Got milk?

Just woke up in Vientiane, Laos. I'm pretty excited because today is New Year's Eve and we are going yo visit the Beer Lao factory. Festivities already started last night with people driving around drinking Beer Lao and yelling 'Beer Lao! Happy New Year!' We have noticed a flood of Thais into Laos in the past few days and they certainly change the dynamic.

We arrived in Vientiane yesterday after like 10 days in Vang Vieng where we had a lot of fun. For Christmas we stayed on an organic mulberry farm which was super relaxed. We could volunteer there and although it wasn't very well managed we really did enjoy ourselves. Kim especially liked milking the goats in the mornings and making cheese. We stayed there 4 days helping out on the farm for half days and then chillin in the afternoon. Tubing, beach volleyball and learning that Laos vodka is not vodka at all!  As a matter of fact the distillery is here in Vientiane and I just might have to get to the bottom of it... I'm thinking its more like Soju but not nearly as good.

We also tried our hand at teaching English, another volunteer program at the farm which is poorly managed. I was thrown into a class with about a dozen kids ages eight to twelve. A bit of a challenge really, they were so excited they were distracting themselves!  I had no curriculum to work off... I had to quiz them to see what level they were at. We practiced writing small sentences on the board. They really liked when I asked them to do things.  The second class went much better. An older group, ages thirteen to eighteen, they were actually at the same level as the younger students because all the classes started learning English four years ago. Except they were much more focused and we covered a lot of ground. They were especially interested in conversation skills which Lenny (an Australian who works in Vientiane) and I demonstrated for them and then asked them to do the same. Super awesome!  It was a tough two hours but super rewarding.  I was actually exhausted after.  Stumped me and Lenny when the one kid asked for an explaination for the difference between who and whom lol. And I have never seen anyone so excited to learn the terms flip flop and zipper.

So I can now say I've milked a goat and squirted milk into a cats mouth.  And taught English which I am not so nervous about now and will attempt it again soon.

Off to the brewery!

A water buffalo named Susie Q

I got lazy with the blog posts there, what with all the biking, hiking, caving, swimming and such. We've finally got some nice weather. Super sunny and hot at mid day but chilly by 4:30 pm and still cold at night.  But sun enough to do some swimming and tubing and get some color which is really awesome.

We spent a week in Luang Prabang,  Laos eating and exploring. A favorite for me was The Living Land Farm where we found ourselves knee deep in mud in a rice paddy. Got a full on hands on experience including plowing behind a water buffalo named Susie Q, which is a lot harder then it looks. It's a working organic farm that produces enough sticky rice to feed eight families. An amazing set up and experience led by the owner, Laut Lee (a local which was refreshing to see). We learned how to choose the right grains, grow and transplant seedlings, harvest and threshing, sepating the rice from the husk and finally cooking. Along the way he also taught us blacksmithing to make the mini scythe for harvesting, how to squeeze out sugar cane juice and take a tour through his vegetable garden. All is all very fun and informative with delicious rice treats at the end. There are lots of things to make with rice!

Another highlight in Luang Prabang was finding Big Brother Mouse. They are local organization producing books both in Lao and English for kids and adults to increase literacy in their country. We grabbed two packs of books to leave as tips in restaurants and hotels and to hand out to kids in the villages. Often they run up asking for money and it was with great satisfaction that we saw the delight on their faces when we give them a book. One boy in particular was our favorite. He ran up with some sort of toy in his hands to show us. As he got nearer we saw it was a dead mouse in a house which he animated and danced for us. Quite a show really. We handed him and his buddy, who was a bit older, a book and his friend was immediately intrigued. Its pretty cool when it is understood that they can keep the book and you either get a big smile or they quickly run off. bigbrothermouse.com check it out.

