The Nan River has its source in the mountains of Nan Province near the Laotian border. It bisects the city of Phitsanulok where I live, running between slippery banks and carrying clays that make it look like chocolate milk. One hundred and twenty kilometers south of here, in Nakhon Sawan, it joins the silver-clear sandy Ping River. They run together, a two-colored river, until their waters blend to form the Mae Nam Chao Phraya
River in the Thai language is mae nam. It literally means mother water
The wooden house on the riverbank is raised upon posts. When I first moved into this old house, I noticed that one post had some Sanskrit written with white pigment on it and was hung at the top with some cobweb encrusted colored cloth. Kitichai, the student who was helping me, explained that this was the first post to be set in the construction of the home, and it is the abode of the house spirit. He arranged all of my most precious objects in that corner of the house, hanging flower garlands and lighting incense and candles to show proper respect and ensure that the spirit would not behave maliciously. It seems to have worked.