Advertisement
Published: February 10th 2016
Edit Blog Post
Hello Fellow Readers!
I think the highlight of our time so far in Laos has got to be our homestay in the tiny remote village of Champasak which is on a small island on the Mekong River. The island itself is lush and the village is very quaint. The wooden houses are built on stilts and the kids play underneath. Speaking of kids they are so cute, friendly and are very curious about us. When we arrived the men were working in the rice fields and fishing. The women were cooking, cleaning and watching the kids. A very busy and vibrant place.
They have a few fancy resorts close by taking advantage of the beautiful scenery on the Mekong Delta. We walked over to one and had a cocktail overlooking the spectacular view and infinity pool. It certainly would be a great place to get away from it all!
So back to our village stay. No running water, a mattress on the floor with a mosquito net, a Muslim squat toilet and bamboo mats on the floor for our dining experience. At first you think OMG, but you get used to it soon and are happy to experiencing
another culture. The ladies worked together to prepare us a traditional Laos meal consisting of a delicious vegetable soup with coconut and some flavourable herbs. The main course was a pork stir fry and sticky rice which was very good. Bananas for dessert. It was quite amazing that the women cooked everything on an open fire that is set up inside the house. They do all the meal preparation, cooking and washing dishes on the floor in a squatting position. They certainly must be flexible!
We slept great, the mattress was comfortable and we had a fan. Roosters started up at 5 but they didn't disturb our sleep. For breakfast we had fried eggs, bread, jam, fried rice, cheese and green Laos tea. All and all a memorable experience. It was just too bad we couldn't talk to our hosts, but we smiled a lot, made the Buddah thank you gesture and were able to say thank you in Laos.
After we said our goodbyes we walked a few meters to visit a primary school. The kids were so cute sitting obediently in their desks with a notebook and pen. They all stood up, bowed and said hello
Grade One
I noticed the pupil teacher ratio was lower in this class! in Laos. The classroom is a far cry from our schools, one blackboard, one teacher desk, kids desks in pairs, one book each and one pencil. There was however some origami pictures on the wall. We peeked in at all the classes ranging from grades1-4. Of course they wore uniforms. The more I think about it the more I think we should have uniforms in our schools. It kind of sets the tone for obedience and respect.
We took the ferry back to mainland. The ferry was very unique in that it consisted of two long boats hooked together with a raft of which wicker chairs were set up for a comfortable ride for four!
Our next stop was the ancient city and temple of Vatphu. Construction began in the 400's and took 100 years to complete. Absolutely amazing! Initially it was a Hindu temple but later changed over to Buddhist. There were two separate living areas surrounded by beautiful carved limestone and volcanic rock. One was for the men and the other for the women. They kept the males and females apart as they didn't want any babies to interfere with their work. Interesting concept! We climbed
many many steps to get to the top and were greeted with a beautiful view of the city, walkways, forest and lake.
This afternoon we take an hour and a half flight to our next stop, the city of LuangPrabang.
Mallory and Warren
Advertisement
Tot: 0.055s; Tpl: 0.012s; cc: 10; qc: 25; dbt: 0.0338s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.1mb
Pat Atkinson
non-member comment
Just beautiful
You two are having a trip of a lifetime. Thanks for keeping us posted. We get to live vicariously through you! See you in the spring.