GVI Laos programme

GVI returns to some old friends

2012-01-21T20:13:00.000-08:00

Last week GVI happily sent volunteers back to classes wehaven’t been at for several months. First was heading back into classes at Xayadeth College with theexcellent Lao teachers at that school. GVI volunteers teach 3 classes, twice daily, five times a week tostudents studying their Diploma of English at this school. It’s a terrific opportunity for volunteers tohave direct and clear impact on the learning of young adults. Due to a scheduling change for this academicyear however GVI haven’t been working in the classrooms with Lao teachers. One teacher recently commented how he missedthe interaction and sharing of skills and teaching techniques with a native orfluent English speaker, so we took the opportunity to place a volunteer in asmany of their classes as possible. It’sa highly positive experience for the volunteers because of the interaction,skill building, relationships and shared teaching workload with excellentteachers with high level English.

On the other end of the spectrum was our happy return afterextra long holidays to Phaasa School – a rustic and sometimes chaotic extracurricular English school offering classes to younger students across 7 classeswith teachers and students ranging in ability. Phaasa is new to working with foreign volunteers at all and areimmensely grateful for the opportunity to work with English speakers and providethis exposure to their students. Alwaysa surprise (is the teacher going to actually have a lesson planned or am Igoing to be thrown in boots and all to take the class?) and sometimes achallenge (poor resources, inexperienced teachers, low English comprehensionetc). GVI love to be able to offer thisauthentic and clearly worthwhile teaching site to our volunteers and arm themwith training, guidance and resources to help tackle the task. It is schools like this where obvious needexists and GVI volunteers have the chance to have positive and genuine impacton the education and futures of young Lao people.

So we say ‘Sabaidee’ again to both schools and look forwardto working with our Lao teaching partners and friends of GVI.

We are also due to recommence with the Technical andVocational School, assisting Hospitality and Tourism students with the Englishcomponents of their studies and giving them the best chance of success in theirfuture.

And finally, an exciting start in a wonderful,well-maintained, proud little village school out of Luang Prabang. GVI will work with primary school childrenacross 5 year levels, as well as pre-school kids, providing the government’sprescribed hours of English tuition that in a village with no English teachersgoes untaught! A very exciting chance forvolunteers to get out of the ‘big smoke’ and sample a real Lao village in thiswarm and welcoming country.

A Night at the Royal Ballet

2012-01-11T02:46:00.000-08:00

The Royal Ballet Theatre dance troupe

With a misnomer such as the Royal Ballet you could be forgiven forthinking this was a) ballet and b) quite formal and high quality. Whilst the performance of the Monkey KingHanuman at the Royal Palace Auditorium is neither of these things, it certainlymakes for a delightful and interesting cultural experience!

GVI volunteer, Hayley, is a flautist in Australia’sQueensland Symphony Orchestra – quite the prestigious job indeed! Due to her interest in music and performanceshe instigated a visit to the so-called Royal Ballet with a group of volunteersas a way to spend an idle Saturday night. GVI Field Staffer Sam managed to obtain adiscount so the group had the ‘luxury’ of the plush comfy seats up the front,and sat down to a stage filled to one side with seated musicians, and asolitary prop off to the side awaiting its role as the ‘Sadness Tree’ in theupcoming story.

The audience was first treated to an all women traditionalLao dance, then the story of Hanuman, the Monkey King, sent to rescue hismaster’s abducted wife, fighting off monstrous guardians of the seas and castspells over palace attendants. Lucky forthe handy English translation so the falang (foreigner) audience had some clueas to what was going on!

It was short, sweet, and punctuated by frequent dropping inand out of character, an onset of the giggles by the lead female, and somesketchy singing from the orchestra. Nevertheless, terrific fun and an experience in itself.


Volunteers Sandra, Hayley, Sue and Jasmin

The night finished off with some rather high activity allmale dances in all too tight costume, and yet another female dance. An hour later with some culture up our sleevethe group headed off for dinner and a couple even made it to a second culturalperformance at Roots & Leaves. Acultural weekend indeed!

Farewell to 2011

2011-12-30T18:28:00.000-08:00

Thursday signalled a farewell to 2011 in terms of departingvolunteers. A new group commenced onFriday 30^th December, but both are historic in their own way becauseas of 2011 all GVI projects will start on Saturdays instead of Friday. In Laos this works well because we teachMonday to Friday so ensures classes are covered every day, but makes for a busybeginning to volunteers’ projects with orientation, demo lessons, training andgenerally settling in!

