Remember the electric pan hotpot I mentioned in “A Typical Home Entertainment Evening In Pakse” (16.12.18)? Well, the day before I was due to return to Thailand, a dear friend brought along a Vietnamese version to share with me and my younger “sister”, Phut. And why is this different or special, I hear you ask?… Continue reading Dinner With A Pakse Sunset
The steps to marriage in the Lao PDR are not quite as we approach things in the western world, and during my recent visit there, I was happy to be invited to the initial stages and celebration of the engagement of one of my Lao “nieces”. The daughter of friends whom I have now known… Continue reading Attending A Lao Marriage Agreement
While Lao people never really need an excuse to sit and eat, whether it is at home, in a café or restaurant, a birthday is always a good reason to have fun and enjoy yourselves. Also, in Laos you rarely eat alone – eating is a social event to be shared and relished, whether it… Continue reading A Vietnamese Lunch In Laos
Having fun is what Life is all about for Lao people, and grabbing every opportunity for a happy time with friends. Thus, when a very dear “sister” of mine invites me to join her, her husband and more mutual friends at her house for an evening of karaoke, food and drink, I make sure that… Continue reading A Typical Home Entertainment Evening In Pakse
If you wander the streets of Pakse, South Laos, there are still a lot of reminders of the days when the French colonized the country: signage is bi-lingually in Lao and French, old building styles are very much that of European style, and until only recently, the old, iron, French Bridge was the way to… Continue reading Boules Competition At Bamlung School For Cadres, Pakse
Conveniently for me, the alley right next to where I always stay in Pakse, Sothern Laos, is not only home to some really great friends of mine, but also the source of a tasty breakfast – and it always tastes better when someone else makes it for you! Fang Sedone Guest House is located in… Continue reading Breakfast In The Alley Next To Fang Sedone
For many years, when I visited the Southern Laos city of Pakse, I would stay with the same family in their hotel. It started off as a shoddy, run-down building, conveniently in the city centre on Road Number 13, the main road that runs from the South of the country, all the way up to… Continue reading Fang Sedone Guest House, Pakse
Once rice harvesting time is over, it is usually the signal for the start of our Cold Season, here in NE Thailand, to kick in. Well, the rice has been harvested, threshed and put into sacks for storage, but where is the cooler weather? Somewhere along the line something seems to have gone wrong, and… Continue reading December Rain
Looking across to the right as I cross the bridge into Pakse, Lao PDR, the view takes me south, away from Pakse city centre. Finally the view of my favourite mountain peak is revealed; a view that always tells me I am happy to be back in Pakse.
The city of Pakse, Southern Laos, is situated on the junction where the Se River flows into the Mekhong river, and hence gets its name: Pak (mouth) Se (name of the river). Its riverfront profile has constantly changed during the twenty years that I have been visiting. My first memories are of it as a… Continue reading A River Front Profile Of Pakse
