It seems like there's a lot going on these days. Fortunately, I took some pictures to help me explain:
My host family had a nice party for me on the evening of my birthday. It was kind of fun, but busy, playing the role of a Lao host- making sure drinks are filled and food is eaten.
My host sister steals a plate of luksin (meat like hotdogs) from the neighbor boys. My host brother/ cousin Lay is on the far left. The other two are good friends and both study at the national university.
With the women of the neighborhood.
The men. My host dad's on the far left.
Two Cakes!
And the kids. My host mom is just barely on the far right. A split second after this was taken, I was stopped so two-year-old PK could help me blow out the candles. Even though he had a fever, he was very eager for the cake to be cut.
I thought May would be a pretty solid month of rain, but it sounds like I have to wait a little longer. I'd assumed the rainy season would come suddenly and completely, but that's not the case. What was I thinking- something in Laos would come all of a sudden? No, of course not. It has to come slowly. It's rained probably an average of once a week for the past few weeks, usually on Monday, my default day for laundry. I guess once a week is not a drought, but it still doesn't seem like that much, especially because when it's not raining, the weather's been incredibly hot and humid. I've gotten used to sweating all the time, regardless of where I am or what I'm doing.
However, the rain we have had has translated into a wide variety of plants and flowers. Or maybe we had them anyway, and I just didn't notice before. Laos has a huge variety and wealth of plants that continues to amaze me. With this comes a vast knowledge of these plants. A month ago, I attended a presentation on natural forest products. The presenter noted that on average, individuals in villages he visited could list over 100 types of plants that they could eat or use as medicine in some way. One village listed over 300 types. Sadly this knowledge is disappearing, but I still am impacted by it in the city. It's not unusual for a neighbor to come over and cut leaves off a tree or bush to be used for a meal they're making that night. Here's a few flowers and fruits that are just now in season:
I haven't figured out the name of this tree in English, but its bright red flowers really stand out against Laos' greenery.
This one is known as rambutan.
And puppies! Mali just had a litter of six.
Thailand is in the news, at least in Laos. If you haven't heard about the protests, maybe you should look it up. In fact, in listening to a Chinese program (in English), I heard one of the commentators claimed it was the worst lack of attention to a world event in recent history. I think this is exaggerating it a little, but it does seem a little overlooked. Of course, Laos can't overlook their neighbors across the river. Especially when most of the television stations are from Thailand.
Here's a quick overview: Thailand used to have a prime minister named Thaksin who is very rich himself, but led a government that favored the poor in some major ways. (Many poor Thai live in the northeast- the area where many former Lao have settled.) He is the only prime minister to govern a full term. In 2006, he was ousted by protesters wearing Yellow Shirts. Abhisit became prime minister, and is seen as a friend of social elites. Thaksin was accused of many counts of corruption which may well be true. Abhisit doesn't seem to be corrupt, but he hasn't helped out the poor in the same way.
The poor Red Shirts recently took to the streets of Bangkok in early March and massed in a huge rally. Most of the time, it was peaceful. They want new elections (possibly including Thaksin) among other demands. A majority of them have been non-violent, but some have weapons like slingshots and Moltov cocktails. When recent negotiations fell through, the government forcibly began removing protesters, which sparked rioting. Over 40 people have died and almost 400 have been wounded. The government has worked really hard to put on a good face to the international community, but their reports don't always line up. They have superior weapons and the death statistics reflect this. Most of the violent protesters have dispersed, but this might be worse as they spread in small groups throughout Bangkok. I suppose this is another instance where Lao can point out that Thailand isn't better than Laos in every way. (Not that the Lao government is close to being perfect.)
This is the last week of regular school! It crept up on me, and it seems like the semester flew by. Next week are exams, and then I'm off to work at the office. I'll definitely miss the kids, but working in the office will be a nice change of pace. Hopefully I'll be able to teach a little when school starts again in September.