This photo shows volunteers with their certificates ofappreciation as they leave the project – some to travel onwards, some to returnhome – but all happy for their experiences in Luang Prabang working with ourstudents and teachers. Many of thisgroup were only 2 week volunteers and as usual expressed regret at coming forsuch a short time. Alas, better than notat all!

2012 looks set to be a huge year for GVI Luang Prabang with3 new project streams coming online -long term volunteering (6 months),Internships (which includes a BTEC Leadership qualification and Introduction toTEFL certificate) and a Construction project (starting later in the year).

The BTEC will also be made an option to volunteers comingfor short stays, for those wanting to maximise the professional/career aspectsof their time spent volunteering. Andlastly our capacity will increase to enable more volunteers to work with ourschools – all the better for our students. So, all in all, a big year to come!

GVI Luang Prabang wishes to sincerely thank all ourvolunteers over 2011 for your time and effort, your hard work (yep, we know it’shard work, albeit extremely rewarding!), commitment and support.

We wish everyone a safe and happy New Year, and look forwardto an even bigger 2012 with our new and returning volunteers so we may continueto provide education to the community in this stunning town in beautifulLaos.

The Emperor’s New Clothes

2011-12-29T00:07:00.000-08:00

OK, so actually it’s new robes for the Novices at WatPasaviet, but it was a catchy blog name!

GVI played Santa Claus on Boxing Day to the 40 or so Novicesat Wat Pasaviet – a temple school we teach 4 classes at 5 nights a week. With the onset of the cool season (well,downright freezing some mornings), Novices – restricted to wearing theirsaffron, one shouldered robes – find the cold a little too much to bear. Some Novices especially come from poor ruralfamilies and have just one set of robes – difficult enough to keep clean letalone warm!

So the day after Christmas the GVI staff headed to thetemple once the robes had arrived on order from Vientiane and presented them tothe students. Of course they weregratefully received and Novices chanted for us in thanks....very special.

So now all they need are orange beanies and gloves, and theymay be able to stave off the low temperatures this season!

Christmas at Hmong New Year with the Buddhists and Khmu!

2011-12-27T21:59:00.000-08:00

Christmas in non-Christian countries is certainlydifferent. The uptake of certainChristmas traditions, even here in Laos in a profoundly Buddhist and Anamisticcountry, was touching – token things such as Christmas trees and decorations, makingof cards, and the odd smattering of Christmas cheer with a heartfelt ‘MerryChristmas’.

GVI volunteers celebrated in some very special and uniqueways in Luang Prabang. On Christmas Evefour lucky volunteers headed out to Ban Luk Sip – a mostly Khmu village about10km away from town – to teach English and play with the children of thevillage for the morning. This week theywere making Christmas cards, which although odd was warmly embraced andenthusiastically carried out. Afterwardswe took some Christmassy photos and said farewell for another two weeks.

Following this our volunteers had the honour of aninvitation to a largely Hmong village, where families were celebrating HmongNew Year and the calling back of the body’s spirits. Much chanting by the shaman, clucking ofchickens (and their ultimate demise in ritual bleeding, boiling and thenfortune telling), eggs, sampling ‘Hmong pizza’ and partaking in a basi (blessingceremony) in which we were each blessed by the shaman for good health for thecoming year. Although a feast wasprepared, we had to be off to our next engagement....

Mr Nii and GVI staff Sam

GVI hosted a Xmas Eve party at a Lao-style BBQ restaurant, spreadingthe season’s cheer with our Lao colleagues – all who make a vital contributionto the project....from teachers to school directors to our drivers and guesthouse owners. The meat sizzled, beer andwine flowed, and much merriment was enjoyed. Secret Santa gifts were swapped amongst volunteers and our valued GVIpartners received a small gift of thanks.


GVI-hosted dinner with teachers

Christmas Day was celebrated by volunteers intheir own ways – some heading back to another Hmong Village for day 2 ofcelebrations (where the spectacle of traditional garb is a sight to behold),one doing a weaving course, lunch cruises on the Mekong River, and parties andfeasting at various venues around town. I think it’s fair to say it was a Christmas with a difference, but awonderful weekend all the same and some very special memories of the closing of2011.

A Buffalo, A Blacksmith, and a Sticky Rice Basket....

