A trip down memory lane

On Tuesday I arrived in the Netherlands from New York having spent three days in personal development workshop using concept from theatre to expand the range of accesible movements and vocalizations. That was a great and empowering workshop which gave me a whole stack of new tools use in in life. I also met some very impressive and well known actors who gave a us a personal performance that reminded me again of the full power and drama of the theatre. Overall the three days were an awesome experience.

Back in holland, we did some final planning for the cycling trip that I have been planning for the last six months. Living in Australia makes it difficult to get a sense of the childhood lives of my parents, on a rural island in the Netherlands. So I decided to spend three days riding across the island with my brother and retrace the lives of my parents.

So you can imagine my excitement when I walked into the living room and see my mother there wrapped up as a Christmas present. Secretly arranged between my mum and her sister, she surprised us all by discreetly making her way to holland to be here for this trip. This was fortuitous as she was able to provide a real personal touch to the trip.

The following day we left Delft and headed through Massland south toward the Rhine delta that makes up the southern part of holland. Travelling across dunks and through fishing villages we started to collect the many stories of how the Dutch and reshaped the landscape and brought the waters under control trough dijk's, locks and windmills. After a brief coffee, tea and rain shower in Maasluis we headed across the river toward Brielle and Hellevoetsluis where the weather looked clearer.

We stopped briefly outside of Brielle for lunch before heading into the fort to have a look around. We didn't stay for long as we had a log way to go.

Cycling through the field and agricultural regions we started to get a taste of life on the island but we had to get through Hellevoetsluis and over the artificial sea wall that had been part of the Deltawerken. The Deltawerken was a large construction project put in place after the floods of 1953, which my mum experienced. This, the worst flood in Dutch history did huge damage in the islands of south holland and killed more the 3000 people. So this wouldn't happen again the Dutch spent billions stregthening the dijk's and sea walls that essentially separate the delta and the sea into two system which the flow between them can be controlled.

Arriving on the island we reached our destination for the day , Stellendam. This village was wiped out in the flood and so there is little left over from the past and is now a popular weekend destination for sailors, wind surfers and other water loving people.

We checked in at our privately run B&B before jumping back on our bicycles to the coast. On the west (coastal) side of the island are dunes where my mum used to go walking with the family. We cycled there as the afternoon sun faded. Arriving at 't flauwe werk' as the evening sun was setting and the lights of boat waiting outside of port started to light up.

We cycled back in the dark stopping at a lit up windmill in Goederede were we chatted with Tom whose friend is the manager. He, clearly on the way home from the pub, invited us around for a cup of tea. Unfortunately it was late and we had a big day tomorrow and so we headed by the shortest route back to our waiting beds.

The following was the first of September and my mum arrived at the B&B to join us for breakfast. The hostess was happy to add another plate. Breakfast was a plentiful continental breakfast like I had never had one!!

It just happened to be my birthday that day, and so the attention was squarely as my mum gave me a beautiful photographic book as a present and that was just the beginning.

We left as a pack and headed toward Mellisant where an old family friend managed a nursery setup to give mentally disabled people meaningful work. The nursery setup from scratch over fifteen years is testament as to what is possible with a little leadership. We sat and had tea and chatted before getting back on two wheels.

The day was filled with many moment of which three stand out. Firstly, going to a narrow lane only to emerge in a graveyard that contained the grave of my mum second brother who born in the war died after 9 months. To everyone's surprise the grave was still there and had a new plaque on it. It is a mystery as to who created the plaque.

Second was walking up past the church to the town hall alongside my mother. The same path she walked with my dad 30 years ago the day they got married. I could imagine them all walking together like a parade garnering to attention of the whole village.

Lastly it was the afternoon drinks along the harbour of Middleharnis. Sharing a drink there with loved ones was splendid, radiant that we were, in the summer sun.

The evening capped off what was a majestic day as we are near the restaurant (it was closed) that my grandmother took me when I visited some years ago (kofje kookertje). To my surprise, our little tour group was joined by my Aunt, cousin and friends. The meal was great and the atmosphere fulfilling. The staff there were excellent. When it came to dessert mine was the last to arrive. When it did finally come it arrived with dimmed lights, and small flaming firework on the plate and with Stevie wonder singing happy birthday just for me. It was a moment not to be forgotten! No words can ever capture the thanks I would like to give to all for that experience.

But it wasn't finished yet. While my mum returned home with the my aunt and family, our little tour group continued on for another day. This time starting in Oude Tonge where my dad lived in his formative years. We had stayed in a country B&B that included 'bedstee', which is a bed in a cupboard that was used to keep warm in days gone by. Sleeping in here was quite fun. In the morning we ate breakfast in the fields next to the goats and chickens and overlooking the endless rows of corn.

We were on our way around 10 am where we headed east and off the island. Along the way we passed a 'gemaal' which was named after my grandfather how managed the dijk's of the area from 1925-1955. My dad also played there as a child.

We cycled in though the fields and through the smaller villages of the island before taking to long straight road and bridge off the island towards Willemstad, another fortified city. Along the way we saw more of the sluice gates, bridges and locks that form the deltaworks. Watching the many transport ship carrying goods every which-way.

Willemstad is one of the best preserved fort towns in holland and it is a beautiful city. I would want to be there o. The weekend as it would be packed. But being there on a Friday we stopped in for am ice cream and viewed the battlements. Renee particularly enjoyed the bunker which had been built over many years; most recently during the second world war by the Germans.

The rest of the afternoon we spent riding through the open agricultural fields of the region feeding sheep, horses and cows all while avoiding the rolling tractors transporting potatoes.

In the late afternoon we arrived and the train station of Zevenbergen, where a kind conductor allowed us on the trains with our bikes even though it was peak hour, so we where home early for dinner which was rice with meatball sauce that my mum had cooked for me on request.

The thing to learn from all this is that family is something worth exploring and holding onto!!

Sometimes things aren't as simple as they seem

So we retuned to the city with vague instructions about we needed to do. It would take a few days for thing to be clarified, but essentially, one village required a new set of 41 tables and chairs, and for the rest the standard educational supplies and a set of sporting clothing for the annual inter-village sports event. Having no idea how much this would cost, the next few days was spent answering these questions.

The first of the questions was how to build the tables and chairs they required. The village teacher and chief had indicated that they could create the tables and chair in the village using local wood. They estimated that they would be able to build all 41 tables and chairs to 6,500,000 Kip (815USD). Getting the village to build the tables come with some benefits; and sense of ownership, development of local skills, and more money going in to the local economy. However there are additional risks; the level of workmanship; controls on the expenditure of the money; availability of the people.

It was fortunate then that while I was in Pak Pong I noticed that World Vision had been through and supplied the village with new tables and chairs. So I went around to the world vision office in luang prabang and had a chat with one of the staff there. He proved very helpful in providing advice on suppliers, processes and other questions that he had. He even gave me his number to call if I needed any further assistance. Armed with this information we headed out to the furniture factory. Again discussion largely led by Thee affirmed what the staff at world vision had told me. Priced at approx $41 each the total cost of the tables and chairs was around the $1700. This was substantially more that the $815 quoted by the villages. After lengthy discussions it was decided to have the tables and chairs made in the village as it would be cheaper and encourage skill development in the area, which is inline with the objectives of the project.

The shopping for educational supplies was much simpler as it was a matter of finding out how much it would all cost and match that against the available budget. It took a few days to finalize but in the end for 550 school books , pens, pencils, paper, markers, scissors, glue, soccer balls, speak Takraw balls and nets for five schools cost less than $700. As a result we were able to meet all of need of all the schools in the budget. With money left over to support the annual village sporting event with uniforms for all participants.

This is an outstanding result for the project and provides the required operational support to the schools, allowing the teachers to teach more effectively. Unfortunately timing meant that I am unable to be present for the delivery of the goods to the villages as Thee has to work and then I have to leave to Bangkok.

So having bought most of the materials I have left the final logistics in Thee capable hands to deliver over the next couple of months. I look forward to the receiving photos and updates from him.

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The last two days

The last two days have been great and character building at the same time. Yesterday full of confidence I joined a cycling tour with Thee from Luang Prabang. 

The morning started well, meeting him for coffee and then helping him prepare everything as we left town. Due to the geography, the cycling doesn't actually start until about 70km outside of Luang Prabang, so there was a long scenic ride through the mountain before we finally got on our wheels.

But by 12:00 we were on our bike riding gleefully down the hill. Thee had put me on duties as an extra man on the road, so I kept an eye on the eight others and made sure they were all right. About 2 hours into the ride I descended down at a reasonable speed in order to catch up with one of the cyclist who was ahead of me. At various point there was water across the road and I new not to turn when going through them to avoid falling over. However eventually I came to one which was my undoing and my front wheel cam out from underneath me and I hit the ground probably doing 15-20 kilometers an hour. Being the cowboy that I also wasn't wearing a helmet. 

