Stamped and Dipped

After five missed calls this morning from Viengmany, I finally called her back and agreed to a noon pick up for our Thailand adventure.

She showed up and we drove to the Friendship Bridge somehow avoiding all of the traffic from boat racing preparations. Her goal was shopping for the household essentials, I was just along for the ride.  Most people use the bridge to renew their visas (Kiki etc.), but I lucked out and have a government issued multiple entry visa, so entering/exiting the country is free and relatively easy. 

The friendship bridge is about 20 minutes outside the city and crosses into Nong Khai, Thailand.  We parked the car, exchanged some money and got in line to exit Laos.  On the other side, we bought a bus ticket, paid a departure fee and boarded the bus to Thailand.  Five minutes later, we got off, passed through another set of lines with a separate set of paperwork and were shuttled into a doisan for the shopping center.  

We walked into the mall and it was mobbed.  The first thing I saw was a Starbucks.  See, it's just like home over here!  Making our way through the crowd we made our way to Tesco, the Walmart of Thailand.  And it literally had everything! It was crazy!!!!

I loaded up on some daily essentials but was so overwhelmed by the experience (and dreading carrying anything back on the bus) to buy much.  The highlight of the trip came when I saw a DAIRY QUEEN.  Yes, Mom, if you hadn't decided to come visit yet, you now have no excuse.  I must say, the dipped cone hit the spot (no Buster Bars, sorry).

Viengmany bought so much that we had to find help to load it back into a doisan and then onto the bus to the border.  Somewhere between Thai border patrol and getting back on the bus to get across the bridge I lost my bus ticket, but clearly I look flustered and after giving the guy the lower lip, he let me get on the bus.  

We made it across and waited in a long line of Lao people to get back into Laos.  Surprisingly I had no problems with my visas and I can safely say I survived by first border crossing!

Viengmany drove me back into the city and dropped me at home.  Kiki and Brad might come over later for dinner, but since it's a work night, we won't be out late.  Such responsible adults...

Vientiane on Steroids

After a long morning on the road from Vang Vieng, it was nice to get home.  I unpacked the myriad of fruits and vegetables we had picked up from roadside vendors and called Patty the cat lady who was planning on driving me to Kiki's to pick up Sok Dee.  

We met up at Monument Books, the landmark ex-pat bookstore downtown and drove to Km 4, making a quick stop at the vet to visit a dog who had been hit by a motor bike.  Not only was the dog having trouble walking, but it had rope burns around it's neck, suggesting it had been dragged, probably to the Vietnamese dog market.  He was a lucky guy!

Brad greeted us at the gate and I took Sok and all of her things back to the car.  We were running late and I had told Fulvia, the Italian couchsurfer I was hosting that I would meet her at the fountain at 5.  I had Patty drop me off there and greeted Fulvia cat in tow.  Luckily she loved Sok and the last two days were full of cat snuggling and playing.

We walked back the the apartment and I let Fulvia unpack her things.  She just finished her masters in Anthropology and is now on a 5 month trip around Asia.  While she began in South East Asia, she plans on hitting India, Iran and finally making the journey back to Trieste, Italy. It was great to hear about her travels and give her my little knowledge about Laos.

When Kiki got out of work at 6, we headed to the Vientiane Times to pick her up for dinner on the town.  Since I left the city, the main road in Vientiane has been shut down for a huge market and carnival that is supposed to continue until after Boat Racing festival on the 31st.  Now the city is congested (both with people and traffic) and loud. Certainly not the Vientiane I'm used to.

We met up with Kiki and walked to the Backpacker's Hostel, where two acquaintances of hers were spending the night.  They all downed a BBL and we left to join the chaos.  Kiki had already decided it was an Aashifa night, and since the wait staff already knows us there, and is aware of the vegan limitations, its always a pleasant experience.  The five of us split a couple veg dishes and it was delicious.

Deciding not to venture to another bar, Fulvia and I split from the group and ventured into the crowd.  The atmosphere is like night market on steroids, or the Big E Asia Style (and crammed on to one main street).  There are vendors selling any "Made in China" thing you could imagine, carnival rides, food stalls and more people than you could count.  There were also two music festivals happening next to each other and it quickly became a competition for sound.