2011-11-24T21:00:00.001-08:00

How fascinating! Thatwas my first reaction to an invitation to go out to Living Lands – a workingorganic rice (and vegetable) farm about 10minutes from Luang Prabang in BanPhongvan. Living Lands aims to promote andeducate on the traditional art of rice growing and harvesting through aninteractive experience on their stunning property. At the same time, they offer to Luang Prabangthe first organic produce farm using European methods, growing vegetables andherbs including many non-native or uncommon in Laos. Finally, the project provides extremelyvaluable work opportunities to a community with fewer prospects but a lot ofdying skills, such as blacksmithing, as well as opening tourism to the villagethrough sustainable methods and showcasing traditional ways. What a great initiative!

GVI Volunteers were invited to trial the Living Landsexperience free of charge in a mutually beneficial arrangement – we got a funafternoon in the mud and fields and they got feedback on the experience andwhat works well.

Our guide Lei took us through the 13 stages of rice growing,from germination, to ploughing the fields with the help of a (very heavilypregnant) buffalo named Susan, to planting, harvesting, threshing, milling....andlucky 13....eating! Each stage has aninteractive component where visitors can use the equipment or practice thetechnique – with as much skill as they can muster. Some volunteers found a new calling!

We had the added bonus of learning about a sweet named ‘khanom’made from sugar cane juice (with a demonstration of the press), ground riceflour (with one keen visitor giving the grindstone a try), sugar and coconutcream. Yum! Our labours lead us to enjoy Laos’ ubiquitousand renowned sticky rice, along with a traditional rice cakes, khao kop, andjeow bong – a chilli dip which is much less spicy than you’d imagine butoh-so-delicious!


Khao kop, Khanom and Jeow Bong...yum!

The day was topped off with a stroll through the organic veggiegarden and learning about methods used to grow the produce, which is sold tosome of Luang Prabang’s most luxurious hotels and restaurants.


Volunteers with Living Lands team

Volunteers all had a terrific afternoon in the villagelearning about this age-old process, and came away feeling a little more intouch with Laos! Thanks to Mark and theLiving Lands team for your hospitality. Good luck, or as they say in Laos, “Sok dee”.

GVI gigging its way around Luang Prabang

2011-11-15T20:45:00.000-08:00

Turns out that GVI offers more than opportunities to teachnovices, kids and community members on the project in Luang Prabang. Budding singer/songwriter/guitarist Anna, andher sister Emma, set up a gig at the new Pilgrim’s Cafe. To show our support all the volunteers andGVI staff, plus some of our Lao teaching partners came along to watch andlisten a bit of live music. It was sucha great show, albeit not a fantastic venue!, but after convincing Anna to playa second set, somehow we opened the mic and had an impromptu performance byteacher, Siphai, who belted out Kelly Clarkson’s ‘Because of you’.

Oh, but that wasn’t the end of it! Anna set up a second gig at the populartourist bar/restaurant, Utopia, and performed to a packed crowd, again withEmma on back up vocals. Students,teachers, volunteers and staff all came along to watch and a very fun night wasenjoyed by all, despite being packed in with too few seats!

As agreed, it then became open mic, and a visiting touristhad her moment in the limelight with ex-volunteer, Becky, providing guitaraccompaniment! Somehow, GVI staffer Samwas also convinced to join Anna in a Tracy Chapman duet with yet anothervisitor on guitar.

Anna has since had another Utopia gig, and alsoperformed once again at Pilgrim’s, and this time Lao teacher, Xay, performed two songs along with Becky on guitar. Maria was convinced to get up on stage and sang both English and French numbers to everyone's delight!

So it seems GVI is a platform for budding artists as well asEnglish teachers!

What do you do with a talent like Maria?

2011-11-14T23:28:00.001-08:00

All volunteers come with talents, some which can be put topractical use, some which influence their teaching style and stories theytell. But Maria, an 18 year old Germanlass visiting us in Luang Prabang for 6 weeks has a very special talent wellsurpassing her years, which impressed the pants of us all!

First Maria just started sketching in her notebook –everyday scenes, the people and places around town and on the project. Then she was asked to draw a poster for alesson on ‘Describing People’, and all we could say was ‘Wow!’ It was incredible, and will certainly be onefor laminating to keep in the Resource Room.

Tricia, the Project Manager, was also keen to have Mariawork with novices at our temple schools doing art. Being a novice in the temples givesdisadvantaged young boys many opportunities for education, and Tricia believedthat this gift of Maria’s may translate to be another avenue they could followfor those interested or found they have an aptitude for sketching anddrawing.

The project is always evolving. In the field it’s very dynamic and we areforever on the lookout for ways to incorporate skills and opportunities for thecommunity, and for volunteers. So checkout Maria’s work....I’m sure you’ll be as impressed as we are!