Well, I was shocked as I have had a serious bicycling incident in a long time and at first I was worried about my state. I had hit my head on the road so my first concern was whether my head was okay and was pleased to find that there was not blood coming from my skull. So the head was fine. A day later I don't really even have a bruise. SO then I checked the rest of my body and I was lucky to get away with a few scratches on different parts of my body, but nothing to serious. I also have some muscle damage in my should that bore the brunt of the fall. So we weren't off to a good start.

From there I rode to the bottom of the hill to clean myself and wait to get my bag from the support car to access my first aid kit. About 5 min later Thee arrived in the car and I told him what happened and that I needed my first aid kit. I went to the car to look for the bag that had some band aids and my passport and much to my surprise and horror, I couldn't find it.

I was then that I realised I had left my passport back in Luang Prabang and now needed to call people, but I had no reception. So there wasn't much I could do other than push on.

As a group we rode further and about an hour later arrived at a build up of traffic. Being cyclist we rode right up to the front to find that a landslide had covered the road and there was only one way traffic going through and every fourth truck was getting stuck. So we ended up waiting as a group for about 1 hour before we could get through. Mean while it was starting to rain so everything was getting wet an dirty.

I continued through the mountains supporting one of the cyclists that was coming up behind and we were doing really well until the rain really started coming down, at which point I jumped in Thee's car a wet, a little cold, annoyed and distracted about my passport. We arrived in the next town were the rest of the group was sheltering in a shop. There we had lunch were I continued to try to make calls but not having any success.

Eventually I enlisted the assistance of Thee who phoned a friend who owned a guesthouse down the road from where I stayed and got him to walk up the road to the guesthouse where I was staying. Luckily enough the bag was there and no-one had taken it. I took a while to confirm that it was my bag and what was in it. But eventually the bag was handed over to Thee friend has arranged for transport of the passport to where I am. I should receive the passport in the next hour. This all took a process of two hours to arrange.

After that my spirits were lifted but I still could handle descending more mountains so I decided to travel the rest of the day in the car. Before the end of the day we came across another landslide across the road, this time a truck was stuck and not going anywhere fast. The smaller vehicles had managed to create a risky but possible track to go around in and Thee successfully maneuvered his truck through the obstacle around to the other side. From there on it was smooth sailing through to the Guesthouse in Kasi.

So by the end of the day I was still a little battered and bruised from the fall and relieved that my passport was not completely lost and so I was able to enjoy a hot shower and dinner with reasonable grace.

Today the ride to Vang Vieng was beautiful though uneventful. It was more beautiful than I had thought having traveled this road many times. But Laos at this time of year is especially attractive. Tomorrow, more cycling a boat trip and a swimming pool to look forward too at the end. I am going to hopefully collect my passport shortly. 

 

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Website: http://ignatris@blogspot.com

Time to go shopping

We had made it. We had gone to the villages and obtained at least some of what they wanted and had left messages with the other teacher about how to get the messages to us.

Now it was just the long ride back to Xieng Ngeun. After some overcast days and plenty of rain. The return journey was cursed with blazing sunlight. As we made our way through the early village this was bareable as the roads were shaded. But after we had crossed the river to the other side the open roads provided no respite from the sun.

This new main road has been contracted for the development of two dams along the nam kan river. A road like this changes the game for many people in the villages as the time and financial cost to get to the main town is reduced. It also allow external people to get to the villages. It is probably a little fortunate that the road along the nam fen was not well made and cannot support cars and motorbikes. This way the local people get the benefit with out too many negative impacts apart from the great scar that is left on the landscape. It should also be made clear that the road is something that the local people generally see as a good thing.

The main road however is different. This is part of a very large engineering project operated by Chinese companies. They bring in heavy machinery and a different working style that has created tensions in the communities with fights breaking out. I have been told that Laos people have been paid compensation for incidents like these from the Chinese companies but over the longer term it will probably lead to a growing distrust between the two ethnicities. The whole operation is typical of a messy industrial site with very modest working conditions for the workers and is a big departure from the normal day to day living of the lao people.

The main road was much less challenging the road along the nam fen and we quickly made up the kilometers with long downhill section providing a little high speed enjoyment that made me a little nervous from having no protection on. But in the end the only danger was the sun that gradually turned me red. A lunch break at a small restaurant on the side of the road was welcome before we got back on the bikes and cycled the last two kilometers to Xieng Ngeun.

From Xieng it was five km on sealed road to Thee house were we recovered briefly before heading back to luang prabang. I should also mention that accompanying Thee and myself on this journey was a retired guide from the tiger trail trekking company. This well spoken lad had set his sights on travel and after saving some money is going traveling around his country and maybe further abroad. I had some very good discussion with him about a range of matters. But one that struck a chord with me was his interest in building a vocational college for under-privelidged youth in the luang prabang region. This would require a substantial amount of investment and money, but if there are any investors or philanthropists interested in creating such an institution. Let me know and we can start a conversation on how to turn this idea into a reality.

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An unexpected day off.

Note: this entry precedes the earlier entry

This morning I awoke and completed a morning run before settling in for a quiet day of administration. That was until I got speaking to nigel at the guest house. Nice English lad in his 40s who had just dried a local Laos girl, Ngoy, 3 months ago and where spending a little time traveling through Laos. As I sipped my tea and the conversation progressed he and his partner invited me to join them for the day and go see the waterfalls. Keen for a swim I decided to put my plans on hold and jumped in the car. However by that stage there was a Japanese lady, Yumi and her Chinese friend, Hen in the bus; an Italian couple, allesandra and andreas, another laotian couple, four children and an older women, Song. So it was a full van. Then on the way to the waterfall we picked up another two people to complete the party bus.

We headed out to the kuang si waterfall about 25 km south of luang prabang. There our guide order an array of food and we wandered as a troop up to the waterfall stopping briefly to shelter from a monsoonal rain.

The kuang si waterfall is quite stunning even in the rain and to have the privilege of eating a Laos picnic in the waters of the waterfall was gladly taken. We ate a mighty feast of fish, chicken, pork, quail and papaya salad, all while receiving quizzical looks from passing falang.

We then walked along the river went for a short swim, said hi to the bears before jumping back on the party but to the tad se waterfall.

The tad se waterfall is only accessible by boat and is a beautiful waterfall that is perfect for swimming. So the kids and a few others got in the water and enjoyed a little fun. We then treated ourselves to some beer lao before getting back on the boat to where the van was parked.

Before we wen back to the city there was one last stop. Not had an uncle in the village and thought we should drop past. Turns out they were organising a Basi ceremony and invited us inwith food and Lao Lao. All in all it made for a great day and celebration. The welcoming and fun loving nature of the lao people shone through all day. This point was further elaborated as we were given a karaoke special in the van all the way back to luang prabang. It was loud, good and not so good but always done in pure joy.

By the time u was dropped back at the hotel it was night time. I thought I would have a quick nap before heading out for some evening dancing with Nigel and noy, however weariness became me and I did not wake up till hours later, missing an opportunity. I was however glad to have some rest.

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A day out

Right now I am sitting in the village of Pak Pong having just finished breakfast. The past 24 hours have been met with the quiet and curious stares of the local people. Most notably the children who continue to approach me with an air of skepticism. I don't think that any of the younger children I met last time remember me.

Yesterday started by picking up the bicycles from the shop loading on the back of the truck in the rain and heading out to Thee's house. What was an empty shell the last time is was here is now a vibrant little shop and household, though thee tell me it doesn't make much money at the moment.

After some spicy dip and galangal and pigs uterus soup we got on the bike and headed on our way. The ride to Xieng Ngeun to get on the boat took about 20 min through the rice fields and random sa-bai-dee's from passing children. As is custom we waited for about half an hour at the dock for the boat to get prepared. What was different was that while I waiting we indulged in a spot of fishing and watch to goats getting weighed on a set of scales for suited to weighing rice. The goat, with legs tied perched in a basket upon the scales that had seen a few years. The goats looked less than impressed about the whole affair.

Eventually the bike where placed in the boat, fuel was paid for and we headed on our way up the river. The river was high and powerful due to the wet season rainfall and the small outboard motor struggled again the flow. Quickly crossing the river each time to be near the river bank and avoid the main current, as well as take the shortest route. About five minutes into the journey the rain started and didn't really stop until we reached our destination in Pak Bak. The raincoat that I thought would be useless proved valuable in the cool wind and rain.