We wandered around for a little while, then got overwhelmed, picked up cat food, and headed home.  Having not had a non-hostel shower in a long time, Fulvia enjoyed the accommodations of home, and of course, Sok Dee.  We called it an early night and decided to make plans the next morning.

After catching up on some facebook and skyping, we decided to go to COPE and grab brunch together before I had to head to my final boat racing practice.  COPE is an organization based in Vientiane that provides medical and psychological support to UXO victims and people with other disabilities.  The visitor center was a must-see and gave me some ideas about how to make our own center (the QLA) more user friendly.  Kiki met us there and we all biked over to Kung's for brunch.  

Kung's is famous for the sticky rice mango pancake so I told Fulvia she had to try it.  Kiki took the opportunity to finally try the Phat Lao, which is a lot like Pad Thai but without the egg (vegan success!)  While the service isn't the fastest, the food always hits the spot and since we didn't have to be anywhere until 1:45, there was plenty of time.

Fulvia and I at Kung's eating oasis

From Kung's, we biked the three blocks to Mark and Nancy's apartment (my old stomping grounds) and waited for Terry who was picking us up for practice.  On time as usual, we loaded up and drove to the village.  We were over an hour early and Kiki and I decided it was time to try the infamous juice bags the corner shop sold.  It was brutally hot and both of us were dreading being on the water, but as it was the last day we sucked it up.  

Ruth and the rest of the crew trickled in and we all received our race day t-shirts and hats.  Amazingly she was able to pull everything together and although we don't look too pretty in the boat, we'll all be matching on Tuesday!

It was our first day in the race boat and the slim wooden boat was a lot easier to move than the clunky metal one we had been practicing in.  Although it was leaking from all the seams, we rowed along and finally got into a pattern.  If all the village women actually show up for the race, it should be great!

Katie, Kiki and I sporting the new team t-shirts in front of our team banner!

Practice ended around 6 and we drove back to Mark's, where Fulvia was meeting us for dinner.  Brad had offered to cook the night before and Kiki had insisted we come over.  We biked the 15 minutes to their place and found Brad exhausted from a long day of teaching (he teaches english on the weekends). While he had gone to the market and picked up everything for dinner, the message about actually cooking hadn't gotten through so the ladies picked up the cutting boards, turned on the stove and in 30 minutes we had a great meal of glass noodles and veggie stir fry.  We have all decided that each person will host dinner once a week as its fun to cook and we need some time away from our go-to restaurants.

We ended up on their porch, drinking Spy wine and talking.  Thon, the bar owner next door, invited us over for a drink and by 11, Fulvia and I hopped on our bikes to head back into town.  Because ASEM is around the corner, November 5-7, falang curfew is becoming more enforced and I didn't want any trouble getting home. We took our time and finally, after avoiding swerving motorbikes and random road closures, made it home.  

I am happy to report that Sok Dee made it through her first day at home with no accidents and has been sleeping through the night.  Much better behaved with mom than with Aunt Kiki!

Fulvia left this morning for Vang Vieng and promised to keep in touch.  It was a great couch surfing experience for both of us and I was happy to show someone around what is quickly becoming home.

I'm off to Thailand this afternoon for some shopping with Viengmany, who is in Vientiane for the festival.  It should be interesting to see what its like as I've been told you can get anything there. There's even an english movie theater! Like anything with Viengmany, it is sure to be an adventure so stay tuned and I'l tell you all about it!

Peace, Love, Laos!

Mekong sunset after a long afternoon on the river. 

18 Hours in LP

Luang Prabang is gorgeous and it's obvious why it's the number one tourist destination in Laos.  Set on the Mekong River, there are opportunities for amazing sunsets and picturesque temples.

Our morning was spent visiting a wat and temple where World Education manages grant money to sustain restoration to the art and buildings.  We didn't stay long, but it was interesting to walk around the temple and meet the monks that have been taught wood carving and other skills through the grant.  

Although I would have wanted to stay longer, I wanted to get back to Vientiane for the weekend and know that I'll be back up in LP another time.  Certainly when Mom and Dad come to visit!

Bounsong and I on the temple grounds in Luang Prabang. 

Laughing Kids and Metal Balls

Up and out early for our drive to Luang Prabang.  

Although the road is serpentine, the views make up for any feelings of motion sickness.  The large limestone outcroppings look like they belong on another planet and driving among the clouds is beautiful.