Speaking of running off... so my dearly beloved wife and I set out for a hike up to one of the caves here in Vang Vieng the other morning. It's a beautiful morning and I'm quite excited about seeing another cave as they are quite stunning with all their stalagmites and stalactites and big caverns. Then I see a snake cross our out path in the bush and take off away from us. Beautiful with greens and oranges. I stop dead in my tracks and say calmly 'Stop,  back up.' I turn to tell Kimberly that there is a snake ahead of us and realize she is 200 ft down the path already!  Pure flight instinct and she says 'I'm out!' Looks back maybe once to see where I am but definitely abandoned the love of her life alone with whatever it was I had found (she doesn't know yet). I find her at the end of the path by the river, heart racing and completely done with hiking for the day. Needless to say I am laughing at her response and am still laughing as I tell you this story. We went tubing instead, it was lovely.

From opium poppies to coffee beans...

Don't panic!  I've found delicious lattes in Luang Prabang, Laos. Just a quick step from our hotel is Saffron Espresso Caffe where they're serving a variety of coffees including the perfect latte. And they have a perfect story... Apparently the Laos hill tribes were unable to grow rice in their paddies and resorted to growing opium to make a living. When the government outlawed opium production they slid into horrible poverty.  Enter a foreigner who saw the potential of the abandoned paddies and created a coffee plant nursery.  He provided the hill tribes with the seedlings he produced and made a deal to buy all the coffee beans they produced.  Saffron Coffee was born and the hill tribes were able to make a living once again... And I get a delicious latte.

We have already seen two billiant parades here as they are opening a new temple. The last budda sculpture has just been finished and moved in. With the statues getting installed and visiting hovernment officials its a pretty big deal and awesome to observe. The people create these money trees and drop them off at to temple along with other offerings. So colorful!

Today we are holed up on our communal patio hiding from a torrential downpour.  Hopefully it passes soon as we wanted to check out dinner at the night market here.  We've already had Lao bbq along side the river which was amazing, much like the Vietnamese one but we were completely in charge of our own cooking this time and it was all you can eat! Omg. I think I might have over indulged lol.

"I step where you step! "

Back in Hanoi for the day after a three day trek through Sapa. An amazing yet tiring experience. After a 9 hour night train ride (which Kim loves, soo bouncy) and an hour bus ride our guide meets us at the summit of Sapa. She is half the height of Kim with hands dyed blue from making two articles of clothing for every member of her family for Tet. We start our downward hike to the first village where we will have lunch.  Immediately we are followed by two women and a little girl as we head off the road and into rice paddy land. Amid warnings from the guide of 'careful' the small child slips and slides down a small bank. Immediate laughter and a quick brush off and shes good to go again, if not a little embarassed. It is really amazing to see how industrious the people are. The creation of rice paddies along steep mountain sides is a long and arduous process. They actually move all of the soil around by hand using only shovels, bags and wheelbarrows. The first village is a real treat, lots of farm animals and cool homes.  We stop for lunch and are immediately swarmed. The ladies are really pushy trying to sell stuff but its the kids I have a really hard time saying no to. Sigh. After lunch we have another beautiful hike to the next village where we are to spend the night.

Our first night home stay is not quite what we expext... at first there is no one home and our guide breaks in. Then a lone man arrives who the guide promptly abandons us with. He is super shy and speaks no English. We try to be friendly but he won't stay in the same room with us. After playing musical rooms for a while we decide to leave him alone in the kitchen to make dinner. The kitchen consists of a stone floor with a fire pit and a hot plate for cooking on. First up as an appy is french fries made over the fire in a wok filled with oil and the are covered in fried garlic. Awesome.  He then received help from a teenage boy who appeared and they made fried spring rolls (a specialty in Hanoi), two stir fries (chicken and pork), tofu in a tomato sauce and fried buttered cabbage. Delicious. Several shots of happy water (rice wine) later and buddy is not so shy lol. But Kim is full and tired, we retire to bed at 7:30! First day, hiked 12 km.

