Busting at the seams

Well my friends, it seems this sleepy little town of Sangkhla has transformed overnight. The quiet streets and mid-afternoon slow-down siesta that come during each daily heatwave are no longer as this town edges closer and closer to it's carrying capacity.

Restaurants are busting with people, the normally empty guesthouses are yelping for more fans and mattresses, the food vendors are buying double and triple their normal daily stock, and after leaving the office to purchase ice cream I was slapped by the surprise of five nuns sitting on mats on the office floor, sipping coke and shmoozing with my lovely students. Indeed they will be staying with us at the office for the next few days. And all this for one man: Uttama.

It's fascinating to see the response to the influx of visitors to Sangkhlaburi. The resourceful and flexible nature of those living here is reiterated to me as they clambor to open the impromptu business to satisfy the masses and endure the influx of news teams and television reporters with unending patience.

We even had a place on the Prime Minister's agenda yesterday.

To fame in a time of grief-

Laura