We pulled into LP around 1 and found a pho restaurant for lunch.  We ate quickly and went to check into our guesthouse to change into presentable clothing before going to the orphanage school.  We were visiting to witness the distribution of new school uniforms and toiletries, a quarterly event sponsored by a World Ed donor.  After touring the school, the 540 students were called one at a time to receive their package of new supplies.  I was given the task of handing them to the thankful students, who smiled and either muttered khop chai or thank you to me while bowing.  When I switched with Bounsong, I headed outside to try and talk with some of the kids.  Although they all learn english, they were very shy and only a couple wanted to say hello.  They were all intrigued when I introduced myself as Phetmany though.

Nothing more refreshing than fresh coconut (when Diet Coke isn't an option)

The school director brought us all fresh coconuts as the distribution room was getting very hot and congested.  We ended up leaving around 4:30 in order to change and return for the dinner celebration they had planned for us.

Bounsong took me on a quick driving tour of Luang Prabang, which is the #1 tourist destination in Laos, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the old capital.  Nestled on the banks of the Mekong and Kham rivers, the scenery is spectacular and the entire waterfront is lined with gorgeous guesthouses and restaurants.  

We drove back to the school for dinner and were invited to play a ball game with them.  The point of the game is to throw your heavy metal ball closest to the small ball and knock out your opponents ball in the process.  Its really hard and there are certain ways you have to hold your hand, release the ball and position your body.  Basically I was a total failure but it provided a couple good laughs.  

I think I had the positioning right?

Dinner consisted of the normal staples of sticky rice, boiled chicken, fish soup and morning glory.  And of course, BeerLao.  I nibbled away, but am still dead set on abstaining from sticky rice for a couple days.  Before the drinking got too competitive, we excused ourselves and I was dropped off at the night market to wander around.  Luang Prabang was the original night market but now Vientiane has one daily and its very similar.  The only difference is the number of tourists.  They seem to swarm to the fresh fruit shakes, punjabi pants and pad thai buffets.

I explored the market for a bit before heading back to the guest house to settle in and hopefully get to bed early.  Tor and I are roommates tonight, so I'm trying to follow the plot of this crazy Thai movie we're watching.  Thaillywood certainly has a twisted sense of morbid humor!

Riverside Party Town

Having decided not to pack on Monday night, I woke up early to throw some stuff into a bag and head to the office.  When I arrived I was told we weren't leaving until 11, so I got on the computer and served as Mark's witness for his presidential ballot.  

By the time 11:40 rolled around, we packed up the car and went to pick up Bounsong's friend Phet, who was joining us on our trip.  Phet works at UNICEF and had extra vacation time to take before November, so a couple days on the road was just what she was looking for.  We stopped for lunch before starting the journey to Vang Vieng, the halfway point to Luang Prabang and our pit stop for the night.  

The view: Vang Vieng's main attraction

The ride to Vang Vieng was only three hours and we arrived just in time to catch a beautiful sunset.  The city is known for its amazing scenery and flourishing backpacker culture.  While everyone else headed back to the guest house for dinner, I decided to explore the city and picked  a restaurant called "the other side."

The other side jets out over the river and is composed of cushion lined open air tatami areas.  Noticing that I was alone, a waiter came over to talk to me and was impressed by my very rough Lao.  When he left, four guys at the "booth" next door invited me to come join them and thats when my night with Aaron, Dylan, Matt and Danny began.

Having met at UCLA and worked at the same summer camp, these best friends were thoroughly enjoying their first trip to South East Asia.  We ended up hijacking the stereo system and dancing to all the camp favorites.  Camp people never change!

Buckets of mysterious drinks were brought to our table and we finally left after the place had closed.  Being gentlemen, I was walked home to prepare for the 5 hour drive to Luang Prabang in the morning.  

Between the laid back atmosphere and the opportunities to rock climb, kayak and tube, Vang Vieng will certainly be seeing my face again!

Oreo High

Riding my new wheels into work was a mix of sweaty disaster and chaotic traffic jams.  As I'm used to walking, I have only realized that some streets are one-way, a terrifying realization on a bike.  

I made it into work and met with Mark to debrief everything XK.  We talked for a while before I retreated to my office to edit some reports and check emails.  The office was having a big lunch at noon and when I hadn't shown up by 12:02, my phone started ringing.  When I got downstairs everyone was eating laap and sticky rice.  I politiely took a couple bites, but because I've overdone it on sticky rice in XK, I knew I would have to lunch elsewhere.  The crowd died down and I biked into town to meet Kiki for grilled corn and sweet potato.  

