Vientiane and Around

Ching & Joma...as opposed to Julie & Julia

Everyday I come to Joma Cafe in downtown Vientiane to use the internet. Joma has unintentionally became my office and headquarter.

Whenever I come here, I would have to face the dilemma of what to order because I feel bad ordering bottled water, the cheapest item on the menu, and sit here for hours using the internet.

For the past few weeks, I've been ordering the next cheapest item on the Menu, Lipton Tea.

Because of boredom...or just perhaps tired of facing the dilemma of what to order everyday, I've decided that I'm going to start a project to try out all the food at Joma by 8/16. This is my version of Julie & Julia, but better since I don't have to cook! Yipeee.

Anyways, an update on what I've tried so far:

Chocolate Croissant: pretty yummy goes well with Lipton tea, except I'm tight on budget and can't afford having both at the same time

Cinnamon Roll: very very yummy and filling, good for breakfast

Yogurt with Fruit: very refreshing and healthy, one of my favorite

Coffee: helps me to wake up before afternoon meetings. I can get a second too!

Apple pie: a little too much in a serving, but definitely taste heavenly with the rich apple fillings.

Spinach Lasagna: pretty good but too much with the set. Very good choice for lunch!

Mushroom Quiche: pretty yummy too but again too much if it comes with a set.

Fruit shake: always a good choice in this hot weather!

...I have no idea how many items there are on the menu and frankly I don't care if I finish trying all the stuff by 8/16.

However, do stay tuned for my discovery of tasty pastries/ drinks at Joma:)

Rocking with Gaga and Taylor

This evening, I was invited to a goodbye party for my friend’s coworker who will be heading back to Germany the next day. At the dinner I had this very delicious drink called Lao Gear (or something like that) that consisted of whiskey, pineapples, apples, dragon fruit…and other sorts of fruit.

After a very cozy dinner we headed to a second round of after party!

We arrived at an underground live pub in Vientiane. The moment we entered the pub, I saw waitresses wearing cowboy hats, a big TV screen on the left showing a soccer match; the pub was decorated in a shabby underground atmosphere – broken wooden frames, vintage beer logos, and graffitis. I looked around and found out that the place was surprisingly filled with local Lao people.

A band called “Whisper” was playing rock music – from all time favorites such as Sweet Child of Mine to rock versions of Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift.

We all sang along and clapped and tapped to the beats when a familiar tune came up.

Listening to the lead-singer singing “Home” by Michael Buble and sipping Beerlao quietly, I’ve never felt so relaxed in a strange place so far away from home.

First Village Visit Part 2 - The Bamboo Village

The next morning I woke up to the sound of the rooster’s cock-a-doodle-doo and we headed for the next village at 7:00am.

The next village is known as the village for bamboo weaving; as soon as we arrived at the house of the head of the group of bamboo basket makers, a strong smoky smell entered my nostrils! There were all kinds of bamboo items in piles in her courtyard, from small to big, smoked to unsmoked, from sticky rice container to hats.

The lady told us to come and join her for breakfast. A quick note on lao breakfast, Lao people eat pretty much anything for breakfast. This morning we had 3 plates of stir-fried vegetables and some grilled pork with again, sticky rice!

After breakfast, I took a quick tour around the village. I saw houses built with bamboo stems and bamboo leaves. These houses had a very distinctive style— they were all raised around 6 feet above the ground. In the space under the house, there were looms and tables where people can sit around to weave cloths and baskets; there were usually a few beds for occasional naps as well! These raised spaces under the houses provide a very comfortable shade to work under in this hot weather!


Bamboos dominate every aspect of the villagers’ life. The villagers first started weaving baskets because of the abundant supply of bamboos from the bamboo forest in the village. Here is a brief overview of how the villagers use every bamboo to its full capacity! The bamboo skin is spliced into thin strips to be used for weaving. The rest of the bamboo stem is used to make fire for cooking. Bamboo leaves and older bamboos are used to build houses. Bamboo baskets are used as sticky rice containers, containers to catch fish from the river and etc. Fresh bamboo shoots will appear in meals, of course at least once a day.

