LAOS TRAVEL PART 3: Exploration

To be honest, both Hanna and I were a little disappointed with certain elements of Luang Prabang. Yes, it was pretty and on a river and had some sweet French touches. But the main area of town was populated almost completely by tourists. There wasn't much of a local feel to any of it and instead of peeking in on a community, I felt more like we were the community. The restaurants, shops, bookstores, and cafes were all for tourists. It felt like a strange little bubble at times. There were some exceptions, though - we explored the morning market and rented bicycles and rode them out of town and took off our shoes down by the riverside.


After a semester of living in a largely bicycle-less city, it felt amazing to get on an old-fashioned bike and ride on dusty roads through little farm villages and wooded swamps. Supposedly there was a waterfall, but we never found it.

The river looked pretty dirty, but it was peaceful. Children were bathing in it and a few tourists were swimming.

I think this picture proves it: I was adopted and my real parents were midgets.

LAOS TRAVEL PART 2: Luang Prabang

The night bus to Luang Prabang was probably one of the strangest journeys I've taken. We were told we were taking the "VIP" Bus, but we quickly learned that we must not be Very Important People because the bus had seats that didn't recline and seemed to make a stop every twenty minutes. I tried to sleep, but it was almost impossible, and every time I opened my eyes I saw something strange: a bizarre carnival, a gruesome motorcycle accident. I felt like I was in a David Lynch movie.

So Hanna and I arrived in Luang Prabang in the early morning a bit tired, but happy. The entire city is actually a World Heritage Site due to its many Buddhist temples and colonial French architecture.

After picking a random cheap guesthouse, we wandered around the historic areas. I was surprised by how affected I was by the temples (also called wats). They are very ornate and beautiful and small and, as I'm sure you can imagine, there is an emphasis on quiet. Ducking out of the sun and stepping into these dark, intimate, gold-flecked little rooms, I could see why people are drawn to Buddhism. The Buddha statues, the incense, the altar - it all seemed to have been created with a great deal of love. Also, while religion has historically been the cause of some horrific shit over the centuries, it has also inspired some magnificent art. In the past when I've seen gorgeous cathedrals or eerie Jesus paintings, it's always given me a sense of awe, but with the Buddhist wats I was left more with a feeling of quiet wonder and introspection. The last Jewish thing I did was taschlich in the beginning of the year and I had sort of forgotten how nice spirituality can be.

Be Patient, Friends!

I know it's been a few days since I wrote last. I promise I'm going to keep updating you on my travels, but I want to do it when I'm awake and alert. The combination of starting class again and celebrating Chris's birthday (a great weekend-long affair) has kept me in a haggard state.

I'll just leave you with these two photographs for now. I'm so thrilled that Kathryn Bigelow is the first woman to win an Oscar for Best Directing - but Monique's acceptance speech is what brought tears to my eyes. A great year for women in film.

LAOS TRAVEL PART 1: Hanna and Vientiane

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On February 2nd, I arrived in Vientiane, the capital of Laos. I stepped off the plane and was greeted with wonderful, balmy air. "I remember you!" I whispered (to the air). "China tried to tear us apart, but hello 'warmth.' We meet again." It felt humid and great. Hanna and I planned on reuniting at the Saysouly Guest House, so I dropped my stuff off in the room, put on a skirt, and hung out on the balcony. A few hours later, Hanna arrived. "You look exactly the same!" she said. As I mentioned in an earlier blog post, we hadn't seen each other in seven or eight years.


We spent a short time in Vientiane checking out the city. It's very quiet and peaceful, and while people often use those words to describe Laos, I wouldn't say it's necessarily a positive thing. At times, it's peaceful because the river is beautiful and the air is soft and the sun feels nice. At times, it's peaceful because it's a poor country and there's not a ton of commerce or entertainment or city life going on. So, it's complex, like anywhere. But for me, being somewhere not-China was enough. It was full of religious temples, monks, and old edifices. I really liked the hundreds of small alcoves in this temple, each containing two miniature Buddhas.

