Directly across the river from our hotel balcony in Pak Beng is Mekong Elephant Park. When we left this morning, we saw two of their elephants hanging out by the river. We continued our journey upstream and reached a Khmu village around noon. Khmu (pronounced Khamu) is a big tribe in Laos just like Hmong (pronounced Mong). Our guide, Xai, happens to be Khmu although he did give us a choice of visiting either a Khmu or a Hmong village.

Ban Houy Pha Lam

Ban Houy Pha Lam village was established 5th March, 2009. Tribal families living in the forests were encouraged to move here by the government. The village has about fifty families, about 200 residents. Many of the original houses built with bamboo had to be replaced with sturdier wooden houses. You’ll see in the photos that the houses face all different directions and some are better maintained than others. Some families have one or two plants outside their homes, and one had a chicken-wired garden with a variety of herbs, fruit and vegetables. There is communal storage for drying sticky rice, and a shack with tools for repairing equipment, fish nets, etc.

A little girl ran towards us and asked for money by rubbing her thumb and forefinger together rapidly. We smiled and walked away. Earlier, when Xai asked us to choose which tribal village we wanted to visit, he said the Hmong village we could have visited today would have one or two stalls selling things like bracelets, and the Khmu village would have a donation box. Giving money to individual villagers was not advised, and impractical.

Surprised to Find a Grocery Store

About ten minutes into our visit, four children followed us expectantly but kept their distance. I was confused by a little grocery store because Xai said the villagers farm, fish and hunt for food, and that no one worked for money, and that they seldom produce enough crops for sale. So who’s buying these things? I told Kenric we should go get some snacks for the kids behind us. He was hesitant, so we asked Xai if it was appropriate for us to buy something for the children. He said yes, and that we could buy candy or pencils from the store.

Leveraging my experience as a former child, I went with candy. Xai and the shopkeeper helped us select a tub of 200-piece Jack & Jill Dynamite Choco-filled Mint Candy for 30,000 Kip (USD $3.60). The children got more excited, but waited patiently. Xai was digging through his bag for some painkillers because a lady came over to tell him she had a headache. He gave her a new pack of 12 tablets. We gave two candies to each child, and many more came. It was getting harder to keep track of who’s double dipping. Most were too shy to speak, but almost all of them put their palms together as a symbol of thanks. A few repeated after their mother or grandmother and said “Kop Jai”. Whenever they smiled, my heart melted.

A Treat for Everyone

Instead of putting two into the adults’ hands, I tilted the container for them to reach in. I was no longer worried about what to do with the leftovers. One lady sewing in her doorway, grabbed so much that she sheepishly smiled, revealing her few remaining teeth, and told Xai that she was saving them for her niece. Xai spoke to all of them in the Khmu language which does not have a written form. A man reached in and got two for himself. Later, I saw him giving a piece to one of the many children at a construction site. I scanned the group to be sure that everyone got at least two pieces and we went on our way.

A Donation For The Village School

We saw piglets, chickens and ducks roaming free, and two cows and a goat tied to a pole/tree. It started raining and people started taking in their laundry. We made our way to the donation box which is housed inside a chain-link shed. A sign says, “Please donate for school and students to build the meeting room. Thank you.” The primary school is behind the village. We hope the Village Chief is pleasantly surprised when he unlocks the box. I should have also put some of my painkillers in there. Xai said whatever is donated will be put to good use and distributed according to needs by the Village Chief. Recently, the villagers came together to build a new house for an old lady who was sick using donated funds for materials.

We hurried back to the boat in the rain and managed to give some more candy to three boys who were playing in the river. After lunch, Xai told us about the times when tourists visited his village when he was a little boy, how he loved the candy, but was too shy to approach the tourists. “Just like some of them”, he laughed. I was so glad we didn’t get those kids pencils. When the question is 2B or not 2B, go with candy.

Map of Places Visited