Photos from Angkor

Everyone is now safely back from our research trip to Southeast Asia and we will periodically update this web log to reflect the status of our research reports and findings as well as updates on our community outreach efforts. We enjoyed using this web log as a way of communicating with family, friends, and the NKU community.

We arrived in Cambodia last Thursday and it proved impossible to continue the web log from there. So belatedly here are some of our photos from Angkor. Angkor Wat was built during the reign of Suryavarman II (1113-1150AD) and is dedicated to the Hindu god Vishnu. The architecture and bas reliefs in this complex are quite impressive. Angkor is the world's largest religious complex.

We arrived at Angkor Wat in time for sunrise (5:41am) and because we were in Cambodia during the rainy season there were fewer visitors here than during the months of December-February.


Shawn and Rogelio in front of Angkor Wat


Sidhorn, our guide talking about the Apsaras (dancing ladies)


Sras Srong

Angkor Wat just after dawn

Prasat Hin Phimai

We have finished the data collection of the Bon Non Wat artifacts and this afternoon we are leaving Phimai to head for Bangkok. Tomorrow we will be off to Cambodia. We are unsure whether or not we will have an available internet connection to continue the web log, so don't worry if you don't hear from us. We will post as soon as we get a chance. See you all soon.

At the pottery village, Ban Thakaok

A Foreigner in Phi Mai by Emily Dean

Travelers in America do not experience what we have as foreigners in Phimai. America is such a melting pot that it is difficult to distinguish the difference between visitors and citizens. This isn't the case in Phimai, the people here are among the friendliest in the world. Even though we stick out like a sore thumb, we have been treated like we are in our hometown. We get a lot of attention parading around town in the back of Mr. Nim's Sangtao and even when we walk just down the street. The second week here on our way to the Banyan Tree (the largest Banyan Tree in the world) we were stopped by a father with a curious daughter. Through hand motions he expressed that his daughter wanted to feel my skin, I stuck out my arm and she touched it. She still didn't know what to think of us. Earlier the week before we had scarred a young girl in the village. She cried and clung to her mother the entire length of our visit, thinking we were ghosts.
Although our appearance has startled a few young children we feel very welcomed by their parents. Some people look at us farangs (foreigners) strangely, some turn away, many laugh at us but most smile and say hello. Phimai has been a great home for the past three weeks, we hate to say sa-wad-dee kha.

Rambutan

Dinner at Phi Mai Inn by Mandy Turner

Dinner at Phimai Inn is a unique experience. Every night we eat our dinner on the sala, which resembles a large porch for outside dining. The staff is always waiting for us to arrive and greet us with hellos and smiles when we show up at our usual time, which is 7:00 pm. The table is set for us when we arrive and one of the staff begins filling our glasses with water as soon as we are seated. The food is brought out to us and generally consists of two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes. Rice is eaten at every meal in Thailand and one of the staff members comes around and serves us rice. Sometimes you have to tell them enough because they will pile your plate full of rice. We then serve ourselves from the dishes that were brought out. The service is outstanding. The staff waits on us our entire meal. Our water glasses are never empty and rice is available throughout the meal.

One of the favorite dishes for all of us is pak boon. It is a jae dish (vegetarian dish) and is made with a vegetable that is similar to water cress and just enough garlic to give it a really good flavor. It also includes red peppers, which are very spicy. Our favorite meat dishe is gai put met mamooung that is made with water chestnuts, chicken, roasted peppers, and onions. Dinner is concluded each night with a plate of fresh fruit including watermelon, pineapple, and rambutan a very sweet fruit in a strange peel.

Dinner at the Phimai Inn

Playing traditional instruments in a local village

Torrential rain on the road from Phnom Rung to Phimai

The temperature here in Isan (northeast Thailand) has been in the high 90's with about 90% humidity. Officially Thailand has three seasons - hot, rainy, and cool - but more typically farangs (foreigners) refer to the seasons here as "hot" and "hotter". We are here in the rainy season which is from June to October; although we have experienced rain only on 2 days so far - a torrential downpour on our way home from Phanom Rung and then another rainy day this past week here in Phimai.

Our photo lab during the rain

Outdoor photography

As you can see we have set-up a photography area in front of the dig house and because it’s outdoors we are dependent on decent weather to complete our archival photos of objects.

Rice fields at the beginning of planting season outside of Phimai

The start of the rainy season also marks the beginning of rice planting and we often see villagers working in their fields either sowing rice or weeding fields which have already been planted.

Victory Gate- the ancient entrance to the timeless city of Phimai

We would like to welcome everyone back to our web log. The problems with the internet connection here at the Phimai Inn have been solved, and we are happy to be reconnected with all of you.