The journey was less romantic than previously. Whereas there used to be a real feeling of going somewhere a long way from anywhere, the river bank is now lined with a road and power lines that have been built to give access to construction vehicles for the building of two new dams. More on this later.

We arrived in Pak Bak only to find that the teachers where out of town on training due to it being school holidays. Immediately I was disappointed about what could be achieved from the three day trip. But the show must go and Regardless of being able to meet with the teachers I did have a three day adventure tour to look forward to. With bikes packed and ready we headed off into the mountains. The road cleared by Vietnamese construction crews in exchange to collection of hardwood was built with little durability in mind and hasn't really survived the wet season. The road is peppered with landslides and washed away entirely by the odd river here and there. All in all with the rain the track was challenging to navigate and we were sufficiently dirty by the end of it.

After leaving the village of Pak Bak we past through Ban Kok, and houay kasak before arriving in Pak Pong towards the end of the day. All the villages gave changed since I have been there. Pak Bak and Ban Kok have both seen the addition of other people from other villages higher In the mountains as the government tries to get people cooed to education and health services. Houay kasak still remains but some people have moved to Ban Kok and there is no longer a school provided for the students here.

To make a ling story short we arrived with minimal fuss in what was a pleasant after noon cycling. Having walked the track previously, riding was quite pleasant and quick.

This was my third time in Pak Pong and while some faces are now familiar the faces of the children change quickly that I couldn't remember. Most greeted me with the quiet skepticism of the first time, except one who spoke a little bit of english and greeted me with a big smile and handshake. We spent quiet evening eating with the family and drinking lao whisky, as is custom. And I turned In for an early nights rest.

The next morning we were greeted by rain, which made for a slow start to the day. In it's place we stumbled from breakfast to secondses, through to
Morning tea and lunch. By then the weather had cleared and we were ready to head up to the last village Bak fen. Webhad heard that there may have been a landslide on the road making it impassable so we opted for the boat. This also presented an opportunity to do some fishing on the way. This turned out to be quite an adventure.

The river was swollen due to the recent rainfall presenting many hazard. Our expert driver carved his way up the river with dexterity stopping only to collect worms for fishing.

Fishing can be done in many ways and this technique involved attaching a line and hook to a stake and placing these along the riverbank. You then collect
them a few hours later and see what you got. This process involves a fair bit of swimming so ibwas a little surprised when all four locals in the boat jumped into the river and carried downstream like in a storm water drain and Thea and I were left waiting and hoping in the boat. About half an hour later they appeared again this time from upstream. I felt like the river had become a playground and was merely a loop that you could go around.

With everyone back in the boat we continued upstream navigating past a tree that had fallen across the river.

Arriving in Bak Fen we were fortunate that the teacher an chief of the village were home. So we had a meeting to look at their desires. After some discussion it was concluded that what was most needed was 41 tables and chairs for around $800. Ideally they would like a new school but at a price tag of around 15,000 this is beyond the project budget. This was a good end to the day and a good outcome for the village.

After the meeting we quickly met with thee's sister before descending down the rapids to Pak pong. An exhilarating ride and we picked up a couple of eels and fish from the stakes that has been set out. It was well after sunset by the time we got back which required showing in the dark. The night was rounded off with another Basi ceremony and plenty of Lao whisky. Most amusing were the rambling of one of the elders that apparently couldn't decide whether to speak vietnamese or khmu and thus couldn't be understood by anyone.

That is enough for today, more on the return journey tomorrow.

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Nam Fen Schools Project - Background

I think it is time for some background for people that are new to this blog.

This journey started back in 2007 when I lefty Australia to travel through south east Asia for 6 months. During that time I spent 6 weeks in Laos and under took a range of exciting activities that helped me fall in love with this beautiful country. The most special experience was taking six days and heading into a remote village to really get a sense of village life. I was taken into the family household of the guide I was with and ate, slept and worked alongside them for the six days. It was a truly unique experience and one which will shape the rest of my life.

My parents always told me that education is key to improving your life and so I was struck by the effect that having such limited access to educational resources would have on the opportunities the children of the area would have in the future. With broken blackboards an absence of books and teaching resources these kids will be doing it tough in the modern knowledge economy.

So I started with a small gesture of buying two blackboards for one of the villages and it all grew from there. After a successful music fundraiser in 2009 and a more successful trivia night in 2010, I have returned to Laos with around $4000 to spend on supplying resources that the teachers need. And that is why I am here.

My team involves a good friend of mine Thee who guided me the first time and he enlists the help of friends and family to manage the logistical operations. We met again today and talked of our plans over the next two weeks.

In that discussion it became apparent that there is much that is changing.In the last two years one of the villages (Houay Kasak) has been merged with another village, Ban Kok. In addition and a little concerning is that there is now a road that provides access to all the villages in the area that was built by Vietnamese construction crews. Why this came about is because the Chinese are building two dams along the Nam Kahn river which the Nam Fen feeds into and roads have been built to allow construction crews in. From there it was only a reasonably short extension to build a road to the five villages of the Nam Fen river. What the impact of this will be is yet to be determined but life is definitely changing and these villages are becoming less isolated. This creates opportunities and costs that need to be managed.

The other point of interest is that the government is taking a greater interest in what we are doing and want to put additional controls in place, including itemised tracking of what material goes in. A side effect that is emerging of providing money to these villages is that the education office, wanting to use its limited budget effectively, wants to shift money away from the villages I am working with and provide it to other villages. this is a little concerning and I need to be careful that the villages along the Nam Fen don't end up with a net loss.

So these are the stories of note and challenges as we move into the next phase. Keen to hear your comments and ideas on how to move forward.

See the facebook page if you would like to comment https://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=91621187391

I dug two holes and was stood on

So I dug two holes at the Abundant water compound as part of landscaping activities that are underway. Unfortunately for me just as I started digging the sun came out from behind the grey could increasing the burnt temperature by about 5 degrees. So it didn't take long or the sweat to be dripping off my forehead. These were the first holes I have dug in some time and also the first time gardening for sometime. So what seems like an ordinary experience, was actually a satisfying achievement.

The day started as normal with the catchup on emails and and other errands before heading out to the compound. On the way we stopped to pick up lunch from the market. BBQ chicken giblets and pork sausages, with bread (without the ants) and stewed vege's. Simple but tasty.

At the compound I observed further to work of Abundant Water and the delicacies of working with Laos staff. Both Chantana and Noukam. Are committed workers and with a little coaching keep the show running on a day to day basis.

Riding back to Vientiene past the market, Sunny suggested we go have a massage to ease our tired muscles. He did this by first asking the question what is your pain threshold. This was the right question as a Laos massage is not for the light hearted. Using feet and all I was stretched, tenderized and beaten softly, such that it would be impossible to say that it hadn't done something.

The evening was spent watching (sleeping through) 'The good, the bad and the ugly' with Sunny and friends at his salubrious house.

The next day was spent in town, running errands and preparing to leave to luang prabang. The only event of note was the open mic night at a secret expat location away from the tourists. There I had the opportunity to express my talent to an appreciative but inattentive crowd. But that is the life of a performer.

So now the real journey begins as we start to find out how much $4000 can really buy you.

Ciao

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Day 2 and the rain continues

So I found out yesterday that a typhoon had recently hit the region and thailand and Laos are suffering from flooding in regional areas. So far the human toll is limited but once again the poor regions have to rebuild their lives. The remaining clouds hanging over the region are the left overs of the typhoon and according to the weather forecast will be around a bit longer.

But enough about tue weather. Yesterday was productive as I caught up with Sunny from Abundant Water and he kindly took me out to the research compound. The first impression of a compound full of old vehicles and boats was nit what I expected. But tucked away at the back the etched outline of a kiln could be see shading under a tim roof. Next to it a shed and container indicated that work was a foot. Sunny gave me an explanation of the recent developments of the project and showed me, to my surprise, examples of the finalized filter which was a long way from the simple bowl I had seen in Australia.

Driven by engineering concerns and the villagers desire to feel hi-tech, the form has become sharper with straight lines and the inclusion of plastic parts. Not Because it had to, but because the synthetic nature is expected to increase the take up.

The people at Abundant Water have done some great thinking about what it is going to take to get the technology deployed, and in doing so some of the approaches are counter intuitive from a development perspective. Mainly around ensuring that the technology becomes fashionable.

I know I haven't said much in detail here, as it is not mine to say, so I encourage you to go visit their webpage. www.abundantwater.org

The evening was spent with expatriates doing development work with the Laos government and discussing the joys and frustrations thereof. The night was spent at the hotel, chatting with the locals, and englishman and an Iraqi over a few beers.

The morning run was great for the mind and soup for breakfast satisfied the body. Now for some tea. Till next time.

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Day 1

Well, I made it.

