The bodies had been annointed and set up at the edge of the river. All of them were completely exposed. They also had gold balls in their mouths, and were decorated with ribbons and a lot of red dye. They actually looked like they were painted with blood, but it really was just dye.

Every day, about 40 to 50 people were cremated at this river. So there was a rather distinctive smell in the air. In fact, when I closed my eyes, I could have sworn I was back in the jungle. You don’t forget that smell.

The people that attended those cremations were typically family members of the departed. Since these were Hindu cremations, they were accompanied by a series of chants as the family gathered around.

I found it very interesting that they allowed me to be right there with the family. No one seemed to mind that I had the camera and took pictures. For some photos, I was just three feet away from the departed.

Among the bodies was a young woman who looked like she was probably just in her 30s. Her family was around her and you could clearly see her face, which is why I could tell how old she was.

The families there tend to be very close, but they don’t have much. If people do have a business at all, it mostly amounts to just having a few things that they sell out of very small shops.

The whole educational process there is based on the same scam that we have in the US. It teaches people that the government is there for everything and will help you, so there’s very little entrepreneurial spirit and activity.

I actually talked with a couple of people about opening a distribution store. And I found that in Thailand it’s even more complicated for foreigners to set up businesses than it is for the people who live there. They have very high tax rates and tariffs.

I need to spend some time figuring out how to get around that. In Thailand at least, certain kinds of businesses can get exemptions from a lot of the tariffs and taxes, particularly businesses that are considered very necessary.

And the same thing applies to Nepal. From what I’ve seen during my travels, the whole concept of free enterprise and laissez faire is really being beaten up there.

So one of the things that I thought that I could do is help people with their own businesses, rather than just sit there and get on a soapbox. You’re not gonna change people’s lives by talking to them in a condescending manner.

But you can make a difference if you can actually open up a business and help people acquire wealth, and more directly, get them to think about what they want to do with their lives.