Mr. Nim's sangtao

Thai Traffic and the Sangtao by Shawn Fehrenbach

One of the most astonishing differences between Thailand and the greater Cincinnati area is apparent on the roads. We spend a fair amount of time driving to and from different villages and houses where we are conducting research, and also taking field trips to archaeological and monumental sites around Thailand. Most of this travel is done in a vehicle known as a sangtao, which is a modified pickup truck with benches and a roof over the bed. Our regular sangtao is piloted by the wonderful Mr. Nim, whom you all met earlier in our blog. Riding in the back of this truck is an intimate way to experience all the glory of Thailand, as all five senses are in touch with the environment around you and you can interact with other travelers who love to wave and say, “hello.” My best estimate is that about 75% of the vehicles on the roads are motorbikes. People carry all kinds of amusing and precarious items on their bikes (yes, even televisions). It is common to see three people on one motorcycle, and we have even seen them packed four deep a couple times. Trips in Thailand are never a bore.

how to carry a television on a motorcycle

three to a bike

Karaoke bar at the Phimai Inn

Inside the Karaoke bar

Karaoke- A quick compare and contrast by Rogelio Rivera

There is a Karaoke Bar here at the Phimai Inn where our group is staying and I'd like to talk about some of my observations about karaoke bars. One difference from the states and Thailand that I have noticed is the Thai drinking establishments. In Thailand there seems to be two establishments; beer gardens and a karaoke bar. The karaoke bar is opposite of the ones back home. For instance the Thai do not stand in front of the bar to sing, a microphone is brought to their table. The seating environment is a more laid back; Thais sit in lounge chairs with a coffee table in front and drink or eat dinner and everyone seems to keep to their selves. What is the most surprising is that almost everyone who sings is good and they sing as if they are proud of their voices. Most of their songs are slow and mellow whereas the songs at the bars that I have been to in the States the songs are loud and with energy.

Elephant ride for Emily and Shawn

Rogelio and Mandy's elephant ride

On the morning of the 10th during breakfast, we caught a glimpse of an elephant walking down the road in front of the Phimai Inn. We recognized this as a rare opportunity and abandoned breakfast, much to the astonishment of the other diners. With Judy's help we were able to negotiate rides on the elephant, two at a time, for a total price of only 200 bhat (about $5)! Later in town we came across a baby elephant, which entertained us by eating vegetables from our hands and doing tricks. The elephants were brought into Phimai to raise money for a regional temple.

Emily and Rogelio feeding a baby elephant

Sorry for the Delays in Posting

We are currently experiencing technical difficulties in Thailand. The high-speed internet connection at the Phimai Inn has been down since just after our last posting. Our only other option is an incredibly slow connection at the local internet cafe, where I am posting this update. It is unfortunately not clear when and if the connection at the Phimai Inn will be repaired, but we are doing our best. We are all doing perfectly well and our research is moving along fabulously. This week and last we have been working particularly hard to get through all of the analysis that must be done in Phimai, so that we can spend time taking more field trips to important archaeological sites and museums towards the end of our journey. When we can get our connection back at the Inn, we will provide a much more complete update. We have many wonderful experiences that we can't wait to share.

Everyday Phimai

Bargain hunting at the Monday night market

On Monday nights in Phimai, the Monday night market is the place to be. It is sort of like a mix between a festival and a farmer's market in the States. You can buy hilarious t-shirts, shoes, stereo equipment, food, car parts, live fish. . . almost anything. We came home with bags full of souvenirs and plenty of baht left in our pockets.

Rogelio analyzing clay pellets

Our research seems to be moving as quickly as the night market. Rogelio and Mandy are making progress on the pellets and anvils respectively, while Shawn and Emily continue to assist Judy with the analysis of mortuary vessels.

Every angle is good at Prassat Hin Phimai

Shawn and Rogelio hard at work

Emily and Mandy hard at work

Now for the fun part! Before getting to analyze the pottery we filled out paper work using the burial and artifact registries. We started a record sheet for each of the ceramic artifacts. Then, we sorted the clay pellets and anvils, to prepare them for and expedite the analysis. Today, we worked with the artifacts first hand.

Preparing for ascent to Prassat Phnom Rung

Our planned schedule is to work six days a week, with the seventh day set aside for field trips and free time. Yesterday (Sunday) we went to see Khmer sites across Isan (northeast Thailand). Our first stop was the site of Phnom Rung, a religious monument built between the 11th and 13th centuries, on top of a now extinct volcano.