After enjoying a somewhat healthy meal, I headed back to the office and again got a myriad of documents to read through before they were sent off.  I finally left the office at 5 and headed home.  Kiki and I had decided to make oreo pie and I crushed up oreos to make a crust.  I stuck it in the freezer and waited for her to come over.  

Having gotten distracted by happy hour with Brad and gang, I ended up making the pie myself, filling it with peanut butter chocolate. and meeting them at Lao Kitchen.  Although I usually love LK, I couldn't even fathom ordering off the menu.  Once Kiki was done, we walked so I could find some fresh grilled chicken and bubble tea.

We went back to my place and waited for Brad and his friends to come over after karaoke.  Although we had originally planned to eat the pie with them, we sliced up some bananas and dug it.  It was absolutely outrageous and we outdid and overdid ourselves.  The group finally showed up, beers in hand, and we convinced them to join our oreo high.  

Lao cooking at its finest. 

As I was leaving on Tuesday morning for a business trip in Luang Prabang, this was a sweet farewell to Brad and Teagan, who are continuing to bigger and better Lao tourist destinations on Thursday.

Kitten Krazy

It was quite the sabaidee Sunday as I met Kiki for fruit at Sabaidee cafe then headed over to try the infamous mango pancake at Sabaidee restaurant where Brad and clan were dining. 

The pancake was great and certainly hit the spot, but it was also huge and impossible to finish.  Definitely for sharing next time!  Having stayed out late the night before, the others were in no rush to do any activities and keen on finding a nice bar to start the BBL festivities.  I walked around with them for a bit but passed on the drinking venture and headed home.  

This is when everything got a little crazy.  

Well, not too crazy, but after scoping around facebook and finding a Lao animal rescue page, I decided that I needed to adopt a cat.  Kate actually is part of the organization and mentioned that there was a kitten in need of a home.  End of story.  Kiki and I needed to foster kittens.  I called Patty (autocorrect Party) who was housing the kittens post desexing on Saturday and she offered to pick us up at 5 to see them. 

When Kiki got out of work at 4, I dragged her to the market with me to buy a new bike (RIP Clunker) as renting everyday wasn't a great option.  I was able to get the bike, barter for a very legit bike lock and load the bike into the tuk tuk so we could both make it back into town to meet the Party.

She picked us up outside of Joma and drove us to her place which was swarming with cats.  I immediately recognized the little one as the kitten who we had seen at a house Kiki had visited as a potential renter.  The kitten had been thrown over a wat wall and is tiny.  We decided we needed her and two of her friends.  Because we are fostering them, Patty reassured us that if anything happens, she will gladly take them back.

We loaded them back into the car and took them to Kiki and Brad's place to surprise him.  The kittens adapted so well to their new environment and we were fascinated with them for hours.  

Sok Dee, the newest addition to my Lao Family. 

Kiki and I were designated pizza picker uppers and we headed by bike to soul kitchen for take away.  Although we struggled to bungee cord the boxes to my bike, I was able to hold them steady with one hand and prepared to brake with the other.  We need to find a delivery place! 

After some help, we successfully strapped pizza to the handle bars!

The cats were so entertaining but we pulled ourselves away to enjoy Spy wine at the bar next door.  Kiki and Brad have become best friends with the bartender and I was able to practice my Lao.  Another one of their Lao friends showed up and all of us ended up talking forever.  When we finally went back to their place, Brad was determined to retrieve the coconuts from the top of their tree and open them up.  Luckily the Lao friend was an experienced climber and even in the dark had no problem scaling the trunk.

Cracking them open with a butchers knife the size of my head, we enjoyed fresh coconut water and meat.  As it was now getting late and we didn't want to be out past curfew (the midnight rule is now being enforced with ASEM around the corner), I said my goodbyes and rode back into town.  

I'm actually looking forward to Monday back in Vientiane!

River Runners

Despite the long day on Friday and desperate need to sleep in on Saturday, it was not going to happen.  I was wide awake and ready to roll by 9 and my mission? Find a french press coffee maker.  