We start out our second day in Sapa up early and have tea, crepes,  bananas (none for Kim) and sugar water. The guide arrives and they eat a Vietnamese breakfast of soup inside... hmm. I guess its expected that Westeners wouldnt want that for breakast. We head out on a super tough trek, all uphill it seemed. The views are spectacular but a lot of the time I spend focusing on where Im walking, following where the guide is putting her feet. "I step where you step Indy!" We arrive at the next stop at the top of a huge hill covered in sweat. Its tough to know what to wear because hiking is hard work but when we stop it is actually quite cold. Lunch is soup with cabbage and egg, still no meat on second day and as we head into out next trip we are both feeling pretty tired. 5 kms later both my ankle and knee are throbbing but the guides not stopping. How does she move so fast and easily while making hemp string for her Tet presents? I limp into the next village, God do I want a beer. Our first home stay is full so we have to find another. Our guide scrambles and locates another. They are not ready for us and horror of all horrors,  no beer! A quick run to the store by the woman of the house, grabs us beer but its warm. She switches them for cold ones at the original home stay. Ahhh. All is well. Dinner again is amazing, more happy water and then oddly they flick on the TV... some movie from China. I go to bed at 8, Kim is mesmerized by Chinese commercials. Second day, hiked 13 km.

Third day is started off with crepes and bananas again.  Seriously. I will need to mention it to our tour operater lol. We trek to the next village, me in flip flops donated by my hosts (it is misunderstood that Im sore from my past injuries and not blisters from my boots). I will lose them six times in the next few hours. We see more of the village and another exhausting trek uphill to visit a school. When we arrive back at the home stay for lunch it has been invaded by government workers. The youngest son had just gotten a job with the government and had to host lunch. We realize that they have butchered the neighbours dog while we were away on our trek. It is apparently a northern specialty that increases mens libido of course. Intrigued I check out the kitchen,  locate the dog stew. Looks and smells good enough. I think they just burn the hair off and then hack it into chunks. Im offered some and im interested but I just cant do it. We have a separate lunch of fried rice. Kim loses appetite. .. more fried rice for me. Definitely a weird moment all around.

Our guide (sorry her name is Chai, I should have mentioned that) gets super talkative after lunch. We learn they fear for their younger women as men from China come offering them marriage and wonderful lives if they come back to China with them only to sell them when they get there.  She also shares with us that her brother in law is addicted to opium and sold her sisters baby  for $500 to a couple in Hanoi. She is however confident that the child will have a better life there then in the village. I found it sad that she could see through the men from China but trusted that the Vietnamese couple existed.

After our chat we hike up the road, hop in a bus and say our good byes. It was a great experience on the whole, very interested to see it in a few years with all the road to construction we see on the way out. Im sure it wont be the same.

Back in the town of Sapa we shower (amazing) and have dinner before hopping on the night train where we both promptly pass out. Now just killing time in Hanoi before heading out to Laos tonight. Excited for more adventure.

Hanoi foods

Tim said I wasnt posting enough food photos lol. Here is mystery meat soup, tofu and vegetable stirfry (I ordered the beef) and bun cha (bbq pork in broth with rice noodles). The mystery meat soup blew my mind. We tried to find the bbq place last night to take some photos but its only on weekends. We were lucky to find it last time. 

Move over Korean bbq

Today I regretted not having a go pro so you could see us navigate our way through morning traffic to get to breakfast. If you're not fully awake its best not to attempt the excursion. Between the sidewalks being used for scooter parking (it would be silly for pedestrians actually being able to use them) and the fact that a stop light doesnt mean anything at all, it's an absolute adventure. Never mind constantly having somebody ask if you want a ride somewhere, move along taxi, cant you see I'm trying to cross a busy street!  It is fun to cross through intense traffic knowing that as long as you maintain a current pace they will avoid you. Works quite perfectly really. Its really satisfying that this time around we immediatly have the confidence and knowledge to do so. Even navigating through the city from memory at times.