Not a typical tourist

2011-11-09T21:14:00.000-08:00

by Lynn Wilkinson

On the morning of our village visit, we are up and out ofthe guest house by 7:30am, ready for the 30 minute tuk-tuk ride to the village.I am happy to be driving into the mountains. I remember from the view on theflight here that Luang Prabang is surrounded by mountains, but the city is socompletely dominated by Phousi hill and the two rivers surrounding it, that itis easy to forget that we are in the midst of hilly jungleterritory. The tuk-tuk stops at a small cluster of shops by theroad, and we climb up the dirt path to our school.

Our first stop, literally before we have a chance to say"hello", is at what the Lao volunteer coordinators call the “dream toilet”. The village has painted the school lavatories with anastonishingly beautiful mural of fish and flowers. Each door is clearlypainted (“so there is no confusion”), with a little girl, a little boy, and… ateacher. Our teachers’ bathroom is absolutely spotless. It is clearthat they are very proud of the beauty of this space, and to me it seems a verytangible demonstration of the appreciation they have for the work we are doingand the importance of education for the village. I wish that I couldsomehow show appreciation back for all this effort, and I suppose the teachingis appreciation enough, but it still feels indirect and inadequate somehow. We have already been warned that there is not actually any water inthis bathroom, and so nobody is likely to use it while we arethere. I wish I had the courage to try to use the bathroom but Itell myself it’s better to leave it pristine anyway and so we move on.

At the start of the school day, the students line up andsing a couple of brief songs, and then we are introduced as today’steachers. The children have an incredible amount of energy and it isclear that they are excited about the day. I teach with a partnerGVI volunteer and there is also a Lao volunteer, training to be an Englishteacher, to help us. Today we are teaching some new vocabulary andsimple grammar. We start with an “icebreaker” exercise using animals, andit is a fun and exciting start. The kids know their animals very well,and they seem to pick up new ideas fairly quickly. After teaching somenew vocabulary, we play a game of Concentration (they have to match the newvocabulary to a picture) and they just love it, crowding around the game spaceexcitedly and helping each other out.

I am still a fairly new teacher, with only a couple ofclasses under my belt, and so I make some simple mistakes during the course ofour teaching exercises. I believe that it matters, and I feel a littlebadly. GVI volunteers have been taught that in the Lao culture, theteacher is “always” right, and that students will never correct a teacher nomatter how egregious the error. I am convinced that my students spottedmy errors but we all just move on past them. The Lao phrase “Bo-pen-yang”(it doesn’t matter), has been important at many moments during my visit, and Idecide that now is an especially good time to embrace that philosophy.

After teaching, we move outside for games. We playan educational game with our class for a little while, but soon all the classesgather together and one of the Lao volunteers leads us in a series ofgames. All the games seem to be aimed at inculcating a sense of“one-ness” amongst the group. The first game is a singing/chantingexercise where everyone sings/says the words together with a lot of armmovements to illustrate the dance. It is very hard to follow but once Igive up on all pretence of doing it “correctly” it becomes fun, and I enjoy thefeeling of being a part of it all. The second game is acompetition, and the goal of the game is for each team to perform some fairlysimple tasks in perfect unison. We have four teams, one for eachGVI volunteer. I am paired up with one of the Lao volunteers, whoknows the game well. As a result of his skills, my team is one of thelast two teams standing, and we have a “face off” with one of the other teamsto determine the “winner”. The face-off involves lots of standing up froma squatting position and sitting back down again while chanting our team nameand then the other team’s name. All of this happens very rapidly to thebeat of a drum, which gets faster over time. The kids are squealing withdelight, and it is definitely a lot of fun, but my 50 year old thigh muscleswere squealing with agony. My thighs had already been protesting theregular use of squat toilets, and this game was more than they signed up for. I manage to hang on until victory is awarded to the other team, in gales oflaughter from everyone as our team collapses in disarray. It is a greatending to the day.

Afterteaching, we have lunch with the Lao volunteers at the local villagerestaurant. There are chickens walking around our table; a family washingclothes in a stream by the road; the food is really tasty; and I feel veryLao. This is an experience you could never get if you were traveling as atypical tourist and I am extremely glad that I decided to take the plunge andtry it out.

Food Culture...my favourite type!

2011-10-31T01:48:00.000-07:00

I’ve been meaning to do a class for months but every weekendI forget to make any plans and miss the chance. So when GVI volunteers, Anna and Chris, offered me to join their cookingclass I jumped at the chance!