Doorway at Prassat Muang Tam

Our second stop was another Khmer temple site, called Prassat Muang Tam. The third stop was a Khmer kiln site at Ban Kruat. At the nearby village, we spoke with local people who directed us to a school which housed a museum of local ceramic artifacts. Unfortunately, this museum was closed, as it was Sunday, and no one had a key, but were able to view the collection on a computer at the school.

Rare opportunity to sound the gong at Hin Dat

Our final stop was Hin Dat, a site where the Khmer had mined sandstone for use in the construction of temples, and where Buddhist monks now live. All of the sites were exceptionally beautiful and educational.

local houses at Ban Thakok

A good portion of the day was spent encountering Thai culture first hand by learning the language and experiencing Thai cuisine. Speaking with everyone we meet and Mr. Nim’s vocabulary lessons has been a great introduction to the Thai language. On the way to the potter’s village of Ban Tha Kok we pulled over for a fresh squeezed Thai drink, Nam Minao, served in a plastic bag with a straw.

Mr. Nim and Shawn enjoying Nam Minao in Phimai

Bronze age burials in excavation pit at Ban Prassat

We took a bus from Bangkok to Khorat, where we met our driver Mr. Nim, who took us on to the Phimai Inn. Our first full day in Phimai was a busy one. We spent most of the day driving to various places related to our research, including the Phimai regional office of the Thai Fine Arts Department, various local villages, and archaeological sites. The open air museum at Ban Prasat was the highlight of the day. We saw three excavation units which contain burials and other features in situ. We were amazed to see the depth of these units, which were generally about 25 feet deep.

Rogelio, Mandy, Emily, and Shawn at the Grand Palace in Bangkok

Our first day in Bangkok, we visited the Grand Palace and Wat Phra Kaeo, the royal grounds of Thailand. The architecture of the buildings in this complex was breathtaking.

temples at the Grand Palace

We're in Bangkok!

It's 1am local time -- we are in Bangkok at our hotel. Everyone is exhausted from the 12 hour flight from Chicago to Tokyo, the 4 hour layover in Tokyo, and then our last flight of 6 hours from Tokyo to Bangkok. It's hot, humid, and raining here.
It's Wednesday morning Bangkok time (8:30am). We just had a combination Thai breakfast with American toast. We are headed to Wat Pho and later we will be taking a bus to Phimai. We expect to be at the Phimai Inn for dinner.

Group Bio

Our group consists of four students who are all anthropology majors, and one professor from the Anthropology Program within the Sociology, Anthropology and Philosophy Department at Northern Kentucky University. We met each other as members of the larger Northern Kentucky University anthropology community, and began working together through our involvement in NKU's Student Anthropology Association. Dr. Judy Voelker has been traveling to Thailand regularly for over ten years, conducting archaeological research. She developed an intimacy with Thai culture and language through ethnoarchaeological research working with traditional potters while living in a Thai village for 19 months. Her desire is to assist students and involve them in archaeological research -- this led to a group of seven students conducting ceramic and lithic analyses on artifacts from the prehistoric copper mining and production site of Phu Lon, Thailand. All four of the students traveling to Thailand were part of the original seven students involved in this research.

Trip outline and blog justification

We will depart, bound for Thailand on May 30th, and return on June 29th. Most of this time will be spent in Thailand, where we will be conducting research on ceramics that were recently excavated from the prehistoric site of Ban Non Wat in Northeastern Thailand. We will be staying in the nearby city of Phimai, and commuting to the village near the archaeological site to conduct our research. This research is associated with a larger archaeological project known as "Origins of Angkor," which seeks further comprehension of the development of state-level society in Southeast Asia, by studying archaeological sites of the people who predated such societies in the region. The Angkorian civilization's capital was the grand city of Angkor (visit www.angkorwat.org for info and pictures), which is located in present day Cambodia. We will travel to this site for a few days near the end of our journey to meet with other researchers studying prehistoric ceramics in mainland Southeast Asia. Due to a busy schedule, time zone differences (exactly opposite Eastern U.S. time), and the language barrier, we will be difficult to reach in person during our travels. The group has developed this web log to record our progress, and as a form of communication with colleagues, friends, and family around the world.

Preparation

Preparation for this trip has been a long process. We have been having regular meetings about once a week for a few months now. There are many things to learn, such as some of the basics of Thai language and culture, and what we will need to pack. Our medical preparations involved informing ourselves about the risks of exposure to diseases and deciding upon vaccinations and medications to take. We have also made a few major purchases, including a digital camera and a laptop computer.

NKU Celebrations of Research and Creativity

We presented our preliminary research results on the Phu Lon ceramics at Northern Kentucky University's annual Celebrations of Research and Creativity in April 2005. Silver, the 4 year old in the photo, is not an NKU student.