Luang Prabang, Laos

Headed to Laos--Thailand behind us

Luang Prabang, Laos is our home as of yesterday, December 13. This small town of 52,000 is able to be covered by foot but more fun to reach the outer areas on a bicycle. The 2 day lazy river journey getting here started with a 6:30 departure from Chiang Rai, Thailand to a sleepy border town, Chiang Khong where we officially left Thailand and made our way down the steep river bank and precariously got ourselves into a small longboat. With a few foreigners, our luggage and a native with bundles of pillows, we slipped through this Mekong tributary to the opposite sandy shore, Laos. More completed official documents and money were processed while an international community of foreigners waited. Eventually, we all made our way to the 2 longboats [reminiscent of the African Queen] that would take us down the Mekong River for 2 magical days.

Our boat is number 03

The time before the delayed departure was spent getting to know our fellow travelers sitting nearby. (All of us sitting on pillows.) Rajiv and I love being on the water generally and this voyage was an exceptionally special one. The lush jungles covering the hills and mountains, the small villages of huts and the solitary ones, the gardens dotting the recently flooded sand beaches, the meandering cows and water buffalo, the men fishing, the children playing, the women washing clothes and families bathing were facets of the continually slowly changing kaleidoscope of the Mekong River.

An overnight stay in a unique frontier-type town (electricity not available 24 hours a day in many places} was a short interlude between the days. Rain fell during the second day and even though the longboat is open and breezy we remained dry. Toward the end of the trip, most people were reviewing their guidebooks for places to stay in this new town. Rajiv and I found an inexpensive room with bathroom down the hall until we could look further for a place with wi-fi. Roosters crowing and the ringing of the temple bells started today joyfully. A move in the rain and we are now in a room with more than we were hoping for. The guest house is down a quiet lane and we have a view of a golden temple atop a hill. If you are in the area we even have an extra bed.

Phu Si Temple from our window

Fred and his refugee family

Illegal Karen refugees from Burma

After the meditation course, we got the last 2 seats on a minibus to Mae Sot on the Myanmar (Burma) border where we planned to meet with Fred Stockwell and cross into Myanmar to extend our visa.. Fred was featured in an article, One Man Peace Corps, in the NPR Jefferson magazine and when he was in Ashland in October we met him. He works with Karen tribe illegal refugees from Myanmar who are living on the Mae Sot dump. A simplified version of why they are there is: The Karen want to remain autonomous to farm their land in Myanmar, however the Military government there wants the rich resources of that land. The soldiers invade the village, capturing, raping and plundering before burning and setting land mines. The people have nowhere to go except to flee over the border. The dump becomes their home and hiding place when they can’t get into a refugee camp due to the quotas established by the Thai government. Periodically the authorities raid the dumps arresting people and tearing down their makeshift hovels and again the illegal refugees are running for safety. Many return to the dump. After Fred found out about the Karen refugees here 2-3 years ago, he said he found his purpose. Wanting to be truly helpful he observed them to find out what they really needed. He began by getting boots for $l a pair.

Burmese beauty chalk

Enjoying the oranges

We went with him one day to deliver rice and oil and to give the children oranges and bananas. All the money he receives is used directly for the needs of these illegal refugees. (If any of you would feel like including Fred’s work in your giving, send to Janet Eastman, 709 Washington St., Ashland, OR 97520. She manages an account set up in his name.) His work now involves helping provide what the people say they most need. Clothes, food staples, medical needs and keeping a truck to bus children to school are some of the things we saw him attend to as he showed us and told us all he could in the 3 days we were there. Our plan to extent the visas by crossing into Myanmar was necessarily changed when we found out the border was closed. There had been problems from the Myanmar military. We left Fred and Mae Sot with the possibility of a return in January to find out more.

Boy from the garbage dump

Tea Plantation

Out of the many options for extending our visas, we chose to go to Laos. The full day bus trip through central northern Thailand revealed how beautiful this country is. Rice in all stages growing in the paddies of the flatter areas, the mountains of jungles, banana and pineapple patches, corn also growing on these steep hillsides, clusters of farming houses forming villages here and there and the people about their activities all impelled us to continue watching the ever changing scenery. Our home in Chiang Rai was tucked away in a garden setting. Outside our door was a blooming gardenia bush. The garden was the activity center and breakfast area. Our tour of the hill tribes was the highlight of this area for us. An extremely knowledgeable and communicative guide drove Rajiv and I and a German fellow to the area which housed a colletion of individual villages of families of Long-necked Karen, Yao, Lisu, Palong, Hmong and Akha tribes.

All the tribes are believed to have migrated hundreds of years ago from the Himalaya or Southern China hill tribe communities. Their cultures are fragile but since trekking into their areas became a lucrative business the governments have allocated land for them to continue farming and living in traditional ways. The area we visited was obviously set up for tourists with handicrafts to purchase at many houses although the people live and tend rice paddies there. More men were around due to the rice harvest having just been completed.

The next morning we got up early to go to the morning market purposefully to see the many monks walking with their alms bowls. We were surprised to see the many men in their 20’s and 30’s giving food in plastic bags to a monk then kneeling wherever they were in this wet and muddy market for the chanted blessing always given. The diversity of items sold and the intensity of the activity of markets always intrigues us.