So Far in Laos

Before I left for Laos, I knew I was going to Asia, I was going to a warm place, I was going to see Jeffrey and Kaarina, and I was going to a place where brown skin and black hair was the majority. After waving goodbye to mom and dad at the airport- before going through security, I was hit with a wave of overwhelming emotion. Thankfully the security guard had to re-scan my bag- due to an unopened Jell-O and joked about my horde of Pringles I had packed as a choice for plane snacks, therefore distracting me from tears that threatened to flow. The plane rides were fun; I made small talk with my seat-mates, those who spoke English. Making it all the way to Thailand was easy, but then I did the ONE thing in the whole trip I was NOT supposed to: Going through Thai customs, getting a stamp on my passport- which cost me a night in the airport instead of a night inside a day-room.  I had seven hours to watch over my bags, and hang out. So I bought two Cokes, and parked my baggage cart between the passport check officials and the tourist police. Then next morning I was able to re-check my bags, and hang out in the Bangkok airport before my final flight to Laos.

Bangkok Airport

 My first week in Laos was spent in the capital city of Vientiane. Kaarina had some fun activities planned. One of my favorites was the Lao photo shoot. We went to a photo shop, chose traditional Lao outfits, and had our hair, make-up done. Then came time for photos: Kaarina and I felt like we were models, posing this way and that. The photographer didn’t speak English and had a hard time “showing” ways he wanted us to hold our hands, and “tilt” our heads.  It was really fun to dress up and experience a little of girly-Lao culture! Another activity we did was go bowling. But this bowling alley had a twist- some of the lanes were uneven and had bumps on them, which had an interesting twist on the game.

Lao Models

Traditional Lao Getup

Bowling

 In Laos I have experienced many ways of transportation:

One mode of transportation was a scooter- many people rode these, and it was very interesting to see women in very A-line skirts riding mopeds.  Some ladies rode side-ways which is actually easier. You’d see families of four on one scooter, and people toting large hardware pieces.  I experienced a bumpy ride on a scooter and the best way to ride was pretending I was on a horse by anticipating all the bumps.  Another crazy ride was on an army truck, through roads, that weren’t even roads! They were muddy trenches, and ruts! It was a 10 hour trip and Jeffrey calculated that we traveled an average of 8 miles per hour! Many a time the bus “crew” got out the winch and “pulled” us out of the mud. I remember looking at the next curve and wondering if there was a smooth road after it, most times there weren’t.  One stretch in the middle, the road turned to a darker mud, different than the usually red clay-sludge.  At this point we went a little faster and therefore caught a little breeze, that normally creeping at an ant’s pace, we wouldn’t normally feel. What seemingly was an endless trip, finally ended when we reached our destination, Tha Thom, Jeffrey and Kaarina’s village.

Scootering

Mud...Mud Everywhere

Biking Home

It’s pretty amazing thinking that it’s been three…almost four weeks that I’ve been here in Laos. It’s been fun seeing Jeffrey and Kaarina, spending time in their village, and meeting the people they work with. I’ve also gotten to see a LOT of wildlife- When I first got to Jeffrey and Kaarina’s house I felt like I was at the zoo- with chickens, roosters, geese, ducks, turkeys, dogs, cats, and cows ambling through the yard.

Staff Game Night/Welcome Party

At the Plain of Jars