We also visited Laos's most famous stupa (a structure containing Buddhist relics or remains). It was very gold.
We walked around a bit more, checked out a local market, bought some jackfruit, and then: no time to waste! We hopped on a night bus headed north for Luang Prabang.

Profiles in Awesome: Peppi Glass

I know, you were all expecting a blog post about Laos. But that's me - full of surprises and keeping you all on your toes. I've realized that my time here is short and there are still many supportive people who have not received a proper Profile In Awesome. One of these is my lovely great-aunt, Peppi.


I consider myself really lucky to have Peppi in my life. She is great at keeping in touch and has always kept in contact throughout college, New York City, and especially my time in China. She's smart, thoughtful, and worldly. She's always seen the latest independent, cutting-edge film before I have, and she's full of book recommendations on every topic imaginable. And somehow, in between raising a family and substitute teaching, she's also an accomplished sculptor. I think my favorite piece of hers is the one in my grandmother's house, but here she is with another beautiful one, called "In-Decision," which won a prize.


But aside from the cultural cool factor, I think what I love most about Peppi is the fact that she treats everyone, regardless of age, like a peer. I remember feeling this way about her when I was very, very young. And last year I watched her interact with Delilah, my little cousin, and it only confirmed it further. It's a trait I really respect and I can only hope to emulate in my life.

So, here's to you, Aunt Peppi! I love you and thank you for all the support you've given me this year.

CHINA TRAVEL PART 7: On the fringes of Kunming

While the city itself is cool, the area surrounding Kunming also had a lot to offer, so we spent time checking out those sights too. There were some historic Buddhist temples not far away, so we spent a few peaceful hours there.

It was all very classic, traditional Chinese, which was kind of fun. I don't get much of that in Dalian, which has been controlled by the Russians and Japanese in the past and doesn't have that "right-out-a-Zhang-Yimou-movie" quality that the South seems to have. We also did a fun hike up the Western Hills, that afforded a beautiful view of the city and some old temples. The breeze was lovely.

There were a fair amount of Chinese tourists there and traveling with Nick (tall, blonde) meant that we got more looks that I usually do alone (short, brown hair). They didn't just look, they gawked. I think I captured a particularly good moment in this photo below. This is a picture of a little girl catching her first glimpse of Nick.

We also saw the old city of Kunming, which was interesting, but far away. The bus ride was interminable and we realized our directions were wrong ("Get off at the last stop and then follow the donkey carts") when the bus let us out at some sketchy electronics expo in the middle of nowhere and totally lacking in donkey carts. Finally we made it to the historic district, which was nice but tourist-y. The next day, Kim and I went to the Stone Forest, which we both liked, but was much cooler before the hordes of visitors.


"dear friends, now you know"

I'm sort of rushing through China a bit, because I'm most excited to write about Laos and Cambodia. They were just really different, and that was great for me. Next up: Vientiane!

CHINA TRAVEL PART 6: Exploring Kunming

So, it was back to Kunming! I really enjoyed this city, and Kim & Nick did as well. The weather is nice and the air is unusually clean. The city itself is a nice mix of modernity and narrow, old-fashioned streets. Like this, the funky Flatiron Building of southern China:


There was also a district called The Bird and Flower Market, which did literally sell birds and flowers and a bevy of other small animals.


We explored the beautiful, beautiful park and lake on the north side of town, as well as Yunnan University, which was founded in 1922 and has very classic-looking university architecture (unlike most Chinese colleges, which were founded after the revolution and look how you'd expect). The nice thing about cities in the south is the outdoor street culture. People, mostly elderly, are often outside, playing cards or mah jongg and I really like that aspect of city life.




At night, we checked out the bar scene and found some really nice, trendy, low-key places that made a decent drink.


Unless you ordered a mojito, like Nick. It involved a lot of mint removal.

I ordered a nice G&T and admired the revolution-era postcards Nick and I bought.