Lazy in Louang Prabang

---

Sitting in the internet cafe and the server just went down. Clever as I am, I’m going to type up my entry using Word, save the doc, then cut/paste later, when/if the server comes up. I think Buon Pen wants me to log off. I just explained that I’ll type until the server is back up, then we can re-boot this machine. His smile makes me think that either he doesn’t have the energy or the know-how to argue with me, or he completely understands me and it’s okay.

I was just thinking that, after 5 days in Laos, I could really get used to living here. It’s very much like rural/poor Mexico. This town in particular, Louang Prabang, reminds me a lot of Oaxaca: it’s rural with a colonial European flair. The poor are extremely poor, there are throngs of ex-pats, and the artisan handicrafts are beautiful.

We located a sister restaurant to the Canadian bakery found in Vientiane. I had a bagel egger for breakfast (grain bagel, cheddar cheese, fried egg, and ham). It was delicious.

This is quite a bustling city space in contrast to the tranquil setting of Vang Viang. On the morning excursion, there weren’t as many monks to be seen and the city traffic seems to get going by 6am. The exhaust in the air is brutal on the throat.

Today’s a lazy day. No bus trips, no eco-adventure, just hanging out. I must have some Beer Lao today... I've been in the country five days and I've yet to have a beer. Actually, have been enjoying that vodka, lime, and M150 drink discovered in Vang Viang.

I love the Lao people, in fact, I want to bring me home a Lao baby!

Saw bai nam pa (no fish sauce)

---