The day begins at a very reasonable 10am where we load intothe back of a tuk tuk and head down to Phousi Market – Luang Prabang’s biggestmarket where you can buy everything from footwear to fermented fish and buffaloskin to textbooks. This day was strictlypurchase of fresh vegetables, rice, meat and some other items such as coconutpowder and fish sauce, in preparation for the storm we’d be cooking uplater.

Phousi’s crowded and narrow walkways weave amongst the vatsof rotting fish (ok, fermenting! Whatever!),the pigs’ heads, baskets of chillies and piles of different varieties of rice. Our Cooking Instructor explained about someof the more exotic fruit, vegetables and wood (yes, there’s a spicy edible woodused in a local dish called Orlam) and answered our questions about all mannerof weird and wonderful things the purveyors were flogging. Personally I took the opportunity to takemental note of the local prices of fresh produce so when I return I can avoidpaying ‘falang’ (foreigner) price!

Back in the tuk tuk and munching on snacks of sweet stickyrice and fried peanuts I’d picked up, we got back to the kitchen and watchedthe expert Instructor, Phia, prepare two initial dishes we’d need toreplicate. Luang Prabang Salad was easy,even making our own mayonnaise was simple enough, but flowering the cherrytomato for garnish was a little beyond my skill level! No Masterchefs in sight.J We also prepared a Fried Sticky Rice Noodlesand Chicken dish called ‘Feu Khua’ which I eat regularly so was pleased to giveit a go. My noodles were perfectlycooked and my cooking partner suitably impressed!

Lao flavours are quite unique and although there are commonelements with its more famous neighbours’ cuisines (think Thai, Vietnamese,Chinese), there are certainly typical Lao dishes and flavours and the key isnot in flair or originality but in fact preparing food in the traditional wayto achieve the perfect balance of flavours and presentation. Lemongrass, lime, chilli, fish sauce and fishpastes, soy sauce and the balance of sugar and salt combine with all manner ofexotic vegetables, particularly bitter leafy greens, and typically eggs andmeats including buffalo, pork, fish and chicken. Most dishes are served with the ubiquitous stickyrice, called Khao Niaw.

The group set about making the first two dishes, stuffedourselves around noon and congratulated each other on our efforts! Then it was on to the afternoon session. We watched the preparation of 5 Lao dishes,including the very traditional and unique Laap (somewhere between a salad andstir-fry), and a chilli dipping paste called Jeow Bong, which you expect to bedragon spicy but is in fact delectable for even wussy western palates! We selected 3 of the 5 dishes to try our handat, and chopped, sizzled and plated our way through an introduction to Laocuisine.

Of course the best bit was the eating! Sitting with a Beer Lao at the end of a dayin the warm kitchen feasting on each others’ creations, sharing stimulatingconversation with new friends just a stone’s through from the pretty Nam KhanRiver was the highlight of the day. For$30USD, it’s not a bad way to spend a Saturday!

Cooking Courses in Luang Prabang are offered by 3 main restaurants:Tamarind, Tamnak Lao and Tum Tum Cheng.

Best Birthday EVER???

2011-10-31T00:56:00.000-07:00

by Chris Taylor

I answered the knock on my door to find two of my newvolunteer friends waiting with a card, Lao sandwiches (you'll find out) and arendition of Happy Birthday. I could not have asked for a nicer wake up thatmorning and really appreciated the thought. After breakfast I headed down toXayadeth English College to teach my class of 2nd year students. It seemedappropriate to build a 'birthday' element at the beginning of the class which,conveniently, let everyone know about the special day at the same time. I noticedthat two of my students slipped out of the classroom but thought nothing of it.Around 10 minutes later, much to my surprise, I came back into the classroom tofind a Birthday cake, complete with my name, age and candles already lit. Itwas a very sweet thing to do and something that I would have never expected tohappen. After giving all 16 students and my teaching partner a fairly tiny slice of cake we took somephotos, joked around for 10 minutes then went back to learning English!

I was lucky in that the day ended just as great as it began.In the evening I taught a small class of Novice's at Wat Pasaviet (a templeschool). After being informed it was my birthday, the Novices gathered roundand gave me the gift of a Birthday Chant or blessing. It was a truly uniqueexperience and one which I am unlikely to ever forget. If that wasn't enough,after the chant I was blessed individually by numerous Novices who each tied abracelet onto my wrist; by the time I left I probably had around 30.

