What have I learnt this week?

What a great week it has been. 

A friend who I have worked and sung with and her delightful family visited for 5 days. 

A young man who I have known almost since I arrived became a monk this week. A very gentle soul, it is lovely to see him so happy.  I wish him every success in this chosen path.   In true Lao style, his teachers missed the event.  We believed the ordination was to happen in the afternoon, but no, it happened at 9.30 that morning.

Until Laos, I had not taught English to absolute beginners.  In the last week or so, I have heard my first student read words that he has sounded out on his own.  I think I was more excited than him.

Something that made me think was having an English conversation with two educated very intelligent young Lao men.  We got onto talking about special things we remembered from our school days.  The most significant thing I recall is the day the first man, Neil Armstrong, walked on the moon. I clearly remember being sent home from school to watch it.  I’m not sure if I was more excited by having most of the day off school or the first man walking on the moon.  I spoke of remembering where you were when significant world events happened.  For example, I know where I was when President Kennedy was shot.  (This is really ageing me.  I didn’t understand what had happened but I knew by my parents response that something “big” had happened.)  I remember where I was when I heard of the deaths of Elvis, John Lennon, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morison and Janis Joplin.  Also the Chernobyl nuclear disaster and the fall of the Berlin wall. And who could forget where they were when they heard that planes had crashed into the Twin Towers in New York. 

And this is what got me thinking.  The young men I was talking with had been alive and well and living in Laos when 2 planes flew into the World Trade Centre in New York and neither of them knew anything about it, back then or now.  I found it hard to believe that anyone could have got through the almost 15 years since this happened and not seen repeated footage of those planes crashing into the World Trade Centre.  Sky scrapers and New York are worlds away from Laos.  It really brought home to me how in the west we believe our world is the centre of the universe. 

This week, I was also looking for possible dialogues related to hotels, for my students to practise.  Here’s one that you wont hear in Australia when dealing with customer complaints.  “I’m sorry, I want to change my room, the Chickens are too noisy.”    ……………. Only in Laos.

Ros and Jenny come to Luang Prabang

One day in May. Ros and Jenny arrived from a pretty chilly Central Victoria.  

I felt for them because the weather must have been such an unpleasant shock.  

SO HOT and humid.

What joy to have them here for 2 weeks.

Temple cats at Wat Aham these have got to be parent and child haven't they?

Jenny enjoying My Dream pool

Ros with Rambutan earings

And didn't we just love Ock Pop Tok?

Below is  a Hmong lady making batik.

Hard life on the deck at Ock Pop Tok

We watched "The Dressmaker" at Ock Pop Tok one evening.  

How unreal to be watching this film set in a dry, desolate Australian 

countryside when here we are by the Mekong in Laos

Sunset at Ock Pop Tok

And where else would lovely young people who you have never met before

ask you to stand in the middle of the main road and have your photo taken with them?

No visit to LPB is complete without a visit to Wat Xiengthong

khung si Waterfall

What a gorgeous thing to do -when its hot in Luang Prabang, a half hour tuk tuk ride can take you out to Khung Si waterfall.  In the shade of those stunning  trees, it is so much cooler.  And you can swim.....

                           

Ros and Jenny

This is where we swam

And there is always the Bear rescue centre.  A home for Asiatic Black bears.

Boat Racing ... the fair.

Seems like the whole town together with everyone in the Province and beyond has made it to Cha Fa Ngum Road.  It's good, this is a festival for Lao people, not for us falang. 

The main stalls are food, some local handicrafts and clothes and toys (which mostly come from China).

Really a bit crowded for me.

What child wouldn't want one of these.

This lady is selling natural medicines

And this is in contrast to any natural medicine

Dee Light

No matter who we are, we want to change ourselves.  

In Australia I used to worry about being so "lily white".  

Here people like my pale skin and there are all kinds of products to lighten your skin.

Dee Light.  "If you feel your skin is too dark, use Dee Light to whiten it."

Offerings for the temple

Bowls used for offerings for monks

Sinhs and sash's

Crap Chineese toys

The Boat Racing Festival ...... On the day

The day of the Boat Racing Festival has finally arrived.

The whole of Luang Prabang seems to be out and about.  People have come in from the countryside and there is a real sense in town that somethings happening.
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This is the Wat Aham team

This is a buddhist festival so the boys come to the temple for a blessing from a monk

The monk dips the flowers he is holding into the liquid and waves it over each member of team.

It's serious, but good fun is had by all.

The monks and novices don't usually go to the festival.

The team member in front is holding the mast head of the boat.

And of course, no sporting event would be complete 

without  a team photo.

In front of Wat Aham.

It's 8am on the Nam Khan river.

One team is out having a last minute practise.

There's no way I want his job.

            Most of these photos are from the 2015 festival

The Calwell-Huzzeys descend on Luang Prabang.

On July 10th the Calwell-Huzzeys arrived in Luang Prabang for 5 days.  You couldn't miss them - there's six of them.  And compared to Lao people, they are TALL..  Obviously Phillipa and Jeff have fed those kids too well.  

They've climbed Mt Phousi, walked over the bamboo bridge and visited numerous temples.  Finn and Oliver have ridden bikes, been to a Lao gym and bought soccer balls.  Beer Lao has been sampled.  Some have been to the 7.30am yoga sessions at Utopia and were also up at 5.30 to see the monks and novices collecting alms.  I think there was also a 2am session to watch the soccer final of the European Cup.

Philippa and Ruby have visited My Library and spoken English with young Lao people.  And Jeff is the generous man who hands over his wallet to all and sundry and is the butt of many jokes.

Joel has spent a considerable amount of time trawling for second hand books and spent twice as long at Utopia reading them.

Having eaten their way around town, they could tell you where the best Laap is to be found, be it vegetarian or beef.. (A traditional Luang Prabang dish).   In fact, food and the finding of it seems to be a significant part of most days. 

Here we are eating again - At Banpa Lao Cousin with Marg Froude.

From the left, Finn, Joel, Phllipa, Marg, me, Jeff, Ruby and Oliver.

Boat ride on the Mekong. 

The boat captain

Finn and Jeff

Ruby

Look at that sky

Just time for a quick meal before they head off for the airport.

                   

Good bargaining Jeff - 40,000 kip tuk tuk ride to the airport

And so the Huzzey's say farewell to Luang Prabang