Peas and Carrots

Debbae and me, we was like peas and carrots. Peas and carrots. It was so super duper awesome to hang out with Deb for a few days. It’s crazy how we could be teammates for three years in the States and then meet up all the way across the world. It was really nice to see a familiar face. Thanks for the hospitality, Debbae! Excited to see you again in Laos! 

She took me to this weird art project called “Ban Dam” or “Black House.” We’re really not quite sure what to make of it.

After the creepy Black House place she showed me where she used to live. It’s just so beautiful!

Then we went to this thing called a “Hash Run” that happens once a month. Well, “run” might be a stretch. Hash Walk seems a bit more accurate. The people in charge of organizing that particular one set up a ~6km trail for people to follow. They use shredded paper as trail markers and sometimes try and trick you into going the wrong way. It’s up to the people in the front to figure out the right direction and relay that info to those following. Deb’s friends were in charge of this course and they set it up on the university grounds where Deb taught last year. Beautiful campus!

The next day Deb's friend, Dave, led us to this super cool waterfall he recently discovered. Check it!

The morning before I left I went to class with Ajaan Rachel! She teaches 3^rd grade!

Vacation was real, but I’m excited to be back in the lovely land of Laos! Get pumped, get excited for 2014!

Happy New Year!

KB 

Last Stop: Chiang Mai

Before coming to Laos, I thought of a laundry list of things I assumed I wouldn’t be doing until I eventually ventured back to North America. Eat ice cream and get a hair cut for instance. Yeah, I clearly had no idea what Asia was going to be like. After spending a few months in Laos I began to reevaluate that same list. A few days ago, it looked something like this:

Things I Never Thought I’d Do in Asia

1. Go skating.
2. Go skating with Deb.
3. Go skating with Deb in a shopping mall.
4. Go skating with Deb on the 3^rd floor of a shopping mall.
5. Go skating with Deb on the 3^rd floor of a shopping mall just below the 4-D movie theatre.

Thailand – The Promised Land – has proven me wrong yet again. There I was at Central Festival Mall in Chiang Mai asking the lady at the information desk, “Excuse me, is there a skating rink in this shopping mall?” To which she promptly replied, “Yes, on the third floor just below the movie theatre.” It was just so shocking!

IT WAS SO FUN! They even have instructors. Job requirements? Level: Hockey. Deb and I had a bumpin' good time. Good thing for us, the middle lanes were pretty open because the boards were doing the heavy lifting. Hehe. 

Skating in Asia was, and quite possibly forever will be, difficult to top but Buatong Waterfall was pretty cool too! People call it the “Sticky Waterfall” around those parts. Dad was less than pleased about the whole idea so he peaced early, but Mom would never pass up a good photo op and tagged along!

Teamwork at its finest. Here's Deb coaching me through
the tricky first bit. Once you get past the first few
steps the whole waterfall is sticky! 

Running up it was so fun! Makes you feel like Spiderman! 

After a few drinks and before going to dinner on New Year’s Eve, we lit a few lanterns and made a wish!

We rang in the New Year at the hotel. The last thing I’ll remember of 2013 is a man from the hotel taking the microphone from the woman singing to say, “we will start the countdown in 2 or 1 minute from now.” Well, they have skating rinks, but maybe Chiang Mai doesn’t have everything sorted out just yet!

The following day we went to this cute little spot called Huai Tueng Thao Lake that a PiA fellow working in Chiang Mai told me about.

For our last supper we ended up at this really small place called Paris down a cute little side street. After waiting for what I think may very well have been an hour and a half the chef came out to tell us we needed to order something else because “they ran out of gas.” Haha it was hilarious. Didn’t kill the spirits though! We still had a great night!

So there you have it, folks. This is the final instalment of the “Mom and Dad Do Asia” series. The next day Aldo and Nadia reluctantly flew to Bangkok and Deb and I caught the bus to Chiang Rai. Stay tuned for more on PWIH (Princeton Women’s Ice Hockey) does PiA!

Happy New Year!

KB

Mom and Dad Do Asia Part 3: Luang Prabang

Luang Prabang is just so beautiful. So beautiful, in fact, that in my six months of living in Laos I’ve been there twice! After I went the first time I knew I had to bring my parents back to see it. It was also nice that I knew the area and knew exactly where I wanted to bring them. Here are a few highlights:

The Bamboo Bridge!

The entire town is basically a few small streets on a peninsula between the Nam Khan and Mekong River. Our hotel was on the other side of the Nam Khan so we had to walk across the bamboo bridge whenever we wanted to go into town.

 

Food!

Mom ate some sticky rice. 

Dad dipped into the delicious French bakeries.

I ate some khao soi for breakfast.

Waterfalls! 

The first waterfall we went to was Tad Se. 

We walked through a Khmu village celebrating their New Year before getting to the area where the small boats left from. 

Aldo was struggling to get off the boat and Nads almost tipped it when trying to take a picture. Classic. 

Then we rode some elephants. We couldn’t all fit on one so I rode solo. It’s definitely cool to have the token picture of you riding an elephant, but I wasn’t a big fan of the whole experience. Cool pics nonetheless.

The next morning we visited Kuang Si Waterfall. Tad Se is beautiful and quaint, but Kuang Si is just over the top. There’s also a great place for swimming and jumping!

Other Generally Beautiful Looking Things 

There was some sort of kids fashion show going
on at one of the primary schools. It was adorable. 

Cute looking shops. 

View from the bottom steps of Mount Phousi just above the night market.  

Ock Pop Tok. I mentioned it in my post about the last time I
went to Luang Prabang. I brought my parents there this time! 

Glass mosaic of the Tree of Life at the back of Wat Xieng Thong. 

Clothes lines. 

The boys in saffron. 

Last Stop: Chiang Mai 

Sights of Vientiane

While my favourite part of being in Vientiane was showing my parents some of my usual spots, we did squeeze in some touristy things as well. 

That Luang is the most important national monument in Laos.

Patuxai Arch, the "L'Arc de Triomphe" of Vientiane. 

It has a beautiful view of the city from up top!

Buddha Park is an extremely random and bizarre tourist attraction. No real cultural significance but it was still fun to see because it's so weird! 

Ho Phra Keo is one of the more beautiful temples in the city. 

Laos is the most bombed country per capita in the world. COPE is a rehabilitation centre for survivors of UXO (unexploded ordnance) accidents. It also has a small museum and shows a variety of documentaries.

Third Stop: Luang Prabang