notable things of the last week …
moving into the fishpond house which by the way is completely amazing … many hours of creativity, laziness, books, talk, beer and more could be spent here so if you were maybe just a little bit thinking of taking a trip over you should check the photos below and then head to flight centre and book the flight
turning up to the fishpond house on moving day and finding a whole lot of people I knew from the Teachers College and more who had already scoped out where I was moving to, and had set themselves up nicely with sunflower seeds and chairs on the deck
arriving at the fishpond house and being informed by the landlord (who is totally lovely) that his sister in law would be coming to live in one of the spare rooms since I was there alone and clearly wouldn’t need all that space … he probably had a point … but i nipped that one in the bud as quickly as possible
coming back to the fishpond house after work one day and having a visit from one of the very sweet, one toothed old ladies in the village … i went to grab her some water and then found her wandering in and out of the rooms checking it out … her main concerns? i was sleeping alone so must be cold … her offer? one of her sons to marry who could then come and live with me so i wouldn’t be cold … also nipped that one in the bud fairly promptly
waking up at my fishpond house to fish gliding and spinning out of the water … very gentle and far superior to a buzzing alarm clock actually
phooooooottttttooooooossssss …
and so this is the spot where you can while away many hours doing all manner of things … while lazily dropping a line over the edge
not bad, eh?!
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and so this is it … the small building on the left is the bathroom and kitchen but i am just using one of the 3 rooms as a mini kitchen
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a little rainy and cold this morning … but this is what I look out on … more mountains to be seen there when the fog lifts
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two new buddies in lnt and i think will quickly become two of my favourites … both not interested in cooking, and or having a husband at an early age based on the fact they don’t want to spend their hours looking after them at the house … fair point, but a pretty outspoken one around these parts
a little impromptu after work gathering
no nobby’s or samboys here … roasted sunflower seeds, dog meat, a varied assortment of leaves and chilli paste … aside from the dog meat, pretty satisfying actually!
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end of workshop party with people from the three different offices from around the north here
nothing here needs to be said except that you shouldn’t zoom in on this because it is blurry so yes my camera technique needs work
So have just arrived back in Luang Nam Tha after being in another much bigger, somewhat touristy but beautiful old French provincial town of Luang Prabang. The project I am working with has its main office in LNT, but another office in LP and Phongsaly (most Northern province of Laos).
Staying at a guest house for the time being while the bathroom/kitchen/elec of my cute little fish pond house is finished. The town is overrun with tourists at the moment (about 40 at any one time) … and this number spread over 3 restaurants makes it feel a little overcrowded. Haven’t really been in the mood for tourist conversations so have been getting to work on a few little creative endeavours I have in the pipeline!
On Sunday I went for a long walk back to one of my favourite little river spots and soaked up some sun and water. So much for not swimming in fresh water as the rather ridiculous travel doctor who clearly hasn’t travelled far outside 5 star hotels from back home suggested. Two boys from the local village wandered down at one stage to cut some bamboo for new fishing poles and stopped for a little chat. I had a bit of fruit and some tomatoes with me so we had a little picnic together while they wanted to ask me some questions on the topic of why foreigners always kiss each other when they greet! They then expressed concern that I was getting too much sun and my skin was getting dark, so invited me up to their house for tea – one of those perfect unexpected LNT moments that I love.
Oh yeah … my most laughable moment of the week … The male owner of the guesthouse where I am staying works in the local bank here in town. They had a new baby a little while back and have just decided on a new name – “Visa” … yep that’s right … named after the inaugural Visa Card! I had to pinch myself to withhold laughter while commenting on how pretty the name was!
And for the rooster cocks bit you have to read the photos below …
these two cute girls work in the luang prabang office … nom and lee. they have also taken on the responsibility of advising me on current sinh (laos skirts as you can see pictured) trends. they informed me just last week that my sinhs are “last year’s length” and I needed to get them adjusted to more around the mid calf. normally i don’t care much for these sort of things however i am feeling pressured to keep up the office image and apparently there are other women commenting behind my back on it as well! this is worse than the gold coast!
took my camera with me on a little afternoon kicking up of the heels in luang prabang
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so these are some new friends i made while in luang prabang for work … mahn, moi, nom and joi. nom works in the luang prabang office of the project i am here with. very stylish funky peoples … manh has his own hair salon so my locks will be taken good care of while resident here.
so this is a party the day before a wedding as a warmup, so to speak. for drinking games we played a laos style version of spin the bottle … however was in fact “spin the cock of the rooster” … hmmm …
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test driving the new office longboat … many of our target villages are situated along the banks of the river in Luang Prabang and Phongsaly provinces, so this is the easiest way to access
peter (project director) and i
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the driver and kids of the office boat driver soaking up the sun, the breeze and the sights
so have been back in the land of sticky rice for close to 48 hours now and these are my thoughts in no particular order
one i have a really big chicken pox mark on my forehead on that top photo
two i really like running along the river with the smell of sticky rice in the mornings
three i really like sticky rice
four i love the beach even more
five i really really miss the beach
six i seem to like solo time and people time these days
seven i can only remember how to speak Laos when I am in Laos
eight mango fruit shakes are completely amazing
nine i like wearing scarfs on foggy mornings
ten i seem to be wearing that red tshirt in nearly every photo
eleven i am so excited to have a new supply of white white white bonds singies
twelve i don’t think my supply of chico’s will last much beyond the next week
thirteen hopefully this time next year I can speak some okish french
fourteen i have so many amazing crazy wonderful wonderful pals
fifteen i am super lucky for number fourteen
sixteen i do believe i am the only one of my friends not to have children
seventeen having children requires complete and utter unselfish behaviour
eighteen i love my new shiny green thongs (yes i mean flip flops) cheers pottz
nineteen nothing beats a foamy beer on tap at a surf club
twenty tight tourists in cheap countries really annoy me
twenty one the sun makes the world feel and seem like a better place
twenty two i can’t wait for afternoon beverages on my new fishpond deck
twenty three i can’t wait to bbq a fish from my fishpond
twenty four i am happy to be in lp right this moment drinking coffees
twenty five life is good good good
cute blondie girls miss honi and her really wanting to walk little jola jade
two of the greatest husbands I know who have stepped up to the fathering tasks with amazing style and gusto … hubbies of the girls below … oh yeah and I can’t forget to mention the amazing home scone baking that the boys are cheersing over … one of my “must do’s” in aus
the lovely ngaire and leilani having a burleigh moment at PICNIC … a fabulous coffee shop on James St at Burleigh run by some friends … so get there if you haven’t already!