This is my third trip for the year and starting to feel rather at home at airports. The familar procedures and structures are becoming all to common. So it was nice when leaving bangkok on Laos airlines, the ground crew all stood in a line and waved us out. A touching gesture from a small company competing against the giants of the airline industry. I think I was I'm the smallest plane to leave Bangkok that day. It's prop engines no match for the jets that surrounded it.

It is of course the wet season and the distinction is all too apparent. Where I remember Laos almost always in the sunshine, I haven't seen the sun yet as the grey clouds meander slowly over from Thailand.

Change is rapid in these parts. Last time I was here the waterfront in Vientiene was a messy organic bank of wild plant and the trucks were just moving in. Now it is a concrete waterfront as seen in many great cities, with a park and new road behind. It is great for a morning run and I hope only that the night market remains.

Life is slow as idle tuk-tuk driver wait for passengers and casual conversations line the sidewalks. That is not to stay that the city doesn't live. As I arrived last night I saw my first crime in Laos as a young boy ripped a necklace of a lady's neck and jumped on an awaiting moto and sped away. There wad nothing to do it happened so quickly leaving only and echo of voices and air of disappointment.

This is after all the big city and every year the roads get harder to cross.

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The journey begins

It's 8:30 and I am sitting in a cafe sending out a few final text messages before I go offline. It has been a long time coming and I can't quite believe that I am about to embark on the journey of a lifetime.

My first stop is Laos. Where, with the support of friends and colleagues in Canberra, I will be spending over $4000 on school equipment and resources for six schools in the luang prabang region.

From there I go to New york to spend two day exploring movement and speech with some of the top theatre trainers in the US.

Then I go home. And I really mean home as I go explore and regenerate the lives of my parents in the small country villages where they grew up and got married.

After celebrating my 30th birthday I will be joined by Renee and travel through copenhagen and oslo into the norwegian fjords.

And finally I travel to Beijing to. Celebrate the wedding of a mentor and friend and experience to home life of a Chinese family.

thanks to all that have helped me create this journey and allowing me to see the opportunity.

Next stop: Vientiane.

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Putting on weight in Penang

Waking up early we showered and packed, chowed down some Rotti Chennai before getting on the bus back to Ipoh. After toying with the idea of spending a day in taiping, we instead changed our mind and decided to go to Penang a day early and meet up with a friend. She had kindly offered to drove down from Penang and meet us in Ipoh and provide us with what was to be a food tour de force of Penang.

After some confusion as to which bus station we were to meet at we finally connected at the entrance to the train station 100 meters down the road. As always it is nice to see a familiar face when traveling in foreign land. She greeted us with a big smile and quickly whisked us away to eat some local yum cha. There we ate steamed pork with century egg and a variety of other exotic savory and sweets, all delicious, though occasionally dubious in origin. Fully consumed we got back in her car and headed south out of town to a cave that has been renovated into a buddist temple. The managing family has worked for many year to and a elaborate on the caves raw canvas. Along with requisite statue the walls of the cave had the moulded and smoothed to allow for a large array of paintings to be created. All in all it is one of the nicer cave temples that I have seen and included a well formed staircase to take to the top of the limestone karst in which the cave is found, from which you have panoramic views of Ipoh. After about 1 hour in the cave Millicent introduced us to pomelo which is a slightly less bitter grapefruit before we headed towards Penang.

The trip takes a few hours but is quicker when traveling by car at 140kph. So we arrived safely at the ferry terminal in the early afternoon and with a bit of coercion managed to jump the que cutting the waiting time. Penang is an island that probably has more people on it than it can handle and so even with a bridge and ferry it cannot accommodate effectively the traffic wanting to get on and off the island each day. Traffic on the island isn't much better. We made it to our hotel, the hutton lodge, a refurbished heritage building, took a quick shower and headed off into the city to get some food. Now were not aware of this but my friend ha already been planning all the things we could do. Most of them involving food. First up to help quench the thirst and feed the stomach we stopped in at the famous Chandol and Penang Laksa. Now Chandol is an iced coconut and coffee type dish with green noodles an red kidney bean. It is about the oddest combination dessert that I have come across but is very refreshing in the hot Penang climate. That followed by a bowl of hot Penang lakes in which the coconut is taken out and the fishyness is added was good to satisfy the body and mind.

From there we did a spot of shopping and drove along the northern coastal route to the famous bath ferrenghi. The most famous beach on penang island and where most of the major hotels are located and also a point of particular traffic difficulties. We were taken here for dinner by Millicent who was in turn in invited by and friend she does her morning walks with. Daphne, is also a environmental advocate after retiring from being s reflexology. Rumour has it that she was involved in getting the rapid bus public transport system established. Anyway the restaurant that she took us to was no insignificant restaurant. The ferrenghi gardens restaurant is an elaborate restaurant that as been put together meticulously by it's owner over more than a decade. The place is teeming with plants, flower a waterfall fish that are all real. In addition the seating areas are organized and themed with ornaments and artwork that gives the whole place a personal feel. Daphne who has frequented to place over many years and friend of the owner gave us a tour of the restaurant including the kitchen viewing area.

After seating and eating our meals the owner stopped by for a chat and told us of events earlier in the day when six village houses were burnt down in a fire. One of his staff resided in one of those houses and so the owner generously organized his staff and the staff of other hotels to come to the aid of the villagers and gave them food and accommodation for the night. His whole story was layered with criticism of the government, who he felt had not stepped up and failed in their duty of care to the citizens. The night was roundly finished off by a song played at our table by the house trio. We headed back having had a great night and fully satisfied particularly the deliciously tender satay beef skewers on offer n

Now I had gone to the doctor just before i went on leave and found that I weighed in at a meager 57kg. 3 kilos lighter than I though I was. So as we continued our food tour of Penang there was and underlying need for me to eat enough to put on those lost kilos. So when Millicent picked us up in the early afternoon after again fighting traffic to get to us we went straight to lunch. This time we went in to the Indian quarter and sat on a corner with a collection of hawker stands we we ate yam cake along with other specialities selected by milli. I ate all the plates empty and then we headed on our way. Weaving through the streets of Penang, this time island away from the hustle and bustle to a temple whose name escapes me at the base of Penang hill. This temple which seems inconspicuous from a distance is an impressive complex that even has a cable car to take you to the large statue at the top. To get there however you need to rum the gauntlet of shops of trinkets and trivialities, then past the turtle moat where turtles clamber and compete for each inch of dry land, before finally reaching the entrance to the temple itself. There are a wide range of temples and rooms in the chinese buddist temple in varying levels of ornateness, however it as the main hall whose floor to ceiling stone carved wall and columns left be in awe. On like other that I had seen that were moulded concrete, thee looked like they were all carved by hand from stone. A tremendous amount of work. The interior wall where all painted with large chandeliers on the ceiling. All this to house five statues of Buddha in various guises. Other than the forbidden city at this point I cannot remember a more impressive Buddhist hall.

But that is not all, there is also a six story pagoda which you can climb with spectacular views over Georgetown and then right at the top by cable car there is a large statue of (name to be found and inserted) which was actually burnt down last year, providing a great fire spectacle for the city. A lantern on the hill so to speak and is now in the process of being reconstructed in concrete. Again the view of the city is great and with mini status of each of the Chinese year animals ( there must be a better name??) placed in a garden setting it provides a nice plateau to sit and relax for a moment. Though someone will need to explain to be why all the statues seemed to look as if they were designed by disney.

It was a good 15min walk before we had made it back to the bottom of the hill, past the turtles and back to the car. Which was the start of the next adventure. The is an even higher attraction on Penang island; Penang hill. I had already received and recommendation from my housemates to climb the hill. (anyone else would call it a mountain.). No I am all for a bit of exercise, however in the sweltering heat it didn't seem like a great idea. Fortunately for the lazy member of the population there is a cable car to the top. Driving ip to the entrance indicated that something was amiss. It looked more like a construction site with a small illegible sign at the entrance than a grand cable car system. Further advice from the men on the site was that the cable car was out of action until next year.

Fortunately milli had a plan B, which was to travel to the top using a jeep service starting from the entrance to the botanical gardens. The drive there was pretty quick though the parking wasn't clear so we had a good 200m walk to the jeep organizers which felt more like a group of 4x4 enthusiasts trying to make a buck than a fully organized company. On the way of that 200m walk we picked up some rojak, which is fruit douse in a sweet and something brown sauce. While interesting on the taste buds was not much more inspiring than what it was contributing to my overall weight. Finly arriving at the un-uniformed coordinator and discovering the prices had increased for evening shift we agreed to defer the exercise, concede defeat to this mighty hi and go have something to eat.

