photo opps

I was reading a letter in the newspaper a few days ago. It was from some Lao students. They had written to the paper because they are too young to get driving licences. They had applied several times and always been told that they were too young. This, they felt was ridiculous and causing them loads of problems as they drove themselves to school every day and by refusing them a licence, the authorities were causing them no end of problems as they kept getting stopped by the police. They really felt that this was outrageous and something should be done about it as it was costing them too much money.

I loved that article.

It’s been too cold to go swimming in the morning lately, but the temperature seems to be rising now. I can’t believe how cold it’s been. It drops to around 9°c overnight, so people are wrapped up well, monks are wearing their football socks, and I have a queue of people wanting to use my hot shower, rather than throw bowls of cold water over themselves. Can’t say I blame them.

More fabulous photo opportunities seem to be coming my way – I’ve been asked to provide the photographs for a calendar for 2008 by a business, that intends to send it out to all the major businesses in the city – so my name and contact details should make there way around the city, and also I’ve been asked to take some photos for the school I work for to be used on their marketing and to update their website. I’ve got some wonderful experiences coming up which should give me some more pictures – Chinese New year, two weddings and a friend becoming a monk all happening next week. I’m off shortly to get some ‘Sinhs’ (Lao skirts) made for these occasions. Then the following week That Luang is having a festival – I’m trying to find out what the occasion is – but haven’t managed to ascertain exactly what the purpose of the festival is yet. Hopefully I’ll know before it’s happening.

The country’s main English language newspaper has been advertising for people to help with the editing. I’ve sent in my CV and I’m waiting to hear from them. I think it’d be a really interesting way to learn more about the culture here, and hopefully get some interesting photo opportunities, as well as getting to know some more interesting people here. I’m just waiting to hear back now.

I’ve been learning Laos. I’m a hopeless language student so it’s a slow process, but I’ve almost learnt to read – as in I can read a syllable at a time if I have a list of the vowels next to me (there are 26 consonants – one of which effectively makes a vowel sound, half a dozen compound consonants, and hundreds (literally – unfortunately) of vowels. If I can see the order I learnt them in, I can read, but I often can’t remember all the letters alone. To complicate matters slightly more, the vowels are written before, above, below and after the consonant that they follow (and sometimes all four), and there are also tones to contend with which are added afterwards. But hey – slowly getting there. Hopefully in just another couple of weeks I’ll feel I’ve cracked it – more to follow! The conversation is coming along too. A few things have just clicked into place recently and I am understanding more and more of what is going on around me. A hugely long way to go still, but I’m slowly sussing it.

I was taken to visit the art school last week. It’s a wonderful place that does pottery, sculpture, painting, carving, etc. and I might enroll once my Laos is up to it. I bought a couple of pots and some nightlight holders, but plan to go back when there are more students around as there were a couple of pottery items I’d love to buy. It feels great to get the house feeling more and more like my own place by filling it with my taste, rather than the hand painted fans and wall hangings that filled the rooms originally.

I’m teaching in the evenings, Monday to Friday and I also teach a seven year old Korean girl. She’s from a well off family and is so happy when the lesson is two hours, not just one, or when there will be classes every day. The classes fit around her piano classes and she is non stop. I left the folder of exercises at her house overnight by accident and the following day she’d sorted all the papers and had completed about 10 exercises. Her English is superb but.......

I’m going to Vang Vieng again next week. Just for a day. Seng is becoming a monk. He has been a novice for around 6 years and is really excited about becoming a monk. The ceremony takes place next Thursday in Vang Vieng, near his home and he has asked me along. After being a novice and before becoming a monk the temples encourage them to spend a few days or weeks as a layman so that they can get some of the experiences that have been denied to them for such a long time (generally they become novices at around 12 and become monks at around 20 or 21) and both get some stuff out of their systems, and be sure that they want to continue with these constraints on their lives before they become monks. Generally they get drunk, eat in the evening, play sport, play cards, and spend a few days having a bit of fun and being treated normally. Seng was looking forward most to playing some sport with his friends and I’d promised to take him out to a Korean restaurant one evening, as he’d love it but as it’s a very communal way of eating and only available in the evening, he can’t do it as a novice or a monk. His father’s refused him permission to be a layman though. I am still astounded at how much people will do what their relatives tell them, even to their own detriment, when it’s really nothing to do with them. It just seems such a shame that he can’t have a week of normality. The ceremony should be interesting though. He’s being honoured at the start of a festival in Vang Vieng and is really excited.

I’ll put some pictures of the ceremony on flickr when I get a chance.