I went downstairs and stopped in at Noy's Fruit Shack, where Brad and his Aussie friends Brad and Teagan were enjoying breakfast.  I declined the offer to join them for fruit salad and rented a bike from Noy, leaving my license as collateral.  Little does she know it expires on Wednesday.

I biked across town to the tailor, who has had by sinh collection since before I left for XK.  Luckily the shop was open and I was able to try on all of the sinhs, only to determine that they needed to be taken in 5 inches.  I swear I'm eating, they just don't know how to fit "curvy."

Dissapointed that I couldn't take the sinhs home, I hopped back on the bike and headed to the Chinese Market to barter for a coffee maker.  I didn't find the maker per say, but what I got will make due.  I rushed home to try it out.

I spent the rest of the morning catching up on some reading and laundry before Terry, one of Nancy's friends, picked me up for Dragon Boat Racing practice.  Nancy had decided to kayak to the village, a distance of about 20 km.  She's amazing!  We picked up Kiki on the way and I caught Terry up on all my XK happenings.  We arrived at the village an hour early and despite the villagers attempts to get us to eat pho, enjoyed watching the men's team come in from practice and realizing that they were the reason we always had to practice in a half-sinking boat.  

Practice was hard and the direct sun on the water didn't help.  This time Kibu had us doing sets of 150+ sprint strokes which was more than we had ever done.  He still threatened "you stop, I kiss," but I was in the clear.

By the time practice was over, we were all dripping in Mekong water and exhausted.  Kiki and I got rides back into town and decided to meet up with Brad (x2) and Teagan after much needed showers. 

We all met up at Aashifa, our favorite Indian restaurant and Kiki and I split the usual vegan fare.  No surprise it tasted  even better after boating!  While the rest of the group headed to bowling, Kiki and I went towards the night market, which was more hopping than usual.  We realized that the crowd of people was gathered around a bumper car booth! We will have to give that a try before it moves on.  

On our way back home, we stopped and bought the outrageous Lao popcorn, which we quickly found out was not vegan.  We strolled home and eventually called it an early night.  With Kiki taking the Sunday shift at the paper, we had breakfast plans and both of us were dying for a good nights sleep.  

For Grandpa

Happy birthday to my #1 fan! I know that I can't be the easiest granddaughter, constantly jetting off to rural Africa or the mine fields of Laos, but I know you've always got my back.

Eat some Utz for me!

Love,
Carly

D-(eparture) Day

The 5 AM alarm went off and I was not getting out of bed.  By the time the snooze went off at 5:55, I officially had no other choice than to roll out, pack my bags and get ready for my 6:30 pick-up.  Having gotten the last possible seat on the sleeper bus to XK, I was weary about showing up just in time for the 7 AM bus, but luck was on my side and I was able to get a seat.  

Before loading the bus I tried to find a little shop at the bus terminal that sold hot coffee.  Unfortunately all they had was canned Nescafe, which is a sad excuse for coffee.  As I was figuring out what other drink to get, I met two German guys who were also on the bus with me.  They were impressed with my Lao skills, but knowing cafe hone? is certainly nothing to be proud of. Instead of going through Vang Vieng as I had originally planned, I decided to take the bus through Thathom, which was said to be four hours faster.  

Yeah right...

The bus left promptly at 7 and we rolled out of the station with half a bus load.  I soon realized that the bus was going to fill up because we stopped every twenty minutes to pick up more people and load their ridiculously heavy rice sacks onto the roof rack.  Soon the bus was full and all the jumper seats were occupied, can you say fire hazard?

Rock outcroppings provide for a very scenic landscape amidst rural rice fields. 

 Although the stops were many, I was able to catch some sleep during the morning portion of the trip.  Around 11:00, we arrived at the river crossing that I remembered from my drive in the other direction.  Because the bridge was still not complete (I think the people building the bridge are splitting the proceeds of the ferry boat guys), we had to join the long line of cars waiting to cross.  I decided to buy a grapefruit and for the next 45 minutes of waiting, managed to get myself very sticky with citrus juice.  It was hotter than normal and all the Lao women I was sitting with kept saying hone lai  (very hot), obviously.

With sweat dripping from every inch of my face, I loaded back on the bus when it was our turn to load the ferry.  We crossed with no difficulties, except that since I was on the bus and everyone else was outside, I kept hearing them ask "where is the farang?" Atleast they were watching out for me.