Mlicent took us to a we hidden hawker centre ( you would never find it without a guide ) on the shore with views over Penang harbour, Georgetown, and the northern tip of penang island. In this hawker centre you could access food from all over the world including German bratwurst. We stuck with local selections including BBQ'd swordfish, omelet garnished with snail, BBQ duck, soup and more. As usual it was fantastic and further enhanced by good company and all washed down over a glass of beer. It was sad to have the night end as Millicent had to work the next day and had a lengthy drive back home. (she lives in butterworth which is located on the mainland). Before she left and dropped us at our hotel we agreed that rather than making the journey to the island we would catch the ferry and go enjoy the food on what is her real hometown.

The next day was a write off! Well not entirely but without our guide we stumbled and faltered in regaining our independence. After a slow start we finally got ourselves into a position to walk through the city. We didn't make it up the hill, didn't wander the gardens, instead we walked out of the hotel and used pot luck. We stopped in at a book store, asked for information about travel to thailand. By this time I was getting hungry but tool a wrong to into a historical districts which was charming in the collections of buildings, temples and mosques. But was very light on food outlets. What didn't help was the fact that the government was doing maintenance on the water infrastructure and so large parts of the island had no access to water for 8 hours and so many restaurants didn't open.

The one we did find had a poor lady churning out Char Kway Tiew, another local dish to the neighbourhood meaning that it was a good 20min wait before our food arrived. Our apple juice also required the juicer to buy some apples down the road. :) after lunch we headed back to the shopping street to pick a man bag I desired and went back for a second helping of Chandol and Penang laksa. With not enough time left to do anything substantial we headed back to the hostel and surfed the net.

After our brief sojourn we headed with renewed excitement and light rain out to catch the bus and ferry to butterworth. Our timing worked with Dutch efficiency and we were on the far side in no time admiring the harbour on the way over. Even as we exited the bus station as instructed millicent pulled in and took us on board.

After trying to get take out from a streetside hawker and a restaurant, the first didn't have any food available, the second was a 30 min wait we headed to a sea side restaurant with views of Penang island a night. As most tourists spend all the time on the island they rarely get to see what a sight Penang makes a night as more and more bright lights get built in the city. We ate another fine meal in the balmy air with occasional light rain than made walking in thongs a trifle tricky. We had fried snails, fish and other local delicacies. It was a fine way to end our food tour of Penang. We had eaten ourselves around town and come out fatter by the end. The mix of Malay, Chinese and Indian food including the local variation makes Malaysia a great place to eat. My special thanks goes to Millicent for her wonderful hospitality and grace. May we see eachother again soon.

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High in the highlands

As we wound up the new mountain i searched in vain for the point of the accident to no avail. The higher we moved into the mountains the more the now familiar palm plantations faded into memory.

For those that haven't read my previous blog, the Cameron highlands is the food bowl of the Malay peninsula, supplying a large amount of the vegetables in Singapore. It is also reknowned for it's strawberry farms and tea plantations. The are was opened by the colonial powers but has since become a major getaway location for the Malay population for it's cooler climate. For those that have been to dalat in Vietnam, tthe area bears many resemblances.

Turning into the highlands road toward brinchang and tanah rata, my mum was overwhelmed by the scene of strawberry and other covered land plots filling every flat piece of ground available. Not so much of the romantic Cameron highlands as seen in the promotional material. These small agricultural plots continue for the 15 km of small busy winding roads all the way to tanah rata where we stayed.

While mum was admiring the view I was worrying about where we would sleep. I hadn't found anything I liked on the Internet and arriving 3 days before Christmas was fretting about whether we would indeed have a mattress to rest mum's still sick and weary head. My last trump card was the hope that in true Asian fashion we would be hounded by hoteliers offering accomodation as soon as we stepped off the bus.

Weary after three days travel for both of us. We stepped of the bus into the waiting arms of two fine young gentlemen competing for our money. One was representing the guesthouse I had stayed in last time which I wasn't overjoyed about and the other had nice flowers in the front yard. So we went with the latter.

A short 150m mini van trip to the hostel and we were checked in and ready to roll. So what did we do. Well not a lot really. That afternoon we wandered the one street of tanah rata end to end which we would do many more time. Gorged ourselves on Roti Chennai and availed ourselves of some free internet.

By the mid afternoon both mum and I relaxed an read before heading out in the evening for some Nasi.

The main event for me was to go to the Tea plantations. Now the easiest way is to take a taxi, but that is too easy. Unfortunately, that is about the only easy way to get there. The public bus that travels through the area stops at the entrance to the plantation, and from there it is either walk or hitchhike. Being a newly invigorated traveller I was keen to try a combination of walking and hoping to hitch a lift on the way. What I failed to consider in this was the illness my mum was carrying. So once there we tried to wait for a taxi to pass by to save us the walk. However contrary to this advice given to me, no taxi that did not have people in it. So resigned and a little bit bitter we headed off on the 2 km walk to the plantation.

20 meter up the road our prayers were answered and old beaten up jeep offered us a lift to the plantation. Seated in the tray of the jeep we bounced along the road passing a couple that had taken the same bus and decided to walk. The kind driver dropped us off at the entrance and we walked the last leisurely 300 meters to the tea plantation and tea house. Morph exhausted we sat down for some tea and cake before visiting the factory and attached exhibition. While well setup the factory tour was finished by the time we were caked out as the workers had gone home. However the informative display gave a good overview of the history of the tea plantation.

It was then that we needed to solve the second problem of the day and get out of a place that was difficult to get into. I asked one of the bus drivers for a lift who said sure, but we had to wait for his tour group. Unfortunately when the time arrived 30min later he drove straight past us apologetically as he had been overruled by the tour guide. But this stage light rain had set in and mum was staring ominously at the long walk back to the road. I inquired with a few drivers if they were able to give us a lift with no success leaving us the only option to ask another taxi driver to call in another taxi. As the taxi's are based In tanah rata it would take another 30 min for the taxi to arrive and so we sat down for more tea and cake to pass the time. The taxi meandered down the hill almost on schedule and we hopped in and returned post haste to our hotel for some more rest.

That evening as recommended by my house mate we indulged in a Steamboat meal for two. With prawns, chicken, crab, fishballs, egg, fish and more we ate and talked and are for a few hours though unfortunately I over cooked the prawns and they went floury. At the end of the meal we walked home in a light rain.

The next day we got up early to see the sunrise after making arrangements with the taxi driver the night before. Leaving the hostel by 6:30 to climb the second highest mountain in the area. It was lucky that there weren't too many others on the road as it was not built for two lane traffic. The taxi fought its way up the mountain but it didn't feel quite at home. At the top of the mountain there is a small tower that you can climb up to get a better view. Now as we were driving a light rain started falling reflecting the general overcast nature of the sky so we were a little nervous. However the mountain top was clear and there were shades of blue hinting amongst the clouds overhead.

As luck would have it when arriving atop the mountain the sunrays reflecting off the cloud created the brilliant orange and yellows that we come to expect, which was enough to over come any disappointment we had about the sun never quite showing itself. At the top of the mountain
We burned a candle and sang a quiet song in memory of Marlene, a keen singer and lover of life, who had her funeral that day.

We once again returned to our hotel and did nothing. In fact the amount of time that a I have slept read and not really done much on this holiday is really starting to add up. My only excuse being that it is a holiday.

The rest of the day passed uneventfully. We read, tried unsuccessfully to make it to a teahouse for tea and scones and ended up in a roadside restaurant playing yahtzee while we waited for an impromptu storm to pass over.

The rain did pass as the battery in my phone died, forcing a timely end to the game of yahtzee.

As dinner time arrived we found ourselves in a Dutch themed cafe owned by a Chinese Malay man who had previously owned a restaurant in Assen. The whole cafe is decorated in Dutch football paraphernalia including a scarf with 'Sparta naar vooore!!'. There we ate another substantial meal including ice cream.

That was the end of our highland travails as we would descend the next day. Leaving the cool climate and land of double blankets to a world with no blanket required.

Stay tuned

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Gateway to the highlands

So when we last spoke I was just heading on the plane to KL to meet my mum. Well you will be pleased to know that it all went well.

After some reflection, inspiration which led to me writing a short essay on the plane about the problems of the world, I commenced the traveling min earnest. Immigration and customs caused me no grief and I got myself sorted with a phone and bus ticket to take me to the centre of the city.

My mum had notified me the day before that the bus station we had arranged to meet was closed a suggested an alternate place to meet. So I arrived at KL sentral station and tried to figure out where to go. If there was a information booth it was nowhere to be found and I walked up two stories of stairs and the down again and back up again before I finally got clarity about how to get to this place bukit jalil that mum had mentioned. Turned out that from the station i had to take a train back the direction I came from, then transfer to another train to get to there. This added an extra hour to my journey and while we were intending to meet at 2, didn't get there until 3:45.

