Constructing Vientiane

I've been watching the empty block next to my office become a construction site. I'm taking pictures as they build. They do things a bit differently here...

 

After they had chipped away a couple of bumps to level the ground, (sort of), the formwork is laid out using strings as guides, plastic is unrolled to cover the lumps and bumps and grass

 

Rolling out plastic

 

Rolling out the reo

They ran out of plastic - some areas of the slab won't have plastic underneath. Will it matter? Yup, probably. But not for at least five years. So keep going guys, we've got a 5-storey apartment block to build!

 

Laying out the reo - note thongs and rubber boots - not quite regulation PPE

 

Stomping down the reo

 

In comes the concrete

 

Spreading the concrete - straight over the grassy bits that don't have plastic. Seems a bit wrong to me in a land that is soggy for 6 months of the year - but what would I know?

 

It's a big production and a big slab

 

Barefeet and rubber boots. But I do love the headwear.

 

stay tuned... more to come.

Lunchtime touring of the outer 'burbs

This post is basically to show a few photos of the outer 'burbs of Vientiane. First, let me explain...

I have wheels. I'm still enjoying the novelty. The bike is a bit, er, retro (as one person suggested). But it goes and goes and I enjoy the wind on my face and the opportunity to get out and about and see what's going on off the main roads.

the red rattler

Lunchtimes at work are often long and lazy. Several comrades have a regular system of taking naps at their desks. I've done that once or twice but lately have found something better to do with my time. I go motorbikin'!

If there's nothing else going on (shared lunches, lunch at the bosses restaurant, funeral or shopping to be done) I eat at my desk and then adjust my skirts and climb aboard the red rattler. Off to explore the outer 'burbs and the urban-rural interface of northern Vientiane.

So here's some photos of things that took my eye on one of these rides.

I watched a guy cut this tree down

This is the guy cutting down the aforementioned tree

 

Bummer of a place to be if you can't eat bread

Le Eiffel Tower - a la Laos Telecom

Of course. Penguins. Why not?

 A reminder

 

outer burbs slowly growing and paving

panorama - best viewed when clicked and enlarged

 

Vientiane under construction

 

Guard outside Department of Defence compound

 

 

I think New Zealanders own this company

Independence was won through war - and don't you forget it

A lake

the Lake House (without Keanu)

Rain threatening to ruin my lunch break (it didn't, though)

 

Crafternoon #1

It was Martin's idea but we were all for it: let's do something creative; something arty; something crafty.

Vietnamese-style pointy bamboo hats are plentiful and cheap and so is poster paint. What if we put the two together....?

Poster paint + bamboo = ART

 

Plans to sit in a park overlooking a golden temple were shelved due to rain. Elcira and Jorge's flat is gorgeous and has an inspiring view. Perfect!

Inspired and creative on a wet afternoon

Most of us had no clear direction or approach. But Martin knew where he was going:

Inspired

 

Clara and Jorge got right into a cubist interpretation of woven bamboo:

 Practical application of mathematical formulae

Tentative at first but precise and orderly

 

 Elcira launched into some free-flowing floral folk art:

free-flowing, floral and folky

 

Suggestions were made that I was re-living the decade when Sandman panel vans ruled the streets and airbrushed palm trees were cool. Not true! My inspiration actually came from the view outside the window. I don't think they believe me. 

 

 Not a panel van in sight



 

Some of the aforementioned inspiration may have come from a 3 litre cardboard box (allegedly).

Liquid inspiration

 

Expressing our creativity and individuality made a nice change from the usual weekend activities. (What ARE the usual weekend activities around here?)  It may also have been just an excuse to have a wine with friends.

 

What else are weekends for?

 

Productive or what?

 

I'm not sure if it'll create a new trend in town but painting bamboo hats was great fun and a lovely way to spend a rainy arvo in ol' Wiengchan. Now if only it would stop raining long enough for us to wear them in public!

Mekong River: Fill 'er up!

The Mekong River - as yet undammed

This week I sat on a 5th floor balcony and gazed across the mighty Mekong River. I can only see a small bit of its 4000+ kilometres but what I see is pretty cool.

Wide brown waters

 



The Mekong starts on the Tibetan Plateau and cuts its way through China, Burma, Laos, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. I have seen it in several of these countries. It's always brown. Sometimes it has boats. I've heard it can sometimes have dolphins in it too. There are usually people in it, fishing or washing. Often there are cute, laughing, playing, swimming, naked, shiny kids, too (or was that just in the travel brochures?)

 

I am watching it fill.

When we first arrived It looked a bit like this. Bare, sandy, grassy, not much water.

Grassy and sandy

Behind the dogs it's all just sand and grass, sand and grass

 

Back in May, we didn't know any better. We were still excited albeit slightly underwhelmed by the brown sliver. There were so many disappointments back in those days - the thin strip of brownish water representing one of the worlds mightiest rivers was just one of several slightly less-than-impressive experiences. (The green curry has also been sightly disappointing, but I digress).

 

 

 Martin and Clara - a little unimpressed, but it IS the Mekong! And we are here!

Over in the distance was the brown watery stuff with Thailand looking down on it. (Ah, those Thais! So superior!)

See the brown strip under the green strip?  That's all the water we could see, back in the day

Even as the June rain fell the puddles on our side of the riverbank were unimpressive and kind of useless. (No fish; no dolphins; no swimming; no good!)

Unimpressive puddles

 

Then we started to notice that the water was rising. Larger boats appeared on the other side. Some even had POLICE stickers. Border police? Water Rats?

 



Border police: stopping the boats

 

Admittedly its hard to observe water levels while jumping around with sweat in your eyes and pop music in your ears and aerobics moves to try to master, but the river had started to swell.

 

After days of rain and storms up north, we have a raging torrent. The grass is submerging. The puddles have joined up and I reckon they might even have fish in them now.

Submerging slowly

The banks are slowly being paved and built and riverside food stalls are a thing of the past. I vaguely recall a cocktail on the dirt riverbank a very long time ago. Maybe after all the concreting (if there are not pop-up aerobics classes taking up space) those riverbank cocktails might come back.

 

Paving and tiling and concreting and removing important cultural experiences like riverbank drinks.

Then again, perched on the fifth floor balcony of the Sengtawan Riverside Hotel, looking at this majestic view is certainly a fabulous replacement riverside drinks experience.
 

Riverside drinks, 2013 style

 

 And look at how much water there is now! Quietly flowing, moving massive amounts of water and various other things down south and out to sea. Now if only someone could harness that power! Oh. Oh yeah. Someone is. Dam.

 

Lots of water. Not yet dammed but possibly already damned.

 

Can't wait to see what happens next.