Luckily for me I actually got to celebrate my birthday twice as it fell on theday when some of the volunteers were leaving the program. A meal had alreadybeen planned but I didn't mind at all. Despite it being for those leaving, Iwas still treated to 'Happy Birthday' sung in at least 6 languages (seven ifyou count 'Australian' as a separate language). For my actual 'Birthday nightout' we all went to a restaurant near to the guesthouse and ate more food thanyou would think possible. It was nice to have almost all of the volunteerstogether, as well as my Lao Language teacher, Xay, and the Lao teacher from WatPasaviet, also names Xay. Great conversation, great food and, of course, Beer Lao.

It was atruly excellent Birthday and I cannot think of any place I would have ratherbeen!

Teaching English in Laos for two weeks – gaining memories for a lifetime!

2011-10-30T20:45:00.000-07:00

by Regina,22 years, Germany

A challengebecomes a pleasure

Of course it is not that easy to stand in front of theclassroom and teach a language that is not your mother tongue. The first time toprepare and teach the lessons make you feel tired and exhausted! But at thesame time it is so much fun, a great challenge and a chance to grow!


The new puppies at Xayadeth make it difficult to lesson plan but sooooo cute!

The first days of teaching started with an insecurefeeling. “Will I do a good job? Will the students get it and enjoy the lesson?Will everything be fine?”
The answer is: As long as you do your best and try really hard to do a goodjob, you definitely will! The more lessons you are teaching and preparing, themore confident you become and the more fun it is.

Being a good teacher means to GIVE. But at the sametime you GET a lot of things. Being needed, helping underprivileged children,having a positive impact on the people’s education is just gorgeous and GIVESyou a good feeling and you feel pleased .

Although the teaching part was alot of fun and filled most of my time in Laos, there are very many otherthings to do and discover! Well, you can stay in your room, have a rest andsleep in your free time… But you definitely shouldn't!

During my free time I had thechance to explore the great and charming city of Luang Prabang….it’s colourfulnight market or its peaceful temples (there are plenty of them!!!). Giving almsto the monks in the early morning, listening to the monk’s chanting or justentering a temple to enjoy the quiet and peaceful atmosphere were very specialand unique experiences.

A view over the Nam Khan River

Giving alms at dawn

I will never forget the beautiful scenery and amazing landscape in front of myeyes while I was riding my bike along the Mekongand around town. I will never forget the trips to the gorgeous Kuang XiWaterfall and to the Ban Lak Sip Primary School out ofLuang Prabang, an extra excursion organised by GVI staff. I will never forget the friendly and helpful local people. And Iwill never forget that I had the chance to discover a country’s culture that itso different to that of my country. Those are memories that will stay for a lifetime…

Novices go about their day, on their way to school or back to the temple

Coming to Laos and teaching a foreignlanguage was a challenge. But I am glad that I accepted and grew by doing it…

The prettiest festival in Laos

2011-10-26T19:30:00.000-07:00

Boun Ok Phansa, or the Festival of Lights, would have to beLaos’ most beautiful festivals by far. Coinciding with the celebration of the end of Buddhist Lent, households,businesses, guesthouses all join with the temples to create illuminated boatdisplays. Some temples put incredibleeffort into decorating not only these magnificent boats but also the Wat(temples). A procession is held throughtown on the Full Moon where each temple’s boat is paraded through the town toWat Xiengthong, where judging occurs and tourists and locals alike gather toget a closer look at the amazing creations.

Other festivities include firecrackers (one of my personalleast favourites!), and the release of both traditional flower wreaths down theriver and fire lanterns into the sky. Itis truly a wonderful and joyous sight to behold! Food, drink and much merriment is the orderof the night and it’s a terrific atmosphere when it seems the whole populationdescends on the peninsula.


Volunteers light candles with Novices at the boat

GVI Volunteers enjoyed an extra special treat on the eve ofthe main festival, being invited out to Wat Pasaviet (a temple where we teachnovice monks five evenings a week), lighting candles and saying prayers overtheir boat. Apart from the dastardlyfirecrackers, which both novices and local kids like to throw wantonly at eachothers’ legs in jest, it was a sublime evening and well enjoyed by both ournovice students and the volunteers and staff.


One of the winning boats on display at Wat Xiengthong

As with all festivals and Buddhist occasions in Laos all theschools shut down to partake in the festivities for 3 days. A small disappointment for some volunteerswith 2 week durations, but more than made up for by the spectacle and wonder ofthe week.

An authentic night out

2011-10-19T03:24:00.000-07:00

By Anna Lindblom

One Saturday night field staff member Sam arranged for someLao teachers to accompany volunteers to have a Lao-style dinner. This was an exciting new experience for mostof us because we were new arrivals (at the time) and not yet familiar with theLao culture.