Fortunately as I walked into the station through a backdoor between two tents into the marshaling area, my mum shining rose hat and smile was there to greet me. We completed the formalities, excretion and consumption and stepped on the bus. By this stage is was 4:30 which meant we wouldn't arrive at our destination, Ipoh until after 8 pm. By the time we were on the bus we had realized that our lax planning had been highly inefficient and if we had met a KL sentral and caught the train we would have been there hours earlier and ringgits cheaper.

The bus trip was pleasant enough as we passed palm plantations, deforestation and apartment complexes that only Asian countries aspire to (though necessity I may add) I caught up on mum's family gossip and I filled my mum in on the Aussie gossip.

We arrived in Ipoh and caught a taxi to our hotel in the train station adding further insult to injury. But given the palacial, yet slightly worn out condition of our accommodation all was forgiven. My mother was particularly surprised and amused by the celubrious surroundings. After checking in we wandered through the old quarter of colonial building searching for meal natter considering that we had gone in the wrong direction we stumbled across a streetside restaurant, with accompanying Carlsberg and Tiger girls that was able to serve us snow beer, Tom Yam soup and Thai style chicken. This was much needed respite after a long day on the road. With two longnecks down and full stomachs we stumbled back to the hotel briefly accompanied by some Tamil music from a party next door.

Waking from a hardened beds we emerged onto our balcony to be served breakfast consisting to ho hum noodles, toast and Luke warm tea. Today was the day to travel up in the highlands so we packed our bags an wandered to the bus station to get ticket. The bus left at 11am so i decided that we would wander through the heritage town for an hour and the go to the bus. 15 min in mum turns to me and asks what Sevareid doing before reminding me that she was still feeling I'll and didn't want to spend the next hour walking. So we decided instead to search for a coffee house and were helped on our way by an old man thanking us for visiting Malaysia.

We eventually ambled into an intersection with a restaurant on each corner. We decided on thebfruitiest of the four and sat down for some Cinna juice (what ever that is). It look and tastes a bit like come without the fizz. We talked more and amused ourselves watching a lady slice fruit like she had been doing it for 20 years. I thought that she might lose a finger one day, mum though that unlikely.

By that stage the clock in my head was ticking and we travelled Godspeed back to our hotel, collected our luggage and of to the bus station.

I might take the time to establish some context here. The cameron highland are just that, and only accessible by winding mountain roads. A couple of day before we arrived a bus a driven off the road we were just about to travel killing almost 30 of the 40odd passengers, mostly Thai, on board. This was malaysia's worst ever bus accident. Further more the bus itself, a complete write-off was neatly placed on display between the train and bus station along a main road for all to see. I am not sure if it was the local scrapyard, or the governments way of sending a modest road safety message to the people during this holiday season. Anyway, we passed it for the second time as we walked to the bus to travel that same road having taken photos the first time.

The bus was waiting for husband was probably 20 years older than the bus that crashed and so I was happy we were traveling uphill and not down hill.

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Arrival in Thailand

Thought that given that I am on holiday again I might start this blog again. However with 3in left on the clock it is going to be short.

Arrived yesterday and due to being distraacted by misplacing my hotel booking details, spent an exhorbitant amount of money on a taxi that spent 30 min looking for the hostel. No bother, but I better get in gear soon or this could be an expensive trip.

I am in a hostel overlooking the airport, so it shouldn't be to difficult to get to the airport from here, as I fly fo Malaysia in about 2.5 hours.

Looking out it look like we are well in to the burning season as a thick haze spreads across the land.

Have run out of time, no to find my mum

Back to Holiday Matters!!

The first five days in Laos had therefore been pretty intense and both mum and I were looking for a little bit of rest; conscious of the fact that we needed to get moving south. So we had a shower before heading back out into the heat and renting some bicycles just to make getting around a little bit easier. However, short people make for low seat which meant that the bikes were not easy to ride. We headed of to the SNV office, which is the dutch equivalent of AusAid, to get an idea of the types of activities they undertake and if we could held. Turns out there was not much we could do as they prefer to use local resources but it was interesting none the less to sit down and talk with them. After that we headed of to the internet cafe and lunch, followed by another stop brother mouse store, this time for mum and not me.

We finished the day by scouring the night market for silk and gifts and other products. By 9 O'clock however both of us had used up all of our energy and returned to the hotel, our bags a little heavier and our wallets and little lighter.

The next morning we were picked up early for our trip to Phonsavan, in an old van that squeezed ten people in. Lucky I had a front seat so it was more bearable, but you could see the concerned faces of western tourists, packed like sardines, submitting themselves to 10 hours of torture. The driver on the other hand was very cheery, and keen to make conversation with us. After I demonstrated that I could count in Laos he immediately assumed I could speak Laos and proceeded to tell me all kind of wonderful things which I could not understand. The little bit that I did get was that we would only be traveling in this bus for a short time. This turned out to be true, but not fortuitous. The bus driver took us to the bus station just south of the city where the Mini Van's were ready to take us further. However even then once transferred it was still 9 people to a Mini Van, so with resignation I squeezed myself into the back corner for the long driver. After leaving the conversation quickly wilted and the Ipod were switched on as each person coped with the trip in their own way. Luckily the scenery is beautiful and was more dramatic than that which I remember. Other than many corners the trip was uneventful with a short break for lunch.

We arrived in the Phonsavan Valley in the late afternoon and in Phonsavan itself as the sun set. A royal welcome of representatives of the local guesthouses greeted us as we exited the bus, and after consulting a few of them we picked up our bags and headed off. The guest house turned out to be quite nice except for the fact that the screen installed to prevent mosquitoes getting in had a three millimeter gap on one side which raises the question; why bother. Having been to Phonsavan I knew that to food available was not particularly great so we settled for something simple, bought soup for three seemingly homeless boys (who then hassled me every meal for the next two days!!) before again heading for an early night.

The next day My mum went on a tour through the plain of Jars, not the tour she wanted but even though they have 5 different tours, there are not enough people taking tours 2-5 making it too expensive to do by yourself. So I waved goodbye to her, stuck in a early 90's model minivan, and headed off to rent a bike. I had heard there was an orphanage in the town that welcomed assistance so after dropping by the local market to buy some gifts I made my way there. After heading in the wrong entrance and getting many comments and pointing from the locals I headed to the second entrance only to find out that the school was closed for the day and nothing doing. So I handed over my gift, signed the visitors book and head off again. I decided on some random riding through the city. I decided to go look at a new electricity substation project but with a guy seated in a booth at the entrance I took a left turn and headed down some backstreet. 5 minutes later I was confronted with a dead and started hearing a lot of 'falang' commentary and one lady closed her gate after I went passed. I though it probably best to head back to the main road and back to the center of the city.

I had lunch and surfed the net and then headed out north of the town of my bike. The area is nice and I passed a few villages, and skinned pig and a few cemeteries before stopping for a break after about 10km and heading back to the city to meet my mum at the end of her tour.

We had been discussing for a few days whether to head to Vieng Xay (another 10 hour drive from Phonsavan) and decided that the best way to do it would be to hire and guide and driver, enabling us to stop take photos and see some additional sites we would not be able to see, if we traveled by Public transport. So in the evening we negotiated the terms and the price and once all was signed we where invited back to the tour operator's house for a Laos BBQ and beer. Once there we were introduced to his family and found out that it is a trend for Laos people that speak English are encouraging their kids to learn and speak English from a young age. Often speaking English at home, to young children to give them that little bit of advantage in life. Later a group of tourists joined us and I disseminated all I knew about Laos to eager ears (well, they looked eager!) before finishing of the night with the tour operator.

The following morning we had an early start in order to get to the weekly Hmong market that finishes by about 8am. Slightly hung over , I packed my bags and headed out to be greeted by our driver for the next three days. We where concerned about his ability to speak English but these concerns turned out to be unfounded as he was both eloquent in speaking English and knowledgeable about the country and overall we had a great three days.

Our first stop was the Hmong market after about 20 minuted drive. This market is loved because of the fresh produce the Hmong people bring to ti from the surrounding country side, but you have to be there early because its all gone by 8:30. Walking through the market I could not fault the quality of the produce, exceeding Australian quality and would have been quite happy to pick some up and eat it right there and then. Even the meat and fish in the wet market looked fresh and there were very few flies around for an open air market. Surrounding the fresh market is a wide
array of other stalls selling clothes, cleaning product and imported Hmong style clothing, that while pretty is definitely not original.

