Thailand or overseas - her cut of the pie is only 800 baht ($24USD). That averages out to only 13 baht an hour, based on 60 hours for production. It doesn’t seem fair, but she isn’t complaining because she enjoys her work.

It’s a shame that artisans - especially in 3rd world countries - make so little monies from their handiwork, while others profit immensely. I probably should have suggested to her that she market her goods through an artisan or artist cooperative in order to her increase her remuneration.

I have seen the same phenomenon happen in other countries – Mexico, Peru, Ghana to name a few - where locally made handmade goods are very cheap to buy locally, but on the expensive side if you buy them in the USA. Someone is making a lot of monies; it surely is not the local artisan or craftsman. Such is the way of the world!

While walking in the downtown area of Nan in Northern Thailand, I happened to stumble upon some sort of local parade/celebration. Not knowing exactly what was happening, I decided to follow the people as they danced - conga line style - into the nearby Wat Apha accompanied by some lively Lanna music.

Inside the complex, the focal point seemed to be a large money tree, and the participants invited me to join the festivities. Offering me food and drinks - the local whiskey, a choice of Thai beers - in addition to encouraging me to dance with them, I could not refuse their hospitality.

I inquired as to the nature of the party with some of the participants, but no one could really speak sufficient English to offer me an explanation. I kept on hearing the word Papa repeated over and over again, but of course I didn’t know what they were talking about. Walking back to my hotel, it seemed that the rest of the town was relatively quiet, so it was safe to say that the celebration was relatively limited to Wat Apha.

It was only after talking to the owner of Nan Boutique Hotel that I found out about the true nature of this celebration. What I witnessed at the local Wat is known in Thailand as the Paa Paah Festival. Celebrated during the months of October and November throughout Thailand, the Paa Paah festival is a special fund raising party for each local temple/Wat – and it is strictly a localized festival, as each temple celebrates this festival independently on different dates.

I consider myself very fortunate as an outsider to have been invited by members of the Apha Wat to join in their festivities. The people were very friendly and hospitable and they had no qualms about me taking photographs of their merriment. It also gave an opportunity to learn more about the fascinating and exotic culture of Thailand