Vientiane Day 28. La Chandeleur

A thing that I like about the French, they have a festival dedicated to eating crepes. LIKE.

La Chandeleur was actually celebrated on 2nd February, it is a feast to commemorate the purification of the Virgin Mary and the presentation of the baby Jesus. But since we went away for my birthday, we have a belated La Chandeleur and a small housewarming today. 

Crepes are easy to make. Flour, eggs, milk. That's all you need. The topping is where the magic happens. We had an impressive line-up today. Tuna, cream cheese, tomato, nutella, banana, mango, lemon, pineapple-orange-passion fruit jams, coffee & green tea Haagen Dazs....and the list goes on.

We're crepes over dosed.

Vientiane Day 27. See and be seen in VTE.

After four weeks being surrounded by fellow foreign workers and tourists whenever I hang out, I asked my friend, who's been here for over a year, where do the hip and happening Vientianese go. The canteen TV always screens Laotian pop music videos and they're not bad at all. So I want to see where the cool people on TV hang out in real life.


My friend Anf threw a farewell party last night, starting with dinner at "Moon the Night", a restaurant with a great sunset view and delicious local food, followed by a karaoke session and spontaneous decision to dance the night away at the "Marina" - a popular entertainment center where the Vientianese go to see and be seen. 


I spotted a modest use of hair products among the guys. Dark pants and long sleeve shirts seem to be the trend. The petite-figured Laotian girls flaunt it all in tight mini dress.And they're blond. Thai pop songs reign the music scene as well as Pitbull, Usher and the Oyo-yo dance number which I don't bother to search for the title.  Two butches was about to fight before the bouncer stepped in and pulled them apart. Drunk American tourist came on too strong to a pretty Laotian girl who doesn't speak English. And Anf break it down in his robot dance moves. All is good in VTE.

The best part was when the sprained-neck Sarah and I had to cycle 5km back home in the middle of the night.POSH.

Vientiane Day 25. Happiness that new pedals bring

My trustee bike, Franso, got a pair of new pedals today. Never thought new bike pedals can make me happy. Franso's old left pedal was broken . Just imagine driving a car with the accelerator pedal split in two. 

Franso is named after Francois Ngin, one of the most happening streets in VTE, where I stayed during my first week. The street is lined with rows of hostel, restaurants, bars, cafes and in the earlier part of the day, messages and spas. Next to Francois Ngin, there's Nokkeokoumane street, where I go for one of my favorite things made of flour : bread and pastries. Freshly baked every morning. Bonjour!

My friend Soulivan is so kind to lend me Franso throughout my stay. She doesn't know her bike is now called Franso,though.

Without Franso in top condition,my exploration won't be as fun.

Franso has a cousin, Kolao Gonzales. Kolao is away on a trip and will be back on Monday.

Vientiane Day 23. Mon Petit Cochon.

Three supermarkerts, NO beef. I can't believe how hard it is to find fresh beef in this city. They sell it in the wet markets for sure which close before office hours end. Supermarkets seem to sell everything but. Even the Carefour of Vientiane. Mon petit cochon keeps staring back at me everytime I'm looking for my meat. 

Mon petit cochon comes in all forms : sausage, salami, smoked, roasted, rib...rows and rows of them.

I'm looking for the day when ma petit vache is smiling at me.In form of meat.

Vientiane Day 21. A $38 birthday trip

I'm proud to say we made an excellent choice to visit Nam Lik Eco-village for my birthday trip.2,5 hours tuk-tuk ride from Vientiane, it's a really nice change from the city. Kayaking,trekking,mountain biking, home-made bread and apple pie - all for $38. I'm lovin' this country.

Highlights include: 

• Sleeping on a hammock (first time ever)
• Home-made bread and apple pie (this worth mentioning twice)
• Being appreciative of decent intercity bus transporations (after 5 hours bumpy ride on a non-AC tuk-tuk)  
• Saw a collection of dead snakes belonging to the resort manager.And saw a real one slithering about the resort ground
• Did I mention it's $38?

More photos here

 

Vientiane Day 20. The start of my fertile year.

It rained for nearly 20 hours on my birthday. I tell myself it's a sign of abundant fortune and blessings for the next year. Though a friend said it's a sign of a 'fertile' year. Hmmm....I'll categorize that under 'blessings'. I do feel blessed. Receiving over 100 wishes while I'm away from familiar faces had made my day. On my 19th day in VTE, new friends have gone out of their way to make my day special. Birthday dinner-checked; Birthday present-checked; Birthday night out-checked; Birthday candle-checked; saw a half-naked French guy in a curly blond wig-checked.

Here's to my new friends...*clink*

A tuk-tuk will pick us up to go to Nam Lik eco-village in less than 7 hours. Wohoo. Birthday mode continues.

Vientiane Day 18. Planning my birthday weekend.

I never thought there would be an episode of "a birthday in Lao". Now it's here, I will make the most of it. It's going to be great. We watched a flamenco guitar performance under the star on the eve of my b'day. Somehow, I'll take it as a sign. The monsieur guitarist was great.

I set a place for birthday b'fast, b'day lunch, b'day sunset, b'day dinner, b'day night and b'day trip. 

It's 12:02 am. Happy Birthday to me.

I love flamenco guitar