They took us to a local restaurant which was like a big openterrace with a roof but no walls. It wasnicely lit up by colourful lights. Weput together some tables so we could sit all together to eat Lao (communal)style.

We left the teachers to order for us and we had a fewdifferent dishes, 3 of each, and shared them. This was a good idea because there’s often only one or two chefs in thekitchen, so if everyone orders different dishes you never get the food at thesame time. In this way we ate one dishafter another. As we had finished one ofthe meals, the next one was ready. Weenjoyed grilled fish, friend and stir-fried vegetables, duck ribs, rice and tomyum chicken soup.

In Laos they usually grill the whole fish and you eat itsskin too. That’s actually deliciousbecause that’s where the flavour is.

The chicken soup was a bit scary, because they use all partsof the chicken – the feet as well as the whole head (with the comb and thebeak!). We all cheered in frighteneddelight when one Lao teacher, Xay, cut up the chicken head and ate itstongue. None of us were keen on tryingit though!

After I thought we’d eaten every part of the fish we couldeat I looked away and 5 minutes later the whole head was gone! Another teacher, Chan Sipheng, had eaten itall! He offered to taste the fish eye, aLao delicacy, which one of the volunteers did. Emma chewed it for a while then looked surprised and spit out a hardbit....apparently the cornea is a bit crunchy! She said it had a horrible taste and a strange, jelly-likeconsistency. But Lao people love the eyeover any other part. There was nofighting over it at our table!

We shared some bottles of Beer Lao, and two guys playingguitar created a really nice, authentic Lao ambience.

Two days hanging with the elephants

2011-10-17T03:19:00.000-07:00

By Dani Howison

8:30am: The day started with a tour os Luang Prabangguesthouses, picking up tourists as we went. We soon crossed the Nam Khan River to the outskirts of Luang Prabangwhich turned into dusty, bumpy roads.

We passed through small towns that seemed solely populatedby chickens and small children until we arrived at the Whisky Village. After sampling the whisky containingeverything from snakes to centipedes and claiming to cure all ailments, wewalked through dirt streets meeting local people and watching women weavebeautiful scarves on wooden looms, the clickety-clack following us down theroad.

After seeing the sights, we piled back into the van withother tourists from Israel, Holland and Spain, and experienced the jolting rideup and down hills until we reached the Pak Ou Caves. Crossing the river in traditional long boats,we were presented with the sight of steps carved into the sheer cliff face. Climbing the stairs to the dizzying heightswas an achievement that was rewarded with the hushed darkness of the caves andthe spectacular views of the countryside.

On leaving the caves we drove to the elephant camp for anafternoon of mahout training. Aftertaking a sedate ride safely strapped into a chair on the elephant’s back, wewere then treated to ‘real’ elephant riding.

Having been given a hastily written list of commands and abrief Lao lesson, we hoisted ourselves onto the elephants and rode on theirnecks around the camp.

After 10 minutesof confidence building tameness with the supervision of mahouts, we rode theelephants down the steep riverbank into the water where we bathed and swam withthem. After a lot of splashing and beingdrenched by elephant spray, we rode the elephants into the jungle where theywere to spend the night. We then madeour way back to the camp for a well-deserved shower and hiked to the WhiskyVillage for a Beer Lao and a chat with the locals.

Walking back in the dark to the elephant camp we wereserenaded by our guide until we reached camp and sat down to a meal of soup,sticky rice and stir-fried water buffalo with ginger. Making the most of the light provided by thegenerator, we talked until lights out at 10pm, and rolled into bed, thoroughlywarned out by the day!

Next day: Waking upfor our 7am start, we trekked into the jungle to collect the elephants, againtaking them into the river for their bath. After breakfast we had free time until lunch. Intending to read my book in the sun, I hadan impromptu English lesson with our guide and driver.

After lunch we climbed into the van for another grimey,thrilling ride back to Luang Prabang. After 2 days of too much fun, I’ve got about 200 photos courtesy of oursnap-happy guide...and of course a bunch of great memories!

For more info about ethical elephant tourism click here and if you're also interested in elephant rescue, see GVI's Thailand project.

Novices get dirty for the environment

2011-10-17T02:20:00.000-07:00

GVI Volunteers held special lessons with the novices at WatMano to educate them about, and celebrate Moving Planet Action Day.

The novices were taught the importance of throwing their rubbishin the bin through activities and games. The lesson ended with the novices tidying their classrooms and pickingup litter around the temple making sure to yell and chant “In the bin!” as theytossed trash in the traditional bamboo baskets used as bins.

