Working in a rice field

January 8, 2008

Rice fields have fascinated me ever since my first trip to Asia when I was in high school. It amazes me how they dominate the landscape.

Now I get to actually work in a rice field. Working in a rice field is not an easy task. When you step into the field, you sink down ~6 inches into unconsolidated soil (aka, muck). If your boots are not securely attached to your feet, then you leave them behind when you try to walk. The difficulty of walking is increased by the fact that you should not step directly on the rice plants, but need to step between them. This requirement has caused me to lose my balance and fall face first into the field.

Most of my work involves burying sensors and water samplers in the field. The difficulty of digging and backfilling holes for these research instruments cannot be underestimated. The hole immediately fills with water, and if you do not mark its location, you can easily lose track of where it is. However, this is not as bad as dropping a tool, like a screwdriver or a wrench, into the rice field. When this happens, the tool is likely never seen again. My rice field has eaten a wrench or two. It goes without saying that all of the equipment and myself gets covered in mud.

Even though I get covered in mud almost everyday, the villagers at the field site still seem surprised at how dirty I get. They politely point out all of the mud spots that I would not be able to see on myself. I usually don’t mind being mud-covered. But it can be a bit embarrassing when, at the end of the day, I have to stop by BUET (Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology). I know the students and professors stare at me in wonder: the foreign girl covered in mud.