CR: On the way to the lookout we stumbled across morning Alms giving. This is a controversial practice. It is an old tradition designed to feed the monks while also increasing the amount of good deeds achieved by the civilian donating. These good deeds accrue over a lifetime like points. Now it is a very public tourist experience. There are so many Chinese travellers here. They travel in these huge groups that are so large they need an ear piece to hear their tour guide. It’s impactful and destructive travel. At all the tourist attractions you cannot hear any Laotian, just loud Chinese. They wouldn’t even be putting much money into the local economy as they’d be staying and eating at Chinese run venues.CR: We walk up the top of a hill in town to see the sunrise. It’s pretty hazy thanks to burning season so the views aren’t as stunning as I’d hoped. Declan is grouchy because he has to wake up early.CR: On the way home we pass through the morning markets. These honeycomb like structures are filled with grubs. Sections are broken off, wrapped in banana leaf and then grilled. Next to her was just a whole deer. The meet was portioned into a plastic bag and the head and hooves sat next to it. Unfortunately breakfast is included in our room rate, otherwise we’d be feasting…CR: We had worked up an appetite after so many steps up to the look out. DW: After two weeks we are reverting back to Western style coffees in the morning.DW: Today’s activity is the Royal Museum which is basically the old Royal Palace as it was from before the royal family was disposed of in the mid 1970s. Pictured is the Royal Gas Station in the foreground. The palace reflects Lao’s lack of wealth and is basically just a large home with one fun room full of murals. The most ornate items inside the palace are gifts to the Lao royal family from other countries. CR: I was disappointed at this museum. There was no explanation about the duties of the royals, why they were ousted, or what their legacy is. There’s no information on anything really. It’s one of three in town activities so everyone just ends up here regardless.CR: After the national museum we had lunch at a French bakery. French influence is unobservable anywhere but the city. In the old town, which is where the tourists stay, it is notable that all the restaurants with English or French names are full, and the ones with Laotian names are empty. DW: This bakery is also filled with incredibly loud Chinese tourists. Caitlin and I discuss this after.CR: Declan has begun pilfering my book reserves. DW: Let the record show I have perfectly sized my books for this trip (I still have half of one left – it was too heavy for the day trip, hence being lent a book) and have read more than Cait. CR: DW did any of the books you selected for the trip get a Recommend Yes? My understanding is this is the first…CR: 5-7pm we attend a drop-in English conversational space for students. It’s a program to help Laotian students, many of whom have come from the hilltribes where they don’t even speak Laotian, gain confidence in English. We learn a lot from the kids as it’s meant to be conversational rather than a lesson. One of the students I talk to who is from a village two hours out of town works at a hotel after school and is given accommodation at the hotel. Afterwards the man leading the session takes some of us and some students for a dinner (he pays for the students, we pay for ourselves) by the Mekong. DW: The students have very different levels of English. Those who have grown up closer to cities are much more confident and have a better grasp. The two Hmong hill people I spoke to were on scholarships to Luang Prabang from their village. It was unclear how these are funded (generally not by the government). Everyone was curious about scholarships to study in Australia, but I had no useful information unfortunately. CR: The regular volunteers were as whacky as you’d imagine. One moved semi permanently to Laos after his wife died. One was scammed out of an apartment in Luang Prabang so lived on a boat on the Mekong. Another was going on a date with a local that night and was advised to lock away his credit card – “they look at foreigners and see ATM”.
The English conversational experience looks very interesting. The two young guys talking to Declan look super engaged. I’m sure that experience, one on one, will be a go-to happy long term memory of the holiday.
Nice work people.
+1 re conversation club. What a great thing to do.
As much as I love a market that would certainly have been confronting. I don’t like honeycomb usually so that just cemented for me!
Did you rate the bakery and more importantly how was the coffee??
Not having travelled in that region at all are there anything or traits you think are particularly Laotian as opposed to say Thai or Chinese?
