Spreading Indigo Blue in Northern Thailand

In Northern Thailand, you may find indigo blue cotton fabric, as shirts worn by local people, handicrafts sold at shops, along the streets of towns like Chiang Mai, Phrae and Nan. Some of them are produced by companies and factories, others are by families and individuals who take part in some part of the production…

Kai or カイ

フィジーでは川で取れるアサリのような貝を食べます。そのままゆでたり、カレーにしたり、ココナツミルクで煮たり。市場では大きさによって一山４から１０フィジードルで売られています。フィジー語で「カイ」といいます、日本語の「貝」と関係あるのかどうかはわかりません。 People in Fiji eat freshwater mussels. They like boiled ones, cooked in curry or coconut milk. It is sold at local markets, at F$4-7 a heap, depending on the size. It is called kai in Fijian. カイは村の女性が川に潜って集めます、ということは聞いていましたが、実際どうやってとるのか、ナドカイカ村の女性を訪ねました。海から約３０キロ上流のレワ川沿いにあるナドカイカ村では、女性たちがボートやいかだで川に出ます。小さいころからおばあさん、お母さんに習って始めるので、みなベテランです。結婚を機に夫の村で始める女性もいます。ほぼ女性のみがカイ漁に従事するそうです。 I learned women glean kai in the river, but was not sure exactly how. I visited Nacokaika…

Expo and masi

Artisan handicrafts are often the expertise of women in many societies (Traditional ones are rather ‘men’s area’ in Japanese culture though). The Government of Fiji has been promoting handicrafts making to generate more income for women as part of livelihoods. National Women’s Expo is the culmination of the support given to those artisans by the…