Tuesday this week was the end of Buddhist Lent. Not sure what that means-seems to me to be an oxymoron,but the name is in quite common usage here. Anyway, the secular part of the festival is easier to understand-it’s called the Fire Festival. Each village (Luang Prabang has many, many villages-centered around a local temple),and some other organizaitons build a boat-float. The frame is bamboo. On top of the frame, you build some sort of thing- replica temples and nagas (dragon-like creatures) are very popular-out of paper-it looks like tissue paper. The colours are fabulous and [View Full Entry]

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I have written various e-mails to various folks-some of you have the details on my living space and some of you have gotten a food report. So, if the following is old news, just skip. My Living Situation From Canada, my plan was to book into a low-cost hotel in Luang Prabang for a few nights and then scout out a long term solution to accommodation. There are so many guest houses here, I figured I could negotiate a reduced rate for a long-term stay. The first part of the plan worked well-from home I booked into Hotel Rama for [View Full Entry]

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so, last night (Sunday night), when I went up to the cafe to post to the travel blog and check my e-mail, I had my first (and hopefully only) introduction to theft in Laos. I have to go up to a cafe to use their WiFi (which is pronounced Wee Fee-the manager/part owner of the place where I’m staying is French, and he calls it Wee Fee. His name is Francis, and he is quite sweet-please, don’t get any idea-he is quite gay). So, after I was finihsed posting, I went up to the counter to pay. I gave the [View Full Entry]

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Two weeks ago, I left Ottawa-I’m amazed it was only two weeks ago-so much has happened. Still very, very hot. Some days, the overcast ones, are not as bad as others. And, until about 9:00 a.m., you can walk around without sweating too much. But after 9, it heats up until the late afternoon. Not sure how hot it is-I have never seen a thermometer here. No one ever talks about the weather-it’s just hot or hotter. And, most Lao have no concept of temperature. I told one of the students at BBM that it was only about 12 degrees [View Full Entry]

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just checked the BBC weather on-line for Loas. it is 33-I KNEW it was hot here.... [View Full Entry]

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o.k. I just figured out(I hope!) how this travel blog thing works, and have posted two old blogs, and sent out an e-mail, telling all e-mail contacts the blog exisits...hope someone subscribes!! I'll fill in some of the gaps that have not been in e-mails: 1. where I'm living: I haven't spoken much about my new place. to be honest, the reason is this: it is a lovely, spacious and quite wonderful place, and I'm rather embarrassed! Before I left home, my idea was to visit several of the guest houses in Luang Prabang, and find a reasonable place that was [View Full Entry]

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I have been working with some of the university/teacher training college students on their English. None of their teachers are native English speakers, and they can read the words, and even write a fair bit, but their pronunciation is just horrible-truly awful. And, come to think of it, their written skills are only good by comparison-I would say they are at a grade 5-6 level. In many cases, they are in their last year of training! But, they are very keen to learn, and so grateful to have a mother tongue English speaker around. Most of them are really bright, and [View Full Entry]

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I"m not sure if you can start your travel blog before you are actually travelling, but, as of yesterday (Thursday), I am so completely immersed in my trip that it is almost as if it has begun. Finishing up last minute work things, deciding what to bring, adding addresses to my hotmail account, making lists and lists and more lists, starting to say good bye to my kids. (This is the only really difficult part; I know they will be fine, but still a very small voice in a small part of my overworked brain niggles away with "why are you [View Full Entry]

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