Last day in Thuong Bang La Commune

Today I genuinely have heavy heart as I leave TBL. It marks the end of fieldwork. Every time I come here, I feel motivated, inspired and downright happy. The people here are so welcoming I can’t even begin to describe how comfortable they have made me feel. 

Let me share with you about what we did today!  in the morning, we headed to Nong Truong village where we carried out Key informant interviews with a female farmer, the head of Nong Truong village and the head of Muong village. Here we gathering some basic socioeconomic data which is necessary to know before beginning a project. Data such as population in in the village, average wage, education and main/other livelihoods of people in the village. Understanding the situation in each village is key to ensuring any CSA interventions are successful and can help researchers identify openings/barriers to uptake of CSA technologies and practices. 

After the interviews, I jumped on the back of the village chief’s bike, and made my way to the house of one of the Commune Party leaders- lovely gentleman by the name of Thui! He prepared a massive lunch for all of us including chicken, pork, beef, dog, veggies and rice 🍛; and of course he was so thoughtful and made loads of vegetarian food for me too. I then sang a few tunes in one of many obligatory karaoke sessions that take place in Vietnam! I showcased my rendition of Adele’s “someone like you” and Celine Dions “my heart will go on”. Although I don’t think they were impressed with my vocals, I gave it a bash anyway! 

From here we made our way back to the farmers workshop where we showcased 11 CSA options to farmers in a three hour session. We rounded up the session and I said my goodbyes to the farmers, leader and extension officer. It was very difficult to say goodbye but I hope to return one day!