That is the end of my quiz 😎
Mum: the coffee has been really good. And the bakery was good! I felt guilty for not having traditional food but it was nice to have some bread :O
It’s a good question and I think Laotians are definitely the quietest. They are the most conservative culture. It’s very common for women to wear traditional skirts below the knee, even in the city. And nearly all of the people we have met have not travelled outside of Laos.
We are super privileged to be able to buy our meat knowing that it has been kept in conditions that won’t spoil the food and make us sick. Seeing uncooked meat sitting out in the open on a hot footpath is challenging.
The brown liquid drink next to the honeycomb also seemed like an adventure into the unknown.
The drop in chat story is uplifting. However there does appear to be a book with Anne frank on the cover next to books for children.
Cait, did you enjoy this interaction.
Dad: If I lived in South East Asia as an expat I would make a new blog. It would be based on trying all the foods systematically at the markets. It would be a good way to learn the language too as you’d have to ask what they are.
Drop in chat was good. I liked it. It seemed like a worthwhile program that students were willing to participate in. The students know that learning English will earn more money and give them at least the chance to study overseas. There is also the added incentive that they often get bought dinner or lunch afterwards by the volunteers. It’s common that they don’t have breakfast or just have fruit for breakfast so I am sure that’s a big draw too.
However it is not all wholesome, as you picked up with the Anne Frank text. I overhear an American use the conversation time to talk about a Laotian girl that “I support, but she’s not my girlfriend. Not that I don’t want her to be.” This does not sound appropriate to talk to a teenager about..
If you ever started a new blog called eating my way through the meat markets of Asia you would have to start a companion blog called my adventures visiting random medical clinics and hospitals of Asia .
The level of obnoxious inappropriate behaviour exhibited by some people never ceases to disappoint me.
The English conversational experience looks very interesting. The two young guys talking to Declan look super engaged. I’m sure that experience, one on one, will be a go-to happy long term memory of the holiday.
Nice work people.
+1 re conversation club. What a great thing to do.
As much as I love a market that would certainly have been confronting. I don’t like honeycomb usually so that just cemented for me!
Did you rate the bakery and more importantly how was the coffee??
Not having travelled in that region at all are there anything or traits you think are particularly Laotian as opposed to say Thai or Chinese?
That is the end of my quiz 😎
Mum: the coffee has been really good. And the bakery was good! I felt guilty for not having traditional food but it was nice to have some bread :O
It’s a good question and I think Laotians are definitely the quietest. They are the most conservative culture. It’s very common for women to wear traditional skirts below the knee, even in the city. And nearly all of the people we have met have not travelled outside of Laos.
We are super privileged to be able to buy our meat knowing that it has been kept in conditions that won’t spoil the food and make us sick. Seeing uncooked meat sitting out in the open on a hot footpath is challenging.
The brown liquid drink next to the honeycomb also seemed like an adventure into the unknown.
The drop in chat story is uplifting. However there does appear to be a book with Anne frank on the cover next to books for children.
Cait, did you enjoy this interaction.
Dad: If I lived in South East Asia as an expat I would make a new blog. It would be based on trying all the foods systematically at the markets. It would be a good way to learn the language too as you’d have to ask what they are.
Drop in chat was good. I liked it. It seemed like a worthwhile program that students were willing to participate in. The students know that learning English will earn more money and give them at least the chance to study overseas. There is also the added incentive that they often get bought dinner or lunch afterwards by the volunteers. It’s common that they don’t have breakfast or just have fruit for breakfast so I am sure that’s a big draw too.
However it is not all wholesome, as you picked up with the Anne Frank text. I overhear an American use the conversation time to talk about a Laotian girl that “I support, but she’s not my girlfriend. Not that I don’t want her to be.” This does not sound appropriate to talk to a teenager about..
If you ever started a new blog called eating my way through the meat markets of Asia you would have to start a companion blog called my adventures visiting random medical clinics and hospitals of Asia .
The level of obnoxious inappropriate behaviour exhibited by some people never ceases to disappoint me.