Lao People's Democratic Republic

Vang Vieng - the view from our resort in Laos. Nook, a graduate of the SWU program, built and operates this property.  Both the faculty members and students are very proud of Nook's accomplishments!

His resort, along with the outdoor recreation businesses in the area bring new forms of employment and opportunity to the Laos people. I loved observing and hearing about all of it.

Laos was a former French colony and today is a communist republic. The capital of Vientiane has a monument akin to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris.

 To travel where we did in Laos meant traveling on a road with no line markings that was often riddled with potholes and windy curves. Dramamine was the pill of choice for everyone on the bus except for me and the driver.

It took us 4 hours to travel 109 miles.

 Markets - open air and super, are just about my favorite places to visit in a foreign country. I took a double take at these little gems for sale.

  Song River

This, and the previous picture, is our intrepid group who hiked to the summit of this mountain.

 Beer-Lao

The resort has its own rice field.

The last night in Laos there was a BBQ for our group.  Laos food is very spicy and I loved every bite.  I rarely had to add any more spice, but my Thai friends did!

Would you like to ride in my beautiful balloon?

This was never on my bucket list, but my Thai friends convinced me a balloon ride would be a good thing to do.  To allay my fears, Panpim told me that her fortune teller predicted that she would have a very long life.

Malin told me later that she could tell I was nervous. She was right. I think I look nervous in this picture!

 Sunrise from the balloon

Beautiful Laos!

Crazy "motobike" taxi rides...

Pranee and I went out for tea and coffee this afternoon. On our way back we took the skytrain (elevated subway) and "motobike" taxi. The motobike ride of about 1 mile cost the equivalent of $ .03!  Pranee rode side saddle. I took a great video of my ride but am unable to upload it from my phone, so stay tuned.

Pranee and I waiting for a taxi.

Two students.

After class today.

 Busy Bangkok street.

The taxi cab driver's front dashboard. You drive on the right side of the car in Thailand. Tom is looking forward to doing that again.

Campus life at SWU

 Bangkok comes alive in the evenings after the sun sets and it cools off.  At the university, the students (who look more high school age than college) go outside to practice group exercise.

No need for costly gym memberships, just get some friends together and do your thing!

Tonight I had dinner with the dean and several faculty colleagues from the Faculty of Sustainability Studies.  We went to a famous Vietnamese restaurant called Le Dalat, just steps from campus.  As is the custom, many different dishes are ordered and then shared among the group. This is sliced pork sausage on noodles.

 I think these are spring rolls.  Whatever they were called, they were delicious. The greenery behind the rolls are fresh herbs that you tear off from the plant and eat.  I ate some leaves but I don't know what they were called.

Panpim, Natedaow, Annt, Kanda (the college dean), Nune and me.

Today I had a Thai massage. It lasted 1 hour and cost less than $10!  I was skeptical because, in Tom's words, I'm a guitar strung too tight! But it was very relaxing and I only jumped about 6 times.  Massage is common in Thai culture and considered a part of healthful living.  While there are many high-end health spas that charge much more, there are also more affordable options for everyday folk.

More on my radical sabbatical in Bangkok

 This first picture is a great example of Thai extremes.  If you click on the picture you will see how people have made elaborate gardens on their balconies.  At the bottom of the picture is a tangle of electrical wires which is commonly seen in the streets. My question is: how does anyone know which wire goes where, and which wire does what?

After class I went to the office and found all of this for lunch.  The Thais go out to a little shop or a market and buy all these tasty treats that are served with rice.  I'm not accustomed to eating such large meals but I did sample a few for good measure. The green stuff is morning glories. I liked the bottom left that was full of spicy red chilies.

Supranee (with the checkered top) invited me to dinner with 10 people mostly from Cambodia. First, though, her former student had stopped by to give Supranee a back adjustment - like chiropractic. He asked if I wanted a treatment and, of course, I said sure. You never know what will happen on the way to dinner.

Good food and great conversation.

P' Daow has moved up in the university from the fieldwork/internship coordinator to overseeing  the budget for the International College.

One night in Bangkok and the world's your oyster...

At last I arrived in Bangkok to find Panpim, Natedaow, and Nune waiting for me.  The flight from MN to Tokyo was the longest (13 hrs) but the final leg to Thailand (6 hrs) was like childbirth...terrible to endure but quickly forgotten once reunited with these folks!

Srinakharinwirot University (SWU) has changed since 2009 with lots of new buildings. I'm staying at Swutel which is the university hotel and international college all rolled into the same place.  I have a suite which includes a queen bed, bathroom, living room, TV, and kitchen.

 Green tea - I'm in a tizzy lately because my blood pressure was slightly high at the dentist's office last week. I've read that 2 cups of green tea a day can help, so what better place to drink it than in Southeast Asia!

I needed to get a visa for my passport because we're taking a 4 day class field trip to Laos on Thursday. These 3 SWU students were assigned to take me to the Laos Embassy. It was only 7 km away but took 30 minutes driving through the crazy Bangkok traffic. They took me to a mall (their favorite pasttime) to wait while the visa was being processed.  This is Lee, Pat, and Palm.

 Some happy Budda fruit.

Guava

Yum

Maybe I'll get to try some tongue fish while I'm here.

Palm told me that some Thais like to use this instant whitening cream to lighten their skin.  The grass is always greener on the other side, isn't it?

Me and my Thai soulmate, Panpim.  The building where I'm staying and working is the multicolored building which is right behind me.

Tom: Should I take a tie to Thailand? Barb: No, there are plenty of Thais in Thailand.

This picture is from February 2006 when I first went to Thailand with Bob and Sandy for 10 days. Malin and Tpong were our guides. Malin later went to ISU and earned her MS degre.

In the above picture Dan is pouring an IPA from his sister's apartment in Boulder. One of her apartment-mates brews for a local brewery and they keep a kegerator...a college student's dream.

These are some of Dan's nice friends at his house.

More friends and some familiar faces!

Smiling sibs

I'm so tired of freezing cold walks in IL. My friends in Thailand say they have 3 seasons: Hot, hotter, and really hot. I will be there for HOT!

Here are my bags for 1 month. The blue bag (carry-on sized) and my day pack.  I'm checking my blue bag - it's so small they don't even charge for it.

How many people does it take to fix a windshield washer?

 Hmm, what seems to be the problem?

Yep, it takes 4. One to work and 3 to watch.