Sabaïdi from Laos

Some of you might still be wondering what TEA PROJECT stands for ? Well this is the motto that has followed me since I had this Epiphany (precedent post) in March 2014. It simply means "Teaching English in Asia Project". And here I am !

My first English class was at Wat Hai Sok, a buddhist temple quite close to my hotel. My first students were novice monks age 12 to 25. They have barely been exposed to English before, mainly beginners. A couple of them went to college and learnt English there, they help me with clarifications in Lao. They are very nice, quiet and a little shy. You will see them in the pictures below. No there are not detainees from Guantanamo prison with their orange outfit. Believe me each of them has a lovely smile.

Vientiane is the capital of Laos, a country of barely 7 million people. The city has grown a lot for the last twenty years. It was a town of around 200 000 people in 1995 that grew up to 800 000 these days. Be that as it may, I find it still has the charm of a little town, no skyscapers around, low buildings, a lot of temples scattered here and there along with French cafes and all types of quaint restaurants, and eventhough it's not crowded with bicycles any more but with traffic jams (at peak times) full of big Japanese and Korean cars as you can see in the pictures hereafter, it's definitely not the hustle and bustle of most of Asian capitals around. It certainly has the atmosphere of a spread out village.




Downtown mainstreet

Downtown street

One of my daily canteen

My first English class : the novice monks of Wat Hai Sok

My first English class : The novice monks of Wat Hai Sok

Wat Inpeng



The Lao Champs Elysees, the presidential palace at one end



The Lao Champs Elysees, The Patuxai "Lao Triumph Arch" at the other end.




Entrance of Wat Inpeng

My new home, Sweet home - Chapter 2 - July 2015

Here is my new home. Could be really sweet, were it not so hot, with an undersized aircon, and no insulation whatsoever. I've been on the verge of fainting the second day following my moving in! It definitely should be upgraded. It is on its way because my landlady is very nice and comprehensive... Patience. One day at a time!

My house is a one room house, with a separate kitchen - an oven at day time -and a bathroom - a hammam as well as a sieve when it's raining. Apart from those details, the house is lovely and its green environment charming.

 

The village I live in, 10 mns from the center of town is called Sok Paluang - Vientiane is made of the gathering of different villages -.  I have this strange feeling to be back in the village of my childhood - sort of - riding my bicyle along the 200 meter dirt road, hearing the sounds of nature at night, frogs croaking, birds screeching (definitely not chirping!), roosters crowing - those stupid animals always crow before the sun rise, right in the middle of the night-. They are so loud, believe me. And in the morning I can see hens and roosters running across my garden!

 

My new house

The terrace

View of my garden

 

My little "oven" kitchen

The One room with its sleeping, living, and dining space.