By the time we left many people had gone and Sawng Thiew's (Meaning 'Two Rows')[i.e tuk-tuks] packed to the rafters with people and Chickens hung on the side headed off back home. We bough some banana and some battered banana's for snacks on the way, however our driver had the same idea and also bought banana's; so with banana's a plenty we headed further up the road.

The next stop was a Hmong village were they used unexploded ordinance from the war to build houses and fences. Unfortunately high scrap metal prices mean that a lot of it has been sold, but there are a few remaining houses and buildings that still use bombshells as fences. In particular one family had a large stock of 20 odd shells a $50 each. It almost felt like an personal banking system. What was most striking about the village was the flowering of the Christmas stars and other plants in the village which gave it a lush and vibrant feel. We spent around 40 minuted wandering the village, observing the kids and the local pet monkey an a chain before getting back in the car.

After a brief stop at a silk weaving village, were no-one was currently working and a hot spring that looks like a development project gone wrong, even though the water is really hot, we stopped at Muang Kham for lunch. At the same time a Korean Cyclist heading in the other direction, finishing the mountain climbing we were about to commence, perched his bike on a camera tripod, checked his GPS and also settled in for some rice fro lunch.

Back in the car we headed further up the winding roads of Laos into the far north west that is only just opening up to tourism. I think I have said in my blog previously that Laos is the land of 10,000 turns, as you wind you way through the mountains, up and then along the ridge before descending down to a river and then back up onto the ridge. We passed many villages occasionally stopping for photos including those villages that are hooked up to solar power. We passed a village were our driver had stayed fora while and hoped to meet the family. the family was out but one of the children let us in and showed us around their simple accommodation, including the battery pack that accompanies the solar panel. Generally they can get a full night of light and TV out of a single battery charge. We admired the deer heads on the walls before stepping outside and continuing on our way. The night we spent in Nam Noen, a small town along the river Noen, with two guesthouses and little more. Sign around the town indicate that it is trying to be a model village. The guesthouse was basic with shared bathrooms and not hot water but this was offset by the peaceful atmosphere with people playing volleyball at the local temple and others sorting rice, watering gardens and doing other chores at the end of a long days work. We sat down for dinner and we joined by four cyclist from the Netherlands who had just completed a very tough day from Vieng Thom to Nam Noen. One of them wasn't feeling well and plans were being made to get transport rather than ride the next day.

Dinner was pleasant, though in a touch of sad news, on of the waiters was calmly nursing a baby the whole evening and when we returned to the village 2 days later we found out that the child had passed away, as we watched a small funeral procession pass through the town. After dinner it was time for bed, which turned out to be the worst night sleep I have had.

Ceremony's and Relaxation

It had been a busy day, and we were tired coming back to Houay An, Tee's village. When we arrived after dark to the bemused looks of the local, Tee's wife wa already starting to cut the white string they use for the Basi Ceremony. This is a ceremony used to celebrate happy occassions and also to provide thanks and goodluck. This was my forth such ceremony, but it was my mum's first and so I made sure I didn't tell her what was going on. After a while we were invited into the livining room where about 15 or so people had arrived to participate in the ceremony, that after four times I have still not been able to record the chanting that occurs during the ceremony. The ceremony concludes with the placing of strings by each person on the wrist of the guests and those that brought them here (i.e. Tee), and then eating of chicken and the drinking of Lao-Lao before starting the main meal. AFter dinner we were given an extra special treat of Khmu whisky which is drunk using a strw directly out of the clay pot it is fermented in. Mum wasn't all to impressed with the Lao=Lao and whisky, but then again most of the Lao women don't like it either.

Anyway after all this alchohol and a long day, we went to bed reasonably early and looking forward to a more relaxing day.

Waking in the morning to the sound of roosters (to be honest they never stopped all night) we had breakfast (stewed bird, whole, and sticky rice). Before we headed off however we had one thing to do, and that was to deliver some of the things we bought to the School in Houay An. Waited for the teachers to arrive and then in a very short inconspiquous ceremony we handed over book and pens, balls and a net to the Teacher who accepted the gifts greatly with many thank you's. As we left the school we could see the urgency as the school books were immediately distributed amongst the children and at the first play time the new net went up immediatelywith eagerness and care, ensuring exactly the right tension, they started to play with more skill than I could ever have.

Getting our things together we quietly headed off to the Elephant Park and Tad Sae waterfall meeting some other dutch tourists heading the other as we crossed the river. Tee drove us to the Elephant part were due to that fact that he worked there prviously was able to arrange a special deal for us with a short elephant ride and washing in the river. I hopped on to my Elephant with relative ease as I had done it before, howeer Mum needed to use a raised platform to get on. as we walked toward the river and down the embankment mum wasn't all that impressed and looked like she
would rather be somewhere else. You don't realise how high an elephant is until you are on one. But once we were in the river and falling off didn't seem so problematice, we both had a good time cleaning the elephants. They Particularly like a good scrub behind the ears, where they can't easily get to. Just like your own household pet.

After cleaning the animals for about 15min we headed back to the park, were we sat and had a drink while waiting for the boat ride to the Tad Sae waterfalls. The boat trip was nice, with the occasional water snake swimming passed and many butterflies flying around with the occasional Laotian fishing near the banks of the river. We arrived at the aterfall which has a bit the feel of an expat enclave, as the mingle around the many cascading pools where you can swim and dive or just pose. The watr was a little cold so after about 20min in the water we got out to have lunch. Climbing stairs that was almost a ladder we sat in the restaurant and order beer and food. The beer came, the food did not, and when it was time to leave, it turnedout our order had got lost. So we cancelled and left still hungry. Arriving back at the Elephant park Tee was there to meet us after completing some work in Luang Prabang. As we were still hungry we stopped at a road side restaurant for some noodle soup. Were a friend of Tee's dropped by and asked for a lift to the city and to try out my Ipod. With lunch finally out of the way we headed back into Luang Prabang by purchase a few extra thing after taking stock the day before.

We again arrived back in Tee's village. Houay An, after dark and had to wait for someone to come from the village to take us over. This time the evening was quiet and after dinner I talked with Tee about the delivery of the materials to the other schools and negotiated a rate of pay for him. He will deliver the remaining items to the schools when he finishes three weeks of bicycle tour work he already had lined up. He will hopefully take fotos and send them to me. The following morning he would leave at 6:30am so we said out goodbye's and went to bed.

In the morning, Tee, knocked on the door to say thank you and good bye one more time before he left and we stumbled out of bed an hour later for breakfast. At around 9am Tee wife and mother in law accompanied us across the river to the main road and joined us for the Tuk-Tul drive into the city. After sorting out some remaining financial matters we said our last goodbye's and went to find a guest house for the night.

A great day Shopping

So we (Mum and I) arrived in Vientienne after an early (4:30) start and last minute stress at the airport as I was a little confused about where to check in. But the stress was all fo no reason as the flight was delayed by an hour in the end. The flight as usual; uneventful and we arrive mid morning. Thoroughly exhausted we had to relax by spending the afternoon on the banks of the Mekong, drinking beer and eating Larp with Sticky rice and slowing down to Laos time. Needless to say this didn't take long as KL was downright stressful compared to Laos. Having previously arranged a return trip to the airport on the way; dutifully our taxi arrived at quarter to three, to whisk us back to the Airport for our trip to Luang Prabang. Checking in with an "e-ticket" (i.e show your passport) seemed dubious when we were told, but ended up not being a problem. So we waited for another hour so we could board as this place was also late.

The trip to Luang Prabang is a short 40min hop by plane and as we flew in through the late afternoon sky with the mountains on your right and the Mekong on your left you can but help feel the Luang Prabang that is increasingly getting attention. It is now listed as one of the top ten travel cities in the world. However the more you talk to people here the more you think that it may not last long and development is going ahead at pace. The city and Laos might even get its first golf course soon as a multi billion dollar Taiwanese investment plan is gaining traction.

We grabbed a taxi and traveled to the same hotel that I stayed at last time I was here but they were unfortunately full, so they sent us next door where they looked after us for the same price. A nice 2 bed room with own shower for a healthy 10 dollars. We both had a quick shower before heading to the night market, but neither of us were in the mood to shop and were ready to go to bed after starting the day at 4:30 am. While we were out we came across Mellisant, who we had met somewhat distraught in the travel office in Vientienne. She had planned a four day holiday in Laos for her birthday, and was getting frustrated with the amount of time she had to wait in various places. We had a quick chat on the street and she recommended a crepe stall up the road, so we parted and went looking for some crepes for ourselves. After mum got her crepe we walked to the river and had beer (causes it is what you do in Laos) and dinner before walking back to the hotel for a well earned
sleep.

