This Winter Break instead of doing the 3 week shuffle to a tropical island somewhere, we slowed our roll and stayed put in HCMC through Christmas Day (see the previous blog). Lots of fun dinners with friends filled our time and it was great for Graeme to wake up in his bed to see what Santa had brought. A few days after we took off for Luang Prabang, Laos. Laos is a country right next door to us but not the easiest to get to in relation to cost and time. We managed to figure out some reasonable tickets and were off!
The flight into Luang Prabang was one of the more dramatic landings we've ever encountered. The 787 was flying below the mountain tops, bending and weaving throughout until we could line up with the airport. The pilot was flying - no autopilot buttons here! What an introduction to Laos!
LUANG PRABANG
One of the poorest countries in SE Asia, Laos is surrounded by Vietnam, China, Thailand, Cambodia and Myanmar. Sometimes referred to as "The Forgotten Country" it is certainly one of the most beautiful. With only 6.5 million people in the entire country (almost triple that live in Manhattan!), life rolls by at an incredibly slow pace here, allowing you to soak in that wonder and beauty. The saying goes - "Vietnamese plant the rice. Cambodians watch it grow. Laoatian's listen to it grow". DNR is a motto here - Do Not Rush. Aside from Animalism practiced in certain ethnic tribes, Buddhism rules the roost here and it's practice surrounds you in everyday life while in Laos - especially Luang Prabang. We posted up in the cultural center of Laos - Luang Prabang. It sits right on the Mekong River. Basically a backpackers+ paradise. Plenty of places to stay, eat and shop. The area is loaded with Wat's (temples) and there are hundreds, if not thousands, of young Monks in the area lending to it's cultural and spiritual significance.
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One of the attractions is to "feed the Monks". Well, you are not actually "feeding" them but providing alms. The same ceremony takes place in villages all over SE Asia but has become quite an event in Luang Prabang since there are so many Monks. We got up at 5 a.m. to get to the center of town and get sticky rice and snacks to provide them. It's quite a surreal experience watching hundreds of them silently move down the street accepting the alms. Unfortunately not all of the tourists involved were respectful enough of the rite to not use flash photography or interrupt the line or in general show respect. That put a bit of a damper on the procession but we enjoyed being involved in the ceremony and furthered our spiritual experience here in SE Asia. Working to grow ourselves as well as to teach Graeme about spirituality - something it is obvious he has much of and we are trying to enable him to understand more of what it is from many different perspectives. We all enjoy visiting temples and taking the time to think of those no longer with us - Graeme still takes this time to speak out loud to his G-Nan - as well as think good thoughts about those we love and care about. We have gotten to the point where Graeme is requesting to visit temples for these purposes.
Aside from visiting the Wat's in town there are many excursions to do around LP. We did a full day trip to visit a butterfly sanctuary, Sun Bear refuge and swim in a waterfall. Traveling via tuk tuk we ventured out into the countryside. As soon as you get outside of LP the truer beauty of Laos' landscape takes over. Just endless cascades of craggy karst mountains, rows and rows of farms producing every kind of produce, terraced rice paddies, just the full array of nature at it's finest. Laos is one of the poorest countries in the world and many of the people there live simply and sustain-ably via farming. The butterfly sanctuary was a big hit with us. Located on a small waterfalled river, they have netted over many plants and provide a safe environment for many species of butterflies to survive. They were all over the place in every color combination imaginable! We went into an area where they had cocoon's in various stages. I asked the guide "What is a cocoon made out of?" Before she could answer Graeme shot out "Chrysalis". Like, Duh Dad! The guide was very impressed! We scored a nice bonus at the sanctuary, they had a free "spa" where you could dip your feet and little fish ate the dead skin off of your feet. It was a bit ticklish but fun and boy, did they really like my feet!
From here we hit the Sun Bear refuge. Sun Bears have a large white spot on their chests with the rest being black. They are endangered because poachers capture them and imprison them in small cages and siphon out their bile which is used in traditional medicines in China and Vietnam. Medicines that don't do anything except hurt the bears providing it. The bears we saw were all saved from poachers. They had a large area to play. The volunteers hide food all over the place so the bears are super active searching for snacks all day. It was really fun to watch, sad to learn their stories and enlightening that people are trying hard to save them.
