Journal/Blog by Rachel Toyen
August 17, 2006
Greetings from Laos

I am currently in Luang Prabang in Laos with an organization called Globe Aware. This week has been truly spectacular and fulfilling. I have been keeping a journal and taking lots of pictures, so once I return, I will post all of that here. For now, just a quick hello before I am off to help teach English to some of the Novice Monks in the town (really!).....
August 24, 2006
Diary of Laos

I just returned from my week in Laos and have finally gotten a chance to gather my thoughts and write about them. My week in Luang Prabang was one of the most amazing experiences I have had so far and I am sure I wont be able to adequately describe everything here, although I will try.

The week was a great balance of Volunteering and Vacationing. Much of the 'work' we did was not manual labour, but rewarding nonetheless. Most of the $1400 program fee that I paid to do this went back into the projects we did. Food, accommodation and transportation within Laos is very cheap, so that only took up a small portion of the fees. The rest went to buying supplies that were needed in some of the villages and orphanages. Our work consisted of going to the villages and presenting them with the supplies, as well as talking with the villagers and playing with the children. Other projects consisted of teaching basic English to novice monks in the evening and planting fruit trees at a small monk village across the river. The best part of the whole experience was getting to know the people in Luang Prabang. It is a very small town, so you see the same people everyday, and are able to get to know them better, and in ways that you would not as simply a tourist for a few days. The smiles from the Novice Monks in the high school, or the children at the Big Brother Book project house will be the things I remember.

I kept a diary of my week which can be found by clicking the link below.
August 24, 2006
Diary of Laos

I just returned from my week in Laos and have finally gotten a chance to gather my thoughts and write about them. My week in Luang Prabang was one of the most amazing experiences I have had so far and I am sure I wont be able to adequately describe everything here, although I will try.

The week was a great balance of Volunteering and Vacationing. Much of the 'work' we did was not manual labour, but rewarding nonetheless. Most of the $1400 program fee that I paid to do this went back into the projects we did. Food, accommodation and transportation within Laos is very cheap, so that only took up a small portion of the fees. The rest went to buying supplies that were needed in some of the villages and orphanages. Our work consisted of going to the villages and presenting them with the supplies, as well as talking with the villagers and playing with the children. Other projects consisted of teaching basic English to novice monks in the evening and planting fruit trees at a small monk village across the river. The best part of the whole experience was getting to know the people in Luang Prabang. It is a very small town, so you see the same people everyday, and are able to get to know them better, and in ways that you would not as simply a tourist for a few days. The smiles from the Novice Monks in the high school, or the children at the Big Brother Book project house will be the things I remember.

I kept a diary of my week which can be found by clicking the link below.

August 11
I am sitting in the Chiang Mai Airport waiting to depart for Luang Prabang. The one night I spend in Chiang Mai was nice and I look forward to spending a couple of days on my way home. I'm not sure what to expect in Laos once I get there but I am excited. Who knows how this will change me, if at all. U feel like my adventure here in Asia us finally beginning. Even so, I never thought I would be going to Laos for volunteer work. Before leaving Canada, I knew I wanted to see South East Asia, but I was not sure I would like it, or how I would react, but my earlier trip to Cambodia and Thailand was great and it made me want to see more. Time will tell.

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I arrive in Luang Prabang in the late afternoon. Getting off the plane, I notice the beauty of the place, surrounded by tree-covered mountains with lush vegetation. Getting a taxi was easy--no problems. My hotel for the first night is across the street from the banks of the Mekong river. It is a beautiful old colonial residence that has been made into a guest house. The staff is incredibly friendly and greeted me with a cold glass of Lemongrass and ginger tea.

After getting settled in my room, I notice that it is almost sunset, so I decide to take a walk along the Mekong and then check out the night market which starts before sundown and continues till about 10pm. There are lots of outdoor restaurants along the river and lots of people playing something that looks like Boccie Ball. Life seems very laid back here. The tuk-tuk drivers ask me if I want to hire one to go see the sighs, but I decline, as I prefer to walk. I pass lots of food stalls selling veggies, meats and exotic fruits.

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I walk along the night market and see tons of beautiful textiles, skirts, bags, jewelry, boxes, etc. Merchants are friendly and not too aggressive, greeting potential customers with "Sabaidee!" For now I am only looking, but I know I will be back many times later in the week. I wander further down the street and find the guesthouse where I will be staying with the group for the rest of the week. It is also a very beautiful old home across the street from one of the Temples, Wat Sene.

Lots of internet cafes line the main street so I stop in to let my family know that I arrived safely. I notice a novice monk using one of the computers and it makes me wonder what he is searching for or who he is communicating with. The rates are very cheap; about 1cent US per minute. I am hungry so I search for a restaurant. I find one along the main street that is busy so I sit down and order noodles with fish and veggies, a 7up and a Beer Lao. My table is outside so I watch the town go by.

After dinner, I walk around the market a bit more and then decide to o for a foot massage. There is an outdoor restaurant that also has a spa in back and the foot massages are given on the terrace in back. A 60 minute foot massage costs US$3 and feels great. After, I return to my guesthouse and meet An, the Volunteer coordinator, who has come to leave me a message. We sit and talk for a while and she tells me about some of the projects we will be working on. It sounds fascinating, and I cant wait. But for now, I am exhausted so I turn in for the night.

August 12
Breakfast at my guesthouse is served on the banks of the Mekong, but it starts to rain a bit so they suggest I sit on the covered terrace across the street. Lao coffee is dark and strong but not bitter; very rich. The fruit plate they serve is also nice with dragon fruit, pineapple, and a few different kinds of melon.