On the other side of the river, everyone loaded up and we started moving.  Fifteen minutes later we were again parked, but this time outside a pho restaurant for the inevitable bus stop lunch.  Not hungry and certainly not interested in another bowl of food, I declined the offer to eat with my new Lao friends and sat with them for a while before walking around and getting back on the bus.  Forty five minutes later, we were rolling again.  

After about an hour, we arrived in Pax Xan and I bid farewell to the German guys who were continuing their SEA backpacking trip southbound to Cambodia.  We continued to drive along, picking up and dropping off people along the way, each time the driver having to climb onto the roof to lower down, or carelessly drop, their bag.

At this point I estimated that we were 3 hours away, as Viengmany told me I should arrive around 5, making it a 10 hour trip.  All was on schedule until we heard a loud clunk and the bus pulled over.  The back axle had come unscrewed and we spent the next half hour on the side of the road waiting to get it in place. They finally fixed it and I was excited to get closer to home.

Bor Pen Nyang! The back axle was loose and no one seemed to mind.
Patience, Carly, patience. 

After almost everyone had already gotten off the bus, I arrived at the bus station.  It was now 7:10 and I was hungry and exhausted.  Having agreed to take a tuk-tuk into the the city, I haggled for a ride and was put onto a shared doisan with a group of four men.  They got dropped off first and by the time I reached home I could think of nothing but a hot shower and clean clothes.

I quickly threw my bags down and got ready, as Kiki and Brad were already waiting for me for dinner.  We met at Lao Kitchen, our favorite curry place, and enjoyed the usual, except that I have officially sworn off sticky rice for a couple days. Brad's friends are here to visit but were too jet lagged to come out, so I luckily got off the hook for a crazy night on the town.  

We finished our meal and walked around for a little, buying essential groceries to stock the fridge.  I'm very much looking forward to a lazy morning tomorrow, picking up my sinhs at the tailor and heading to rowing practice with Kiki.  

The race is a little more than a week away and we don't want to be kissed!

Big Cucumbers and Disco Balls

Village Day round two was off to a great start.  The drive to Pakhom was only an hour and despite the sharing the backseat again with Mr. Gov, the trip was manageable.  When we arrived around 9, we sat in a building on the school property and met with the village chief and the VHV and CHTs.  While the whole conservation was in Lao, Viengmany translated to me that a four year old child had died three days earlier because it had a diagnosed disease that the parents, who had 8 other children, had decided to ignore.  Thus began the long list of tragedies in Pakhom.

We began our GPS mapping walk at one end of the village at a house where the woman was divorcing her disabled husband for his inability to provide for his family.  Later down the road, we met an elderly man who had perfect vision, but whose eyelids would not stay open.  A few houses down, we were introduced to a 11-month old girl with club feet.  To top it all off, we talked with a woman whose husband recently committed suicide by drinking fertilizer.  Despite it all, the people seemed happy and lucky for us, many of them were already building toilets.  As we walked around, families came out to give us gifts of cucumbers, and by the time we left, there were 15 rolling around the back of the truck.

Mother with her 11 month old daughter who was born with club foot.

 We were invited into the village chief's house for lunch and in addition to cutting open some of the cucs, enjoyed Viengmany's prepared lunch of string beans and chicken.  Sufficiently eem lai, we loaded into the truck and headed to Phou San.

Just a slice of your average sized village cucumber. 

I think we all fell asleep on the 20 km drive and by the time we arrived, everyone was exhausted.  Unlike Wednesday, it was dry and hotter outside, and all of the walking was wearing us out.  We stopped at the CHT's house to wait for the village chief before setting off to GPS the points that we didn't get during the CLTS transect walk.  The village is actually huge and spread out, with over 125 houses, so we had a lot of ground to cover.  By 4:00 we had tracked most of the village and went back to the house to say our goodbyes.  At this point Lahthana asked if I was ready for the night, and I got very confused.  Apparently there were plans of many drinks and happy hours/night that I had yet to be clued in on.  When the CHT asked if we wanted to stay for dinner, we politely declined.

Phou San is absolutely beautiful (when you aren't stepping in shit).

Back in the car, I asked what the plan was, but no one would give me any answers.  Having to catch a 7 AM bus back to Vientiane, I wasn't about to go and have a wild and crazy night.  the staff thought otherwise.