Bamboo basket weaving is not an easy task! First, bamboo skin is peeled off from the bamboos. The bamboo skins are then trimmed into thinner pieces and spliced into thin strips for weaving. One interesting note is that bamboo baskets that are freshly woven are usually green in color but as time passes, the skin dries up and hardens, and turns into the usual light beige color that we see. Sometimes the bamboo baskets are smoked to give a different color and texture. The baskets are placed into a big metal cylinder and smoked with coconut shells and buffalo excretion for 5 days!


The wisdom of the ancestors of the bamboo village, to use the natural resource available in their community to its full capacity, is very very admirable.

taken from: http://blog.weargianna.com/2010/06/first-village-visit-part-2-bamboo.html

Through the Lenses

First Village Visit (Part 1)

About two hours by bus from Vientiane lies a little village by the Naam Geng River. Bandith and I were welcomed by a dozen or so warm and lively women weavers who prepared a table (or floor? we ate in a picnic style) of delicious dishes to welcome us. On the menu there were: ants(!), stir-fried coconut with pork, stir-fried cabbage, a humongous fish and of course sticky rice (a must for every meal!)

Fried Ants!

The women weavers who gathered around keep on talking to me in Lao despite the fact that I could only answer them with limited body language! The entire afternoon, one event followed by the other, first the delicious lunch, then village meeting, then quality control of the finished products, more chatting and so on. While the weavers sewed the GIANNA labels on to the pillowcases, I helped them measure the sizes of the pieces and ensure that the surface of each piece was smooth without blemishes. The weavers were very patient in going through the pieces, amending rough edges and cutting off small knots that appeared at intersection of threads.

Group of weavers finishing up the product

Around 5pm, when we were all packed and set ready to head to the bus station to go to the next village, the villagers suddenly told us there’s no bus! At first I thought it was another silly joke that Bandith was telling. But not, the villagers were serious! Apparently there will be no bus going back to Vientiane until the next morning.

The villagers were overjoyed by this news because that meant that we will be staying in the village overnight! Every woman used their creative sign language (gesturing sleep, then pointing at themselves), to invite me to sleep in their house. One of the villagers brought a duck from her backyard, ready to prepare a welcome feast for us.

We then headed to the river, spread out our picnic matt, with 5 bottles of the one and only beer brand in Laos, Beerlao, a glass, a bag of ice, a plate of grilled beef sticks, and the welcome ceremony began!

After the head of the women weavers gave a short speech welcoming me, Kong, one of the women weavers poured the beer into the glass and drank it. She then poured another one and passed it on to the person next to her. This is how beer is drank in Laos – one glass, in a circle, one person downs one glass at the time, till the bottles are finished. After 2 rounds, I tried to refuse further drinks but the women told me the rule of the game, “you can ask someone to help you but you can’t skip your round!”

Food and Beer!

We spent the next few hours sitting by the river, looking at the sunset and the slowly flowing river stream. There were laughter, the joyful voices of the women and distant sounds of children playing in the river nearby.

Perhaps it is only on these rare occasions that the women weavers get a chance to sit by the river and relax, sipping beer, spending one of these hot summer evenings in the company of one another.

taken from: http://blog.weargianna.com/2010/06/first-village-visit-part-1.html

No seafood in Laos

When I first learnt that Laos is a landlocked country, I was uber excited that I won’t have a problem eating the food (since I don’t eat seafood). When I first mentioned to my host family that I don’t eat seafood, they told me not to worry because they don’t get seafood unless for special occasions. Soon I discovered that while they don’t get “seafood,” they get “riverfood” from the Mekong River.

This morning, a visit to the market I saw eels, squids, all sorts of big and small fishes, frogs (!), catfish (I almost stepped on one of them whey it jumped out of the bowl and snuggled into the drain located on the side of the walkway…)

A little note on the Mekong River. The Mekong River is just a 3 minutes walk from the house and across the river lies Thailand. Along the river there are many food stalls random benches, essentially, places where people can just chill and relax! My first day here, I went to one of the food stalls and had Kaw (something) soup, which looks like pho but in a udon noodle shape, using chopsticks! In the background “nobodynobdy but you!” was playing which made me momentarily forget where I was.

My host father goes to the riverbank to savor his morning coffee every morning. I would love to join him one of these days and get a taste of the famous Lao coffee!

The Mekong

A monk sipping his morning tea