Lao PDR (please, don't rush)

The weeks are flying by here, and I really don't want to leave already. I am really enjoying both my work and living in Vientiane. This week I wore my Lao skirt (sin), and got lots of compliments. I prepared for an English language debate and reception for my new boss that will be happening this week. I am trying to plan lots of events for students who are interested in learning English, but I only have a month left already! It is going to be jam packed full of things to do. I want to host a pizza party, a movie night, and give a presentation on college life in the United States (several times for different audiences).

One of my coworkers, Christina, is a young woman around my age. She invited me to go out to lunch with her. It was her boyfriend's coworkers at Beerlao, and we went to eat pizza and get ice cream at Swensen's. It was really fun, and all of the people I met were very smart with excellent English, and really fun people too. It was weird to be in Swensen's. I used to go to the Swensen's by my house when I was little, but I assumed all Swensen's had closed down a long time ago. Not so in Asia! They even have smiley face sundaes with the upside down cones that I remember from my youth.

Another day this week, we tried khao piak, which is a Lao noodle soup. The noodles were delicious, and also in the soup was pork and the coagulated pig's blood, familiar to me from China. Christina and I also had coconut juice, which I love (lots of sugar though). My boss, Matt, put a lot of chili in his soup and was tearing and sweating, which was quite amusing. I put just the tiniest amount of chili in and it was still pretty spicy.


I have also been getting Lao style iced coffee in the afternoon, which involves lots of ice, condensed milk, and sugar. One of mine came in a bag this week (no cup, just a plastic bag of ice inside a paper bag inside a plastic bag).



Tomorrow, there is a Happy Hour in the city with Colin Cotterill. He is the author of the Dr. Siri books, which are mysteries that take place in Laos. I haven't read them yet but I purchased one of the books at the local bookstore. They are also available on Phoenix Library as ebooks, if anyone is interested (OpenDrive).

The past couple of days I've done some shopping. There is a large market called the Morning Market, a night market by the river, and also plenty of boutique/handicraft shops. I loved Camacrafts/Mulberries, which features handicrafts made by organizations that help disadvantaged people in Laos. Mulberries makes these incredible, gorgeous silk products, and Camacrafts has lots of embroidery and batik. There is so much wonderful fabric and textiles here in Vientiane, and also so many great handicrafts.

Anyways, I am really enjoying my time here. My work is really fun, and my coworkers are great. The days fly by. I am really digging Vientiane as a city. It is small. Whenever I hang out with my Lao coworkers, they always run into someone they know. But it is easy to get around, with tons of choices of restaurant, cafe, coffee shop, and boutique shop. There are definitely more bakery choices here than in Phoenix, which is a much bigger city. And more independent coffee shops.

I am really amazed at the English level. In China, I struggled a lot more to interact with people daily who did not speak English. Even in Bangkok, it seems like less people speak English. I don't know what it is, but for such a small city I am impressed.