After breakfast I check out of the room and walk to the guesthouse where I will be staying with the group for the week. Laos 005-small.JPG
This one is also very lovely and is across the street from Wat Sene. I drop my things off and then go downstairs to meet An, and she introduces me to Kelvin, who drives the tuk-tuk that we have rented for the week. He is very nice and friendly and has an 18 month old son who is so cute: Kelvin Jr. We then make our way to the airport to pick up the other volunteers, a mother Adrienne and her 17 year old son, Nick, from Malibu. At lunch, I learn that they have done other volunteer projects, mostly in South America, and that this is the last chance to do one before Nick goes to college next September. After lunch we walk around town for a bit to get acquainted and then go for foot massages.

At dinner, we meet Phonesvan, a professor at the local university, who has been helping put some of our projects together. She also teaches English at the Buddhist high school each evening, and we will be helping with that. She seems to know everyone in town and is always stopping to speak with people she meets on the street.

August 13
While in my room getting ready for breakfast, the power goes out, but there is enough natural light that it does not matter. At the cafe next door, I learn that the whole town in without power, and this is a frequent enough occurrence that it does not affect anything...life goes on.

Our volunteer work does not start until Monday, so today An has arranged for us to visit Pak Ou Caves. Laos 042-small.JPG
These caves have Buddhist and Lao style sculptures carved into the cave walls, and hundreds of discarded Buddhist figures laid out over the floors and wall shelves. Aparently, people did not want to destroy the figures when they were through with them so they brought them here. We take our tuk-tuk for about 45 minutes to a place up river and then a boat to the other side. The mountains and the rock faces are so beautiful. The caves are amazing, although crowded with other toursists. I see a group of monks there, taking pictures with their digital cameras, so I took a picture of that.

After the caves we go to a Whiskey making village where we see how they make Lao Lao (Lao Whiskey). They give us some samples...talk about Moonshine...

Later that evening, after dinner, the power goes out again. Its only dark for about a minute because all the restaurants and stores light candles and life goes on. There is a lightning storm as well that is lighting up the town. I sit on the terrace of my guesthouse watching.

August 14
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Monks only eat 2 meals a day: Breakfast and Lunch. They are forbidden to eat anything but sugar and candy after noon. They also cannot buy food or handle money so every morning, they walk through town collecting food. This is called collecting alms. There are so many monks in LP, that it like a wave of orange walks through town each day. Today we get up at 5:30am so that we can give alms. Most people in town give rice and meat for the 2 meals the monks eat. We decide to give candy, so they can have snacks in the afternoon and evening. We sit on the sidewalk across from our guesthouse and they walk by with bowls that we put the food in. Laos 084-small.JPG

After giving alms, we take a boat across the river to a small monk village. Apparently they found a 200 year ld abandoned temple a dew years ago. They cleared the vegetation and now there are 4 monks (1 full and 3 novice) and 2 men that live there. This village is incredible. The huts where they live are abolutely spectacular and look like something that the Four Seasons would build and then charge tourists hundreds of dollars to stay there. The elder monk shows us his hut which has an amazing deck with a view of the Mekong. We prepare breakfast for them, and then we eat once they finish. After that, they invite us to the temple to pray and meditate with them. The elder monk shows us the proper way to sit while meditating and also how to try and clear our minds..Laos 116-small.JPG

After that, we plant some fruit trees and jasmine in their garden, which we brought from a nursery in town. As we are doing this, the monk says, "The older generation dropped bombs on us; the younger generation plants trees for us." Although it will be a few years before the garden is fully developed, I know that it will be great. Another group of people from LP come to help prepare lunch and we all eat together. Reluctanly we leave the village, with the monks waiving to us as our boat leaves the banks.

Back in town, we have free time until 5pm, so I wander around the main part of town looking at some of the temples. As I pass the temple called Wat Nong Sikhunmeuang (say that 5 times fast...) one of the monks says "Sabaidee" which is the Lao greeting and asks me where I am from. Laos 219-small.JPGHis name is Monk Sombaht and he is learning English at the local business college so he is eager to practice. We start talking and after about 15 minutes, he asks if I would like to see the temple and the grounds. He shows me the inside of the temple and how they chant and pray. He also shows me where the monk quarters are. It was a great opportunity for me to ask questions without feeling like I might offend or be out of line. I ask him lots of questions about what it is like to be a monk and what the rules are about internet, cell phones, television, etc because I notice he has a cell phone and some of the other monks have a television in their room. In Lao, being a monk is not necessarily a life long committment. A large portion of Lao men become monks during their lifetime, if only for a short period. They see it as a time to reflect on priorities and concentrate on their spiritual path. It essentially helps provide a blueprint for living that steer them on a guide for good living. You can tell a novice monk from an ordained monk because the novices wear sashes (usually yellow) around their waists. Before I leave, we exchange email addresses and I tell him I will come back later in the week with others from my group to say hello.

Laos 225-small.JPG Later, I meet up with the group and we walk up to Wat Phousi which is on top of a hill in the middle of town and supposed to have amazing views. It is quite a workout getting up there, but totally worth it, as you get a 360 degree view of the town and surrounding area. Absolutely stunning. After the sunset, we join Prof. Phonesvan at Wat Siputthabat, where she teaches English to some of the Novice Monks and young adults. It is really fun to interact with these students, as they are so keen to practice their English, and they like hearing a native english speaker talk and pronounce things. The class lasts about an hour and a half. At the end, they all ask with a big smile, if we will be back tomorrow. I can't wait!

To be continued..................