My hosts' home in Takeo Province. One of the advantages of having a house on stilts is that the design provides a cool and protected living below. Upstairs is the family's sleeping area.
The living area beneath the house is a shared space. This bull provides muscle power in the rice fields.
Members of my host family.
Living area in a neighbor's home. There is no electricity in this area; the television and stereo system are powered by the truck battery. It lasts two or three days, depending on how much it is used, before it has to be charged in the nearby village. The cost of a recharge is about 50 cents (US.) Average income in Cambodia is about $850 per year.
This hand pump provides water for the family. During the wet season, rainwater is also used (rain falling on the roof od the house drains into large urns.)
Shower time.
The main crop on farms in this area is rice, most of which is usually consumed by the family. This is what remains of last year's harvest.
Cattle are used mainly as draft animals, but are also bred for sale. This calf was four days old when I took this photograph.
Boys at play.
Children from a neighboring farm.
Some friends I made during my visit.
Traffic on the highway near the farm.
Chicken being delivered to market. In the background, a parade is assembling as part of a wedding celebration.
More traffic on the highway. It is common to see passengers atop trucks and minibuses on the usually bumpy roads of rural Cambodia.
Taking a corner must be a challenge for this vehicle.
Clay pots and ovens for sale on the highway.
I was invited to attend the wedding celebration of this young couple. The groom is a member of my hosts' extended family.
The wedding festivities lasted three days. I was able to attend a day's worth of the celebrations.
Outside the house where one of the wedding ceremonies was taking place.
I met this remarkable 87 year old man at the wedding. He lives with members of his extended family; all nine of his children died, he told me, under the Pol Pot regime.
Your correspondent at one of the meals that formed part of the wedding celebrations.
Sunset at the farm. In the background, power lines carry electricity past this part of the country. None of the homes here have electricity.
The main source of nighttime illumination.