While Viengmany had agreed to get pizza with me at the local restaurant, the minute we got back to the office and Youla voiced his opinion on dinner, pizza was thrown out the window and we were back in the truck heading for grilled duck.  Now in Laos, if a restaurant is called the grilled duck restaurant, expect it to serve ONLY grilled duck.  Having told Viengmany that I was willing to try anything, grilled duck it was.  The restaurant was very busy and I thought I had a lucky chance at pizza when they told us there were no more tables. Unfortunately, they were able to clear one off outside by the grill and we were welcomed to sit down.

Lahthana ordered for us and before I knew it, he was pouring beer and heaping plates of grilled duck had been delivered.  Like all meat in Laos, it was purely bone and very difficult to eat.  I picked away and thus passed the "tried it" test.  After about 20 minutes of the guys talking about work in Lao, I told them they had to stop, practice english, and not talk about work.  They obliged and turned to more heavy drinking.  When they were done with the meat, the ordered eggs.  I knew these were no ordinary duck eggs and had been warned before about the Lao eating boiled fertilized eggs.  I drew the line about eating "babies" and my co-workers proceeded to make many baby jokes, none of which were that funny.

Five bottles of Beer Lao later, I was ready to hit the sack.  I had only drank one glass but the constant nagging to drink more was getting annoying and I had an early day tomorrow.  Their goal was to get me so hungover that I wouldn't leave in the morning, thus allowing for another weekend with them in Xieng Khouang.  But, it was officially time to return and I had to be at rowing practice on Saturday.

Promising that we were only going for three more beers, we drove over to the Dankmiadong Night Club.  When we walked in it was empty, the lights flashing and a lonely singer at the mic.  Viengmany ordered a round of beer and despite saying I wasn't drinking, I was poured a glass.  We went up to try and do karaoke, but because all the songs were in Thai, Hmong or Lao, I let Viengmany do it alone.  Instead the rest of us got up and danced.  At this point more people had joined the dance floor crowd and I was getting used to the slow movements with rhythmic hand circles.  Finally a dance I can do!

This went on for two hours and after 7 more bottles of beers, more songs and lots of dancing, it was time to call it a night.  We loaded into the truck, brought Viengmany home and I was delivered to the office to catch a few hours of sleep before D(eparture)-Day. 

Mom and Dad Water Buffalo in Phou San.

The Sliver Lining

When the bed has two wrong sides, how can you ever expect to wake up on the right one?

After tossing and turning all night, I was woken up by load banging at my door at 6:25, a mere five minutes before my alarm was set to ring.  It was Mr. K, waiting for me.  He must have been confused because I was told to be ready to go at 7:30 and I had yet to shower and get dressed.  We need to work on our communication skills.

While he walked back out to the car, I quickly showered, hoping he understood what I meant by the 7:30 AIS.  He had, and when I reemerged at 7:15, he was gone, picking up Viengmany and the government official that comes with us on village visits.

Today was day one of two Village Days.  Growing up, village day meant no school, a big swimming pool, unlimited buffet food and sunshine.  Laos hasn't caught on yet.

Suan Mone, our first stop, is over a two hour drive from Phonsavanh on the infamous winding roads.  The whole trip was brutal as we were squeezed into the back of the truck, sliding back and forth, and Mr. Government has no concept of an indoor voice.  By the time we arrived, I was thankful to have two feet on the ground.

Instead of doing CLTS training, we we visiting to deliver the monthly top up for village health volunteer cell phones (the ones they use to report cases of diarrhea) and get a head start on GPS mapping.  We learned during our visit to Phou San last week, that it is impossible to use the transect walk to double as a GPS activity.  

We set off with the VHV and began walking through one part of the village.  Apparently I missed the memo about recent rain and did not wear shoes with great traction.  It's a daily battle here to decide whether to wear shoes that are weather appropriate or suitable for easy on/off each time you enter a house.  Today I had gone with flip-flops, although my only other choice of chacos wouldn't have been much better.  Needless to say, I slipped, fell and got covered in mud (I hope it was mud, since mapping I don't know whats going on behind these village houses).  It provided a good laugh, but only added to the frustration of the day.  

