snapshots of memory
i’ve been taking so many photos on this trip, but i’m starting to realize that sometimes not having my camera at the moment that i see something happening isn’t the tragedy that i thought. in fact, my memory card picked up a virus at an internet cafe and i lost a majority of my pictures temporarily, i was freaking out! they were able to recover them for me and burn them to disk (and most i’ve put up on flickr already), but it made me realize even more just how much i depend on my camera…
but so much happens in between the shutter clicks anyway… a few examples:
– watching a cow (with cowbell and all!) chase chickens on the side of the mekong
– on the drive to vientiane, we sped through rural villages and i caught a glimpse of a little boy sitting up in a tree, watching us fly past
– passing by a small store and seeing a mother inside (the shopowner?) with her child on the floor, singing songs to her and just oblivious to anything else… you could just see the love on her face!
– waking up in the morning to take a stroll around the neighborhoods of luang prabang and stepping backwards into a sewer ditch trying to get this shot! in between giggles, an old lady helped me use her hose to wash off my smelly feet. haha
– in vang vieng, in the midst of all the tacky touristy shops and bars blasting friends reruns, a laos wedding procession came loudly through the streets. first the groom, carrying a bunch of flowers and wearing a huge grin, surrounded by men singing, patting each other on the back, and taking shots of johnnie walker. following them were the women, wearing traditional silk skirts and singing, clapping their hands, and giggling. priceless.
and my favorite…
in luang prabang, i popped into a small restaurant to try the pho in laos (on champa’s recommendation!) and the owner was so nice… he let me see what THEY were eating for lunch and made me try everything (delicious steamed fish with spices and herbs, sticky rice, and a local specialty called khai paen made of a riverweed – sort of tastes like nori). later, he invited me to come back that evening to try some other things you can only get in luang prabang and told me i could invite my roommates too! we had a wonderful meal and got to try out a few other dishes, including a delicious herbed sausage that you dip into a ginger/garlic sauce or a chili sauce called jahw bang, then eat with sticky rice and khai paen. he wouldn’t accept any money from us, saying he just wanted to see us tasting the local food and seeing what it’s like to live there. it was one of the highlights of my trip!
i did manage to get a picture of that dinner… sometimes it really is good to have my camera after all. =)
Tags: luang prabang (laos), malia
malia
Your comments make me smile:)….keep having fun! Love you. Mom
Could you barter for the chicken killing cow? He could eat our lawn grass and keep the chickens at bay at the same time!