Next we hiked up to the Kuang Si Waterfalls. Clearly on the tourist trail but we still managed to have a blast. For all of his tough talk about swimming under a waterfall, Graeme winced at the cool (OK, it was freezing!) water temperature. I couldn't resist a jump from the tree and I did get Graeme to do some waterfall scrambling on the smaller sides. A great way to wash off some tuk tuk dust...
My photo's cannot do the landscape justice. We spent time wandering the town, rented bikes and took a ferry across the Mekong River which put us immediately into the vast countryside with no one in sight short of a few small villages we passed through with people singing karaoke, playing bocci ball (a big hit in Laos apparently), and kids coming home from school. We explored different restaurants and basically enjoyed the slow lifestyle this town afforded us along with the cooler weather.
DON'T CLICK HERE IF YOU DON'T WANT TO FALL IN LOVE WITH LUANG PRABANG!
NONG KIAU
We celebrated New Years Eve in Luang Prabang - I think we stayed awake until 9:30pm. Then we boarded a public van (a 12 seater with 14 westerners in it, oofa!) for a 3 hour ride to Nong Kiau (or Khiew, or Kiew, or however else you felt like spelling it). We were prepared for a much longer and harder ride but the road seems to have been sorted out and being dry season washouts were not a problem. We weren't really sure what to expect. I mean, Luang Prabang was about as relaxed a place surrounded by beauty that we have ever been to, until we arrived in Nong Kiau that is!
A small village on the Nam Ou River (now almost a lake thanks to 3 dams along the river nearby) with a bridge connecting the two sides of the river. A favorite with backpackers because of all of the trekking, bicycling and river activities available. It is also on the main road heading to a boarder crossing into Vietnam about 4 hours away. Pretty much everything in the village is geared towards the backpacking crowd - guided tours, hikes, boat rides, food, rooms, etc. We stayed at the Nong Kiau Riverside - sort of the Four Seasons of Nong Kiau. When you consider most rooms in town are in the $3/night range and ours was $50 that should give you an idea. 15 huts located directly on the river staring across at a gorgeous karst mountain with a farming family at its base (our daily entertainment was watching them from our deck, who needs cable?). To the west we got to watch the sun disappear each evening beyond even more karst mountains while we ate in the dining room.
This may very well be the most relaxed place on the planet. There are plenty of outdoor activities as well as chilling on our deck soaking up the sunshine while we watched the farmer's wife yell at him to get the ducks in line across the river. Starting out each morning, Graeme and Erin would bring comfy blankets out onto the chairs on the the deck and enjoy some tea as the farmer started his day and the sun tried to break through the overnight fog. Our cabin was almost at the end of the property which afforded us the opportunity to soak in the view and enjoy the incredibly manicured grounds as we strolled to the dining area for breakfast and to make a plan for the day. The temps here were much cooler then in Luang Prabang and much much cooler then we are used to in HCMC. The beds had "bed heaters" built in as well as huge down comforters - both were put to good use.
VILLAGE LIFE ON THE RIVER
Our first adventure was a private guided tour up the river to visit several different ethnic tribes' villages. There are 49 different ethnic tribes in Laos with a majority falling into Khmou or Hmong. Our guide was actually the manager from our resort and he procured a boat and we were off. Cruising up the river taking in the majestic views while trying to stay warm as the sun had not fully made it's appearance yet. The villages are hidden out of sight from the river, although just a few hundred meters from it, given away by the boats docked along the riverbank. Whenever you saw a handful of boats you knew up that path was a village. As we motored upriver fishermen threw their nets, women and children harvested river weeds (a local favorite snack when fried) while herded buffalo, cow and pigs ate along the riverside. Surreal.