After two more falls and more shit mud, I decided to stick to the road and not try and trek up to each house.  We were invited into the chief's house for a cup of tea and met his mother who was 98 years old!  As we continued our walk, people became interested in what we were doing and wanted to say hi.  One man gave me two cucumbers and I learned how to say thank you in Hmong. Over an hour later, we settled in for lunch at the VHV's house.  He had prepared pumpkin soup, a Hmong staple, and Viengmany had brought string beans, chicken and enough sticky rice to feed an army.  I stuck to the veggies and avoided the sticky rice (I need a break once in a while).  Towards the end of the meal, the VHV brought out a bottle of Lao-Lao and six shot glasses.  I should have expected it and unfortunately he remembered my last visit where I had been tricked into three shots of the poisonous whiskey.  Luckily, I tried to explain that I didn't feel well and with another 4 hours in the car ahead of us, I didn't want to be sick.  I had successfully weaseled my way out of the Lao drinking game for the first time!

We helped clean up lunch, said goodbye and loaded back into the car.  Ban Leuk was an additional 45 minutes on death road and after being berated by Mr. Gov as to why I hadn't eaten any rice at lunch, I was happy when we pulled in.

At this point, the muddy ground had dried a little and it was easier to participate in the mapping.  We followed one of the VHVs around her part of the village, stopping quickly in her house to go over some of the new cases.  Taking off his shoes, Lahthana realized that a leech had gotten into his sneaker and bit his foot.  I panicked a little and from then on was VERY cautious where I stepped.  

I had had it up to here with Mr. Gov at this point, but the last straw was when we were following a dog along the path and he picked up a piece of bamboo and struck it.  Both the dog and I screamed.  To be honest, I was so upset with him, I hardly made eye contact for the rest of the day.  

Because Ban Leuk is divided into two units, about 2 km apart on the road, we loaded into the car and drove down.  Mr. Gov hopped into the back of the truck on the flatbed.  Between you and me, I wasn't too upset when it started to rain.  He deserved it.

We walked through the second part of the village, now in the rain, and I tried my best not to slip again.  Taking shelter in the other VHVs house, Viengmany shifted to her consumer self and bargained with the woman to sell her some of her weavings for sihn material.  The rain slowed and we finished our walk.  Standing by the car, I started to get bit by hundred of tiny little bugs.  Noticing the blood that was now dripping down my legs, Lahthana said, "oh, those are the bugs that like blood."

Well, great.  I was ready to hit the road.  But, of course, we were invited in for Lao Hai and the next 45 minutes were spent scratching my legs and politely declining the rice liquor.  When we finally got into the truck, I was so happy to be heading home.

While we stopped a few times along the way to let people "pick some flowers,"  I wasn't asked to get out of the car until we got to a place that Viengmany kept describing as the cave.  Although the last thing I wanted to do was visit a cave, I got the impression that this place was somehow very meaningful.  I watched Lahthana buy an orange marigold and followed him to a building that was unlocked for us.  The walls were covered with photos from the war and I realized that this was the famous Tham Piu cave that was bombed by US troops who believed there were Vietnamese soldiers hiding inside.  Instead, the bombing killed over 350 people including children, monks and local villagers who had taken refuge inside. The pictures on the walls were graphic, portraying headless child monks and people with their intestines hanging out.  We decided to leave the "museum" and I followed Lahthana and Viengmany up towards the cave.

At the mouth of the cave.

What felt like 500 steps later, we were in the mouth of the 800 meter cave.  I realized that this was a very sacred spot to the Lao who are still haunted by the legacy of war.  The inside is dark and ominous, very spooky if you ask me.  Everyone took a moment of silence and we proceeded back down towards the car.  I was very happy I had put aside the events of the morning, to appreciate this very historic yet horrible site for which my country was to blame.

Inside the cave at a memorial rock.

The silence didn't last long and once we were back in the car, everyone was talking (in their not-so-indoor voice) and telling Lao jokes.  I watched the countryside pass by and it slowly become dark.  And by dark I mean very dark.  Despite our headlights there wasn't even light pollution from the surrounding villages.  

I looked up and saw the most gorgeous moon: a faint sliver of white light in the sky.  Between that and the thousands of bright stars, everything that went wrong today seemed to wash away.

We finally pulled into Phonsavanh and stopped so that I could get something to eat and not have to take the motorbike out later.  I treated myself to a banana roti and Mr. K dropped me back off at the office.  

I'm home safe and sound and clean.  Best part?  I get to do it all again tomorrow.