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Published: September 4th 2009
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My sister and I had always wanted to visit Thailand. I had just finished at McGill, and my sister just graduated from law school. We planned a three week trip together. It was fabulous, for both of us our first time in Asia, the parallel universe. We enjoyed a broad overview of the country, and visited many areas: the mountainous north, Chang Mai and Chang Rai, the rural center with much history, Ayuttha and Kanchanaburi, the gorgeous beaches of the south, Ko Samui and Phuket.
Thailand is a fascinating mix of modern and traditional. Food stalls litter every street—usually a little cart with nothing more sophisticated than a flame and a wok—and sells all manner of delicious food. Pad thai, papaya salad, pho, fruits...the food is very cheap, about $1-$3 a dish. Tuk-tuks, little golf-cart-esque carriages attached to low-power motorbikes, act as open-air taxis. Many people speak English, but most speak very, very little; just enough to take your room reservation or to take you somewhere in a taxi. So unfortunately, we did not have many complex conversations with Thai people. Although that changed as we moved into the North, where we met a few groups of young Thais who
insisted on taking wonderful care of us--touring us around town, taking us to dinner, bringing us to the club, and driving us to the border.
Thailand boasts gorgeous ancient temple ruins, beautiful modern temples, intriguing monks in their orange robes. Most Thais are Buddhist, but initially I did not feel a Buddhist influence in the culture. However, the recent coup is the perfect example. The Prime Minister stepped down peacefully, without resistance, and stated that he wanted the best for the Thai people. He also declared that he would devote his life to charity. I doubt that a coup in most other countries would be as peaceful.
But Laos, oh Laos! Laos is even more incredible than Thailand. It is less modern, with smaller cities, friendlier people, and more people that speak high-level English. There are many more monks, there are monks everywhere. On our first day, we walked around the city of Luang Prubang—which is in its entirety a UNESCO World Heritage Site—and looked at temples. There were 12 on one street alone! Each of them had novice monks living on the premises. Novice monks become monks temporarily, usually between age 8-20. We learned that becoming a
monk is the best way to get a good education, but only young men whose families can spare their farmwork can go. The novice monks are so friendly and are all learning English! At each wat we visited, novice monks would stop us to chat, hoping to practice their English. We learned a lot about them and their lives. Incredible.
It is cheaper in Laos than in Thailand. A dish at a restaurant costs $1-2 and a hotel room for the night costs $6. We planned to stay in Laos for five days, but quickly changed our plans once we arrived. As of now, I had already pushed back my plane ticket three times. I can see why there are ex-pats from many countries living here. It is a shangri-la from the modern world. No pollution, no noise; a slow, peaceful life. The marvelous Thailand seems a bit overdeveloped in comparison. I had been traveling every few days for the last month, but now we have been in Luang Prubang for a week. It is just so nice, staying in one little town and getting to know it. We see people we have met and talked to all over
town each day. I think this must be what cities were like in the early 20th century in the US: just a collection of people and businesses, rather than the noise and pollution and hurried pace that we are used to in cities today. It is very charming.
We feel a sense of purpose, because we can help the monks to learn English, and we can volunteer in a book publishing company for children. Four years ago, a man named Sasha from Boston, came to Laos and saw that there were no books for children here, besides textbooks. And even those books were Thai, and often found only in big towns. So he began a company and called it Big Brother Mouse to create children's books. They have an infomation stall at the night market, which we helped out at one night, and we were able to help his Lao staff with their English, too.
Every book his company writes must be reviewed by the government before publication. So far it is a small enterprise, with 7 books produced, but 40 more are in the works! From the beginning, Sasha has funded the entire enterprise, with a few
contributions from others. Eventually, he hopes the enterprise will operate as a business, bringing in profits to pay staff and cover costs of creating more books. He encourages tourists to buy a pack of the 7 books for $10 USD and to give them to children instead of giving them candy or money. He also coordinates book parties, and brings the books to kids in small villages for free. It is a wonderful, wonderful company. (We saw 5 year-olds here whose teeth had rotted out because tourists have been giving them candy and dental care is not yet readily available. Before tourists came, the kid's traditional diet did not include candy so their teeth were fine. We learned interesting things like this every day.)
Its amazing here; it's like going back in time in some ways, yet there are also many wonderful cafes and restaurants, too. They are adorable, and look like they could be back in America, but cost a fraction of the price. We did not see any such places in Thailand. The French influence is also present here, in the crepes and baguettes for sale on the street, and the French that older monks speak. There
is a night market with unbelievably beautiful handicrafts, made and sold by the artists who make them. Beginning early in the morning, there is a food market, wherein locals bring fruits, vegetables, meat and still-live animals to be sold, mostly upon sheets stretched out upon the ground. I've seen honeycomb, lizards, turtles, mice, rats, fish and all manner of colorful and unknown produce. Just incredible.
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