Sugar and Spice and IWD

International Women's Day in Laos is a big deal. It's a public holiday, restaurants offer special dinners and groups of female workers band together to celebrate. Sounds pretty good to a card-carrying feminist, right? It wasn't quite what I expected.

My Monday Morning Mumblings: Justice takes a dive - Greed serves a poisoned apple

In January, the Australian Council for International Development responded to the cuts to the Australian aid budget. They wrote about their disappointment with this decision but said despite this they welcomed "the government’s commitment to ensuring our aid is working for poverty reduction and sustainable development." 

LOVE and other delusions

Last week was Macha Bucha Day. It was also Valentine's Day. Guess which one won Lao hearts?

Macha Bucha Day:

According to Buddhist tradition, about 2500 years ago Siddhartha Gautama had become the first Buddha after working out the meaning of life. He was wandering around northern India preaching and converting people to his new way of seeing the world when one full moon evening 1,250 men turned up spontaneously to listen in. These guys became his ordained monks. The Buddha taught them three basic principles: Cease from all evil; Do what is good; Cleanse one's mind.

The master and his apprentices

 So on the third full moon of the year Buddhists celebrate, go to the temple, walk around it carrying candles, pay respects to monks, the Buddha and the spirits of the area.

I saw none of this.

But I did see a lot of red hearts.

Asbestos in Laos PDR

The Fight Against Asbestos in Lao PDR

LAOS is a quiet, mostly rural South-East Asian country that is just starting on a path to industrialisation – but it is growing quickly. 

The construction industry is booming and the economy is growing over 8% every year. The workers in Laos’ busy roof tile factories, however, have no idea they are working with a killer.

Asbestos from Kazakstan is rife in Laos

In Laos, asbestos is being used mainly in the production of roof tiles and concrete pipes. Laos is a relatively recent user of asbestos, but consumption is rising rapidly and could reach 9000 tonnes a year. It is handled, stored and transported with little concern for exposure to its deadly fibres.

Tai, not Thai

I've long been fascinated by the Tai people. No, not Thai, Tai. The Thais are Tai but so are most Laos and the Shan in Burma and lots of people in Assam (India) and some in Nagaland and the Dai and Black Tai and White Tai in Vietnam and of course there are still lots in China and some still around the foothills of the Himalayas.



Some Lao boys with Tai blood in their veins

One Night in Udon

Take me down to UD town

Udonthani is a large regional city in the northern part of the eastern bit of Thailand. I've been there a couple of times, usually just passing through or for an afternoon of shopping. It's about 80 kms away but it takes 2 hours by bus (lots of border-crossing paperwork).

This time it was an overnighter... an adventure of discovery. I needed some burning qustions answered:

The Red Apron of Culinary Excellence

Almost every day in Laos I have seen these aprons. People cooking food, serving drinks, stirring noodles, doling out rice, pouring beer and even bosses counting their profits wear them.

They cover up a lot; they are worn by men and women, boys and girls; they are cheap; they advertise a Lao noodle soup company (or so it appears to me). They are bright, cheerful and everywhere. I kind of love them.