We visited several different villages and strolled around taking in village life as our guide help explain what was going on. On the surface they may seem very alike - bamboo housing, a jillion little kids running around, small farms and livestock everywhere. Graeme garnered his usual attention but the villagers weren't as quick to go in for a pinch as they are in Vietnam and other places. But each had it's own vibe and sort of specialty - weaving, cow farming, rice farming, etc. Also each were parts of different ethnic tribes (mostly Khou and Hmong) with their own languages and spiritual followings (Animalism or Buddhism). One thing was glaringly apparent, there were an abundance of young children as well as an abundance of older villagers. Not much of the in-between. As is happening the world over, village life is dying as those of age head to the "cities" for education and work, leaving behind their young to be cared for by their elders and usually not returning to the village lifestyle. Once someone gets a taste of working for a wage then rarely choose to return to working the village farm. In this case those cities are Luang Prabang and Vietienne. While there seems to be plenty of food thanks to their farming and livestock, many other necessities that we take for granted are blatantly missing - health care and education at the top of the lists.
HE'S A HIKER!
While here we were to be celebrating Graeme's 5th Birthday. His "Golden Birthday" actually, when your age and date match (turning 5 on the 5th of January). You can read about it HERE. Another milestone was had though. One that Erin and I may look more highly upon then just getting another year older - Graeme went on a real hike with us! Prior to having Graeme, and for about 1 year after - we were fairly avid hikers. Utilizing our proximity to Mt. Tam in Marin County or backpacking through the Andes in Ecuador, we both really enjoyed hiking. The first year or so Graeme was around we brought him with us in a backpack. Once he started walking he wanted out of the pack but wouldn't walk too far before wanting to be carried. Carrying a kid and hiking don't really go hand in hand. There is a trail up a mountain to a Viewpoint overlooking all of Nong Kiau. It's 1 1/2-2 hours and just about straight uphill through the jungle. About as technical as it gets without getting too serious. Graeme charged it. 2 hours to get to the top with only a 10 minute rest in between, he took to the hill like a man possessed. He refuse help and just went for it! Unfortunately we didn't time the hike too well with the morning fog and our view was a whiteout, but that is besides the point. This 5 year old (he was actually still 4 at the time, 1 day prior to his birthday) prevailed and opened up a new frontier in his travels from now on. We are so proud of him and so glad that he really enjoyed it! And, if you know Graeme this will come as no surprise, he didn't stop talking the entire time - both up and down. (be sure to watch the video below with the volume turned all the way up!) The views along the way were just unbelievable as was the jungle brush and bamboo forests we scrambled through.
BOMBS AWAY
It was an unavoidable subject. Graeme always is so aware of everything around him and inquisitive of what everything is - he is not scared to ask questions and if you answer the first one there will be 20 more to follow. From 1963-1973 more bombs were dropped in this area by the US then all of WWII combined by all combatants. Reports vary as to the actual amount but it is a lot. Damn, 1 is too many but we are talking into the millions here. Roughly 30% of them did not explode on impact and are still unaccounted for. UXO - Unexploded Ordinance - accounts for 1,000 deaths per year in Laos. That is an astonishing figure when you take into account that they only have a population of 6.5m. In 2010 when the US finally copped to "some" of the damage inflicted and experts were brought in to determine ways to remove UXO it was said that at current pace it will take 3,000 years to fully rid the country of UXO. Yes - three THOUSAND years. Hence all the "Stay on the trail" signage and good reason to hire guides for your treks here.
We were surrounded by bombshells. They use them for flowerpots, grills, fireplaces, housing materials - whatever you can imagine. Well a 5 year old has a lot of questions about real bombs when he sees them. This led to an ongoing discussion of war, bombs, good guys vs. bad guys and a whole slew of topics I never in a million years thought I'd ever be having with Graeme until much much later in life. Not what you think you will be discussing on break with your child but a great example of how these trips open his mind and bring to light subjects that otherwise would not be breached and help make Graeme a man of the world.
DON'T CLICK HERE UNLESS YOU WANT TO FALL IN LOVE WITH NONG KIAU!
