Rice, Rice and more... Rice!

In Cambodia if someone asks you, "have you eaten?" it translates to "have you eaten rice yet?" This seems to be true all over Asia, a meal is not a meal without rice. We definitely got accustomed to eating EVERY meal with rice, in fact, if it was not served and cost extra, we still ordered it. 

Over the past two months most of the scenery we saw has included a rice field, weather it was near the ocean, in the mountains or on very flat plains that seem to go on for miles. 

All of our tour guides, hostel owners, restaurant workers, everyone had a previous job as a rice farmer or their family was or is in the rice business. Our tour guide at Cuc Phuong National Park in Vietnam was a good example. "Before I was a tour guide I grew rice, I know how to do it still, I am an expert!" Indeed he was, as he sunk calf-deep into the mud and hunched close to the field to show me how to "clean" the mud before sticking in three or four little rice seedlings. 

From what I gathered from our guide in broken English, the first step to growing rice is to plow the field.  This is usually done with a water buffalo and a plow, or a gas powered plow. Either way, both are pretty manual and require a lot of strength to maneuver. 


The next step is to plant the seeds which are scattered in the plowed field. Once seedlings sprout about four inches they are pulled out of the field arranged in small bundles and set aside for yet another plowing of the field. 


The third step is to separate about three little clumps of roots which are replanted in VERY strait lines about six inches apart from other seedlings on all sides. When walking amongst the fields it reminds me of grid paper, I can't even draw a line that strait!

After that the rice is left to grow until harvesting which all depending on the type rice and climate can take three to six months. 


So our guide directed me over to some women who were busily planting their rice. I took off my shoes and wadded into the mud, at first I thought I would not stop sinking, it was pretty deep, warm and slimy, ick!

A woman handed me a small clump of seedlings and told me (in Vietnamese) how to plant the rice. I followed her lead and cleaned the mud before planting -- cleaning the mud meant to move it around a bit to make it flat. Then I pushed the little clumps of seedlings down about two inches into the mud. The women quietly giggled as I planted, not sure if it was a sign that I was doing it wrong or if I was doing it right but I thought I did a great job.

After about 20 minutes of planting (about all I am patient enough to do) I stood up and admired my work. One of the women said something to our guide that made everyone laugh. "She said that you did very well and can come back in 4 months to harvest the rice with them." I smiled and thanked them for humoring me. (Secretly wondering if they were going to redo my rows of rice once I was out of sight.)

That evening while we waited for dinner, I looked out the window at the rice fields, women and men were quietly finishing their work and returning home for dinner. Our guide said that people will work from about 7 in the morning till 6 at night, every day in their fields to ensure they have a good rice crop. They will then sell their crops for a meager price which will sustain their families till the next harvest. Now, know that I am no expert but it is hard work planting rice! It makes me appreciate the rice we have been eating in Asia, even more.