Standing in the knee-deep brook that branches out from the Wang River, Kallaya Yamdeelert shovelled wet sand into a wooden pan that looked like an upside-down Vietnamese hat. Submerged slightly below the surface, the pan was shaken left and right while Kallaya swept the sand away layer by layer.
"Gold is heavy, so it naturally works its way down to the bottom of the pan," she said while attempting to get rid of the unwanted mud, rocks and sand. Her wooden pan – known among locals as a wan – was almost empty, so her eager eyes were sweeping over it for something that glittered.