Buddhas at Wat Sisaket

 The many Buddha statues at Wat Sisaket in the historical centre of Vientiane have been rescued from across the city.

Les Fromage

Francophone Day at school provided an opportunity for tasting a variety of yummy cheeses.  Olivier the French teacher and Tracey the Mandarin teacher joined in the festivities.

Wednesday Weaving - In the Village

Weaving is a daily activity in most Laos villages.  These women were spinning silk on a hand wheel in a village we visited on the Grade 10 SALSA trip last October.

GIN TEAM

Back to school today and a GIN team meeting at lunchtime to reflect and share conference stories and for a group photo. 

GIN Saigon

Global Issues Network, no tonic! I spent the weekend in Ho Chi Minh City with five students from the VIS GIN team at the GINSAIGON Conference at the Canadian International School. Workshops and project based learning with over 300 students. A wide range of issues were addressed, LGBT, Illegal Drugs, Refugees, Littering, Biodiversity, Animal Welfare and more. An amazing experience and great to be with the inspirational youth of today.

Saturday Signs - Isabella the model

This large billboard is near the Chinese Shopping Mall Vientiane Centre. Isabella is one of my Grade 10 students.  Here she is, beyond life size,  modelling expensive Laos gold and diamond jewelry.

SALSA - A review

This week I have been organising photos for the Year book.  I liked this one of the entire Grade 10 group on the cruise boat on Nam Ngum Reservoir during the SALSA trip in October. You can get a sense of each person's idiosyncrasies from their poses.  I think it will be a good choice for the Year Book.

Wednesday Weaving - Blue and Green

Blue and Green hanks of silk drying at a dye factory on the edge of Vientiane, ready for weaving.

Home with a View

The view from Mair and Marie Do's house is beautiful, as is the house.  Mair says it is the best house in Vientiane and he maybe correct. It is full of art and wonderful spaces.  They built it themselves from three old traditional Laos wooden homes that they brought in from the provinces and rebuilt into one lovely home.

Studio with a view

Last year I expressed my artistic side at  MDO studio, participating in a "Lotus Leaf Painting" workshop, where you paint oil paints onto a panel of lotus leaves. I went back for an afternoon drink  on Friday afternoon with the couple who own this home and studio - French and American artists.  Loved the view from Mair and Mariedo's studio.

Saturday Signs - Word order

The message is nearly right!  Word order is important!

Wax Flower

Wax flowers forming tall towers are for sale near temples were they are sold as an offering for people to bring into the temple.

Mrs Kungs

Mrs Kung's cafe is one of my favorite haunts in Vientiane.  The decor is simple and the produce fresh.

Wednesday Weaving - Golden Threads

Spools of silk with golden tones, on spools ready to woven into fabric with a Laos design.

An environmental nightmare

The hot season has arrived and with it the burning.  The locals burn the grass along the Mekong to prompt healthier grass to grow.  Very unpleasant.  As the rubbish you can see lining the walkway near the stalls.  In the wet all of this area would be flooded.

Koh Samui Sunrise

One reason to get up early (for those of us who don't do it naturally) is to catch a plane. It was an early morning departure from Seadance Resort on Koh Samui this morning, but I had to have one last stroll on the sand.  Back to the class room tomorrow.

Koh Samui Sunset

It has been absolute bliss spending a few days by the beach.  It is not Jan Juc  (Marian) but still a beautiful spot and wonderful to listen the waves and feel the sea breeze.  Cheers to International Women's Day!

Team Dai

I should be heading off on the Team Dai 600km cycling challenge today - or 350 if I was going to stop at the mid point - Phonsovan.  However I decided to "pull the pin". While I had enjoyed the training, I was always last and was never going to be as fit as the lean and fit men or the few fit and strong women in the group.
Looking at the profile of each day I hope most readers will think withdrawing is a final sign of sanity. Thanks to those who donated to Quality of Life to support Team Dai - it is a good cause - they do great work to help those disabled through UXO accidents and traffic accidents.
Instead of cycling for 5 days I am off to relax by the sea on a Thai Island.

Wednesday Weaving - Silk

Long hanks of silk thread, hanging in the light prior to being spun onto spools.

International Women' Day

Tomorrow is International Women's Day.  So a photo of my scooter in front of the Laos Women's Union is appropriate.  As we are in a communist country we have a holiday to mark the occasion.  Luckily it will be a long weekend - so I am off to Koh Samui for some beach time.

Laos Countryside

A typical Laos rural scene near the Mekong, vegetable fields, white buffalo and a temple.

A Pepsi Offering

Flowers, food and pepsi - offerings for the spirits on a dragon boat at a temple.

Book Day

The elementary students dressed up as characters from books today and paraded around the school.  These Grade 1 students sang a song about imagination.  There were many "little red riding hoods" and several cats in hats and we found a few "Wallys" but not sure what all the characters are in this photo.

Black and White in Colour

Black and White in Colour is the Theme for the City Daily photo community for March. The white strings at this Buddhist ceremony at Wat Amphon in Vientiane draw the light in this photo with the grey ground fading.

Wednesday Weaving - Spinning

The silk thread is spun on to spindles by hand prior to weaving.