Our last and favorite day in Laos and one of our favorite days on the trip.
In the morning we went to the Unexploded Ordinance (UXO) Museum. It shows the consequences, even today, of all the bombs that were dropped in Laos during the Vietnam War trying to destroy the Ho Chi Minh Trail. Millions are still unexploded and are frequently found by kids and farmers.
In the evening we went to the Big Brother Mouse reading room. It’s a place downtown Luang Prabang where you can go and sit with young Hmong and Laotian kids and let them practice English with you.
We each started separately with two boys ranging in age from 14-18. After a half hour I looked over at Brianne and “The Teacher” had ten teenaged boys surrounding her all asking her questions and practicing their English on her. I had to compete so I jumped in the middle and told them police stories. It was a blast. We only wish we had discovered the school days earlier because they do this meet and speak twice each day.
After leaving the boys, and gaining new facebook buddies for life, we walked toward the post office to get a ride back to our hotel. On the way Bri stopped to give an old, apparently homeless, street musician some Bhat in his cup. As we walked away from the man, two short smiling girls stopped us and told us about the man and the songs he was singing.
The girls were sisters, The Weaving Sisters, and we spent some time that night and the next morning at their house with them (see the video). If you have time visit them on facebook and follow them or like them or whatever your supposed to do. When we get back we’ll share more. You will also see one of their woven table runners on our dining room table.
Empty Nest Adventures 