Experienced a new food option here last night. After downing some bia hoi (draft beer that has to be drunk within 24 hrs of making) and watching the Vietnamese traffic ballet from a bia hoi street corner (by day common shops, by night local watering hole).  We wandered through the night market eating spiraled deep fried potato on a stick covered in sweet chili salt and grilled lemongrass mouth watering pork on a stick. Snacking is great but wouldnt you know it we stumble on a Vietnamese version of Korean bbq. You pick it, they grill it. Then it is transfered to your hot plate where fat has been rendering to make your food selections even more tasty.  We had two types of pork, beef short ribs, okra, lotus stalks and pineapple with some mind blowing hot sauce. Everyone just sitting on the street corner on tiny stools with hot plates screaming hot. Sooo cool. And absolutely delicious. Dutchy say what?!

Chillin in Hanoi

In the morning in Hanoi we get up around 6:30 am and putter on the internet and get ready to hit the streets. Either a bowl of pho or congee for breakfast, or both, theres no rules. Then a nice sit down at a cafe for cup of tea and discuss our plans. Its delicious,  green tea with a sweetness added by some type of flower (havent figured what yet). I got my boots polished yesterday hoping people would stop asking me if I wanted my boots polished... didnt work lol. I am asked 6 times at while sipping tea. You can also pay to take a drag of tabacco off of a giant pipe. Its communal. After our tea we go for a walk around the lake while stores finish opening and setting up.

Yesterday we decided it would be spa day. While Kim opted for different spa treatments, pedicure, manicure and purple nails! (She also learned to ask for a half leg wax not full because full you have to fight to get the lady to stop at the top of the leg lol). I decided to get a hot stone massage followed by a salt scrub. The hot stone massage was amazing, ever inch of you body gets attention noting is forgotten, 75 min. Super relaxing. Same with the salt scrub, every inch is vigorously scrubbed. I mean really, she must have thought I was super dirty. I think she scrubbed my soul clean. Followed by a hot shower, it was invigorating. Spa day all in for both of us $75.

Street food

Menu for day one

Pho bo ( delicious beef noodle soup) $1.50
Fried 'hanoi' spring roll $0.50
Banh my (baquette with cold cut meats, pate, pickled carrots and daikon, fried egg) $1.00
Pork congee (rice soup with dried pork and puffy pastry mini donuts) $1.50
Tall Tiger beers $0.50
Weird bowl of tofu soup I wasnt to fond of $1.00 ( Kim did not partake but insisted on making it way to spicy to consume lol)
Deep fried meat deliciousness with beer and hot sauce $2.50 (We're pretty sure it was intestine but most amazing bar snacks evar)

Here at last

Well we made it! Both flights were fantastic, as we got off the plane that familiar smell of Vietnam washed over us and we immediately felt that it was warmer even though it was night time. Our driver was waiting for us when we walked out of the Hanoi airport. Perfect right? How awesome is this...

Drive in was amazing. Kim fell asleep on my lap while I took in all the amazing sights. Beautiful night markets, karaoke bars galore and people eating everywhere even though it was 11 pm. Kim woke up as the driver pulled up to an alley for drop off but there seemed to be some confusion with the guy meeting us. The address didnt seem right but there was some insisting to off we went down to alley to a completely different hotel then we had booked. Hmm. Quickly figured out ours was up the street so we started to trek it when who shows up a block later, our driver lol. So sorry, so sorry, I take you now. Yup. Got back in, hopped out at the next alley. This time hes leading us past all this amazing street food, focus Cary, focus. Then around the corner and into the darkness... now even our driver seems lost. Are you kidding me?! But the street vendors tell us to push on, with big smiles and sure enough there is our hotel in the pitch black. The power is out. We are handed flashlights and room keys. Dont care, must sleep at this point!

7 hours later, showers and refreshed we hit the alley in the light and there is a pho lady not 15 steps away. Jack pot! Its just so delicious and amazing as it hits your lips. Ahh. We are here at last:)