The next morning we woke up, got dressed and headed out for some Pho (pronounced 'Foe')with extra chilli to help make you sweat. After calling my friend Tee to see what he was doing, we went for a walk around the city, heading out to the main road before returning along the Nam Khan river visiting some temples and shops on the way. We also bought Postcards which we are yet to complete. Tee, who was doing a half day cycling tour, finished at about 2pm and we met him at the cafe next to where he worked. He then gave us a quick tour of the city, including Waty Pha Phon Phao which is a gold painted temple on the top of a hill just outside of Luang Prabang, Wat Xieng Thong, the largest of the temples in Luang Prabang and finishing the day walking up Pousi Mountain to watch the sunset with about 200 other people. We did actually see the sunset, framed by the heads of the other people. All in all a much longer day than we had envisaged. Again we met our stalker Mellicent and invited her to have dinner with us. Tee dropped us off at our hotel and after a shower and a changed of clothes we headed out for dinner. Mellicent took some time to get our message so we started dinner without her, however when she did respond it took 15 minutes find her and bring her to the restaurant as the lack of distinguishing feature of the 20 odd restaurants along that strip, makes it difficult to direct someone, but it all worked out in the end. We introduced her to some Laotian food and then after dinner went for a beer (or two) at a local bar to celebrate her birthday. Arriving home after the front door had closed, I knocked quietly in the hope that someone would open the door. I think I startled the guy sleeping in the foyer but he kindly opened the dorr and let me in.

The next day thing had to get serious and I had to do some of the work I had come here for, but unfortunately my guide had to work again for a few hours. So we had breakfast with Mellicent and said our goodbye's, did some internet before walking into the city. I was on my way places, when Tee called and came to pick me up. This was the day to check prices and estimate costs for the Nam Fen Schools Project (see Facebook page). We traveled to the Pousi Market which is the local markets where you can buy almost everything except large mechanical and electrical imports from China. We got all the prices for school books, pens and pencils, etc... From there we went to look for the prices of soccer balls, before heading to the Big Brother Mouse a local Laos childrens book publishing company.

Having checked out the prices I then sat down with an Dutch ex-patriot that operates a cycling tour company in Laos, to talk about his experience of doing business in Laos. He had very good knowledge of some of the many difficulties of doing business in Laos and was very helpful. Also providing some insight into some of the thing happening in the background in Luang Prabang.

That night we spent in Tee local village so we drove out of town about 15 kilometer south of Luang Prabang and after throwing out bags on our shoulder walked down to the river and crossing b y boat to the other side. The evening light was again stunning as in filtered through the reeds onto the calm water of the Nam Khan. We had fully reached Laos time as we stopped on the bank to watch the unfolding scene of activity on the river. We walked along the dusty path to Tee's house where I had been twice before but this was the first time for my mum. I introduced my mum to the extended family living with Tee and sat down for some water and beer. With the children playing and a steady stream of local returning from the field we sat and watched while catching up with Tee about all that had happened in the last while. Dinner was served and as usual even though cooked on a wood fire, it was exquisite in quality; by far the best food you can get in Laos. Tonight we went for an early sleep after a few long days.

This morning we woke up with a plan to got to a waterfall before heading into the city to buy things for the schools having set our budget and itemized list of what to buy. On the recommnedation of the dutch ex-patriot, Robert, we made a stop past the ministry of education for the region to talk with the officials about what we were doing. At first I was apprehensive as Laos is in the region to 144th on the corruption and transparency lists but was happily surprised when the officials were very supportive of the idea. They wanted no commission and only to know exactly what we were providing to the schools. This was in part so that they could check that what were providing was actually getting to the schools, which is good news in terms of accountability. We took photos with the head of the office and said our thank you's and goodbyes before heading to the waterfall for a bit of R & R. A short walk up to the top of the waterfall and getting a little lost on the way back down was enough excercise for the day and we headed into town.

We started at a shop on the road where we bought 7 Soccer balls, 14 bamboo balls for the Thai style volleyball, 7 nets and butchers paper. After that we headed to the Pousi Market where we bought 350 books, 350 pens, 250 pencils, 48 boxes of coloured pencils, some large books and whiteboard markers for the teachers and tape to hang the butchers paper on the walls. Finally we stopped off at the Big Brother Mouse where we bought 98 reading books of various types. All this for less than $400!!.

With the car packed and a little exhausted, we went down to a cafe on the mekong and, you guessed it, had some Beer. By this stage the sun was setting of the river, a light breeze was heading northward and a little kitten with infected eyes and no mother was probably spending its last few painful days lying in the sun, and hoping for a little peace and respite. We headed back to Tee's village arriving after dark to the bewilderment of the local washing in the river as we carted boxes and bags of stuff across the river to the other side.

It was a very satisfying day and I felt relieved that something had actually been achieved and purchased after so much time. My big thank goes to Tee, who I could not have done it without. There is more to tell, but I need and you need a break. Please keep and eye out for the next edition.

Also full list of what was purchased and what will go to which school will be made available on the facebook page in due course. Bye for now

One day in Malaysia

We'll the last few hectic weeks are over with uni and work and we made it safely off the plane to Malaysia. No real drama's but planning there has been little off particularly in the financial department.

As you may or may not know this trip through Malaysia and into Laos, is partly a holiday, but also to deliver kindly donated monies to school kids in Laos. Tomorrow I fly out to Vientienne before heading straight north to Luang Prabang were I will meet up with my guide and assistant, Tee.

Of course all the thing I should have done such as obtain Travellers checks, I didn't get to do so there may be some joys in actually getting the Money into Laos through the still emerging electronic systems there. But it should be possible without to much exchange rate loss (which I will cover for).

That was the initial disclaimer, now onto what has actually happened. I woke up at 6am, packed a few final things, had some breakfast, before being picked up by Renee at 8am. A quick stop at work for some last minute photocopies and then on to the bus station, only to arrive rediculously early. Better early than late is what I always say. Anyway, onto the bus (no spare room) and settled in for a nap until Goulburn before twiddling my thumbs for the next two hours to the Airport. On arrival got a text from mum my that she was still at home, Great!! Another 45min twiddling of thumbs and she was there and we checked in and completed to formalities without any troubles. 2hours later after a Beer and G&T we were airborne. The flight; suprisingly; uneventful. I introduced mum to 'Up'before settling to watch 'Chocolat' and 'The boat that rocked'; both good movies.

We arrived late in KL and decided to front up the money and taxi to our hotel; again no dramas.

The next morning, slow rise and free breakfast made it a good start, though the rain was a little concerning. Not that it is cold! About 28 degrees, 90% humidity. We decided to start the day with a walk to Chinatown were mum did her initial haggling from which the price agreement was way too easy, suggesting a still inflated price range. From there we walked through some of the food markets and wet markets, stroked a pig snout, before heading outback for some food and drink. Unfortunately no Rotti Chenai, so it was just tea with sweetened condensed milk. Forgot to order 'tarik', i.s. Black. From there I decided to go to the mosque which is only a short 200 meters away, however there is a river and a train line in between so it took us about an hour to walk up and down the step, and walk through tunnels intended for cars for us to get there. (On the way back we realised that there was an underpass that would have made the whole walk easier. With both looked dumbfounded at eachother that we didn't see it on the way there.)

At the national Mosque we stopped for some Chilli soup and talked with a son on Indonesian expats that now live in Holland, who work in some really funk agricultural technology that mean that people don't have to plant seeds anymore, they can just monitor computer screens that monitor robots. A pleasant suprised given that he immediately started talking to us in Dutch, without even asking if we could speak it. Coincidence?

Returning back to the city, taking the underpass, we took a left turn at the intersection which sent us on a loop in another direction. This is were we realised that KL isn't really for walking and decided to get on a train to the Petronas Towers, which compared to all the walking we had done was easy.

I admired the towers from the base spent some time in the park behind it playing Yahtzee. Mum won. Whoops, I should have said something earlier, but I Mum is travelling with me for this trip, bravehearted soul that she is!! From there we decided to head home as the day was getting on. We walked passed a hawker centre and picked up a quick meal and chatted to one to stall owner before catching the monorail. We decided to take the thing to the end of the line before returning to our station, which was near where we started just to get another view of the city.

Then there was some planning to do, as none was done before we left. Passport foto's to get visa, kind of important. Money in right currency to actually pay for Visa; very important. Cash to get to airport; really important. So after some effort we managed to get all that sorted and get mum a pair of shoes and her face half cleansed and watch the indoor rollercoaster and have a cup of sweet bitter tea, before heading back to the guest house for a beer. And that is were I am now and if the prices weren't so high I would be having more beer. We'll, I guess that is waht Beer Laos is for.

So tomorrow the flight leaves and the real adventure begins. Stay informed and win prizes (unlikely but possible) right here on 'Is this the real life?
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