TURNED 5 IN LAOS - NO BIG DEAL
We rounded out our stay in Nong Kiau on some mountain bikes cruising through villages and visiting caves that were used during war time as bomb shelters and military outposts, high fiving kids and throwing out "Swabaidee's" to all. Graeme and I even got to race a local school boy on his way home on our bicycles. He passed us going uphill as if we were standing still but our overall weight and gravity kicked in on the downhill for the win! We shared our oranges with him in celebration. Each year we have a little birthday cake and dinner celebration for Graeme's Birthday proper. This year procuring a cake was a bit of a challenge. Turns out, Northern Laos isn't much for baked goods and patisseries, go figure! Not a worry, our Man of the Hour the resort Manager came through and we were able to surprise Graeme with the entire restaurant singing Happy Birthday as a stack of dessert crepes and 5 tea candles stood proxy for his cake - the look on his face at the end of this video says it all!
CONNECTIONS
I've written over and over about the attention Graeme receives in our travels. A lot of that has to do with being a kid with blonde hair and blue eyes in a land where no one has that. We get that. I have also written about his ability to draw connections with certain people outside of that attraction. We ran into another case of that on this trip...
One morning walking back to our room from breakfast we were about to pass a gentleman on his way to breakfast. Graeme got in his way a bit, looked him square in the eye and threw a "Good Morning!" to him. The gentlemen stopped a bit startled (no coffee yet), smiled and returned the gesture. He then took a step, stopped and turned around looking at Graeme walk away......flash forward to later that day when we were on the beach leaving one of the villages. This gentleman and his group (who were all staying at our resort - about a dozen of them) came over to us on the beach, his group about to enter the village we just left. He introduced himself and wanted us to know that Graeme's "good morning" had simply made his day. Such a profound gesture from such a little guy. This man is Richard (Dick) Grace. The next morning his group was leaving on their way to Cambodia but Dick came over to our table to chat with us some more. Turns out he is the Dick Grace from Grace Winery in Napa. Those in the wine world will recognize this as one of, if not the, best wines coming out of the valley. It is definitely one of the the most expensive as bottles can reach upwards of $1,000 at restaurants. Low quantity and high quality is the trick there. But it turns out there is more.....Grace Winery diverts all of it's proceeds towards helping children around the world receive healthcare, education, clean drinking water and other life needs. They do not do it for the money - the money goes to the kids. I am sure that I am over simplifying it here but you can find out more at their website www.gracefamilyfoundation.org. They have worked tirelessly throughout Asia with a focus on Tibet and through his relationship with the Dali Lama have been able to make a real difference in many people's lives. Turns out they were heading to Cambodia to visit an orphanage in Siem Reap they had just set up. Dick spent about 1/2 hour with us chatting about his foundation all the while doing magic tricks for Graeme and Graeme returning the favor telling him his favorite knock knock jokes. These two were old friends!
People see things in Graeme. He is able to make a connection with the people of his choosing in an instant. Dick left as his group was loading into their vans only to run back to our table and give us a copy of his autobiography. Having read it, it's easy to surmise that Dick see's things in people too. I am not sure what he saw in Graeme or what Graeme saw in him to suggest the big "good morning" but they both saw it in each other. This is an overly generous man doing great things to help children the world over with a passion that most don't have. This guy makes a presence. After reading his book it is hard to believe all that he and his family have done and how they keep pace at continuing it. An inspiring individual that for some reason Greame chose to have enter our world - he passed by dozens of people on that walk throughout the week without so much as a nod hello. We cannot wait to discover the reasoning behind this connection. Until then....
Originally when we booked 11 days in Laos some told us that was a bit long to spend there. Turns out we could have used more! Such a relaxed culture. Astonishingly beautiful. Things to explore and learn about at every turn. Wonderful Northern Thai influenced foods and enough smiles to rebuild your faith in humanity. All this coming from the Forgotten Country. If you ask us, we will not forget to return and if you come this way for a visit we will gladly take you there as well. There is nothing wrong with listening to rice grow.
Thank you as always for reading, especially if you made it this far. I hope you enjoyed to video's, something new I am trying to incorporate.
Now we are gearing up for Tet which is early this year and only a few weeks away. We are heading to New Delhi, India to visit friends and see some sights. Until then, we are enjoying the cooler and dryer weather learning how to ride a "real" bicycle and adjusting back to school after a 3 week break.