The day finished with everyone a little dirty, very happy and Wat Mano 4bins richer.

And so it begins...high season kicks off!

2011-10-04T20:18:00.000-07:00

It’s October....that must mean the start of the highseason! Tourists are starting to arrivein Luang Prabang enmasse. The famousNight Market has grown, and all manner of handicrafts, textiles, silver,woodcraft, bags, knick knacks etc are beautifully displayed by stall holderseach night in the main street and stretching further and further along the roadwith each evening. Restaurants arefilling and guest houses are finding themselves with more enquiry than rooms!

But here at GVI things are going along the same asalways. As most of our students are notdirectly involved in the tourism industry their lives carry on through the highseason much the same. Students acrossLuang Prabang are mostly all back at school /college and into the new schoolyear. Novices and Monks carry on asusual with their daily rituals and study, however as the weather cools and therain eases off we’ll see a little more rugging up!

There have been a few changes this school year for GVI, inmost cases affected by the upcoming Laos Games to be held in Luang Prabanglater this year, but also our increasing involvement in certain colleges. For example, at Xayadeth College GVI will take anactive part in assessment and exams and have also been welcomed into the school’spermanent program with the school’s Director offering GVI Volunteers their ownclasses 10 times weekly! It will keepeveryone busy with lesson planning, resource development and teaching but isindicative of the strong community relationship GVI has with our partnerschools in Laos and we’re grateful for the opportunity to teach so manystudents on a regular basis.

So whilst the tourists come and go and enjoy Luang Prabang’sincredible and intoxicating vibe, GVI volunteers get all that and more....theunique opportunity to step into the hearts and minds of the locals everyday andmake a real difference to their lives through education and culturalexchange. How blessed we are!

If you’re thinking of a holiday with a difference – a working holiday which will more thanscratch the surface of an amazing destination, visit GVI for the lowdown on theproject and come and join us for an unforgettable and profound experience!

Facebook Reposted (by Sarah Sturrock)

2011-10-04T00:47:00.000-07:00

Sarah was a volunteer with us in June. She recently added this Comment to Facebookabout 3 trips she did with GVI on her Gap Year. It was so insightful and lovely we asked Sarah if she’d mind if we addedit to the blog!

Sarah teaching at Xayadeth College

...From June, I spent 6 weeks in Laos teaching English toall different age and ability groups - children, teenagers, novice monks andadults. Although every class was very different in terms of what we would teachand how, all the students were very enthusiastic. GVI provided invaluablesupport in terms of training, and throughout the project whilst we planned andtaught lessons. Joy, who owned our guesthouse, became like family. I was reallysurprised at how quickly I became confident about teaching.

Sarah with 3 other volunteers at a Basi (Blessing) Ceremony held by the guesthouse owners

[A lass thinking about joining the project in Laos asked Sarah for some advice and this is what Sarah replied....]

Firstly... Good idea to go for that long [3 months]. I'drecommend taking advantage of the opportunity to learn some Lao, because itreally helps you understand where your students are coming from, and whichparts of English will be the most difficult for them. Also don't get disheartened if lessons gobadly - as you'll quickly discover, the Lao way of teaching is very differentand it can take students a while to get used to a different approach. It's alsoperfectly natural to take a while to get settled in how to teach if you'venever done it before. You'll also find that you really have to insist on themdoing any homework you set them, and I found that having prizes or some kind ofreward for students who did the best job really encouraged them with this.Other than that, pay lots of attention to the training Sam Kurikawa willgive you, as she's almost always right, and the most important thing is to haveLOTS of enthusiasm! Feel free to message me if you have any specific questions.

Sarah and Laos Field Staffer, Sam, say farewell

Sarah is a GVI Ambassador these days and you can find her onFacebook!

A chance to get out of 'the big smoke'

2011-09-23T02:01:00.000-07:00

OnSaturday a group of 6 volunteers went and visited Ban Lak Sip village, about 20minutes from Luang Prabang. Even though it was only 20 minutes out of town, thekids were far poorer and had vastly fewer opportunities than the students wegenerally teach. After climbing up a very slippery, muddy hill (it had beenraining all day so it was a bit of a struggle!) we met the children. They wereall very excited to see us. There were about 30 students all together betweenthe ages of about 3-16. I was paired with Anthony and Bree, and we taught agroup of kids about animals. They were so excitable and loved playing games!They went crazy when we had them act like animals - it was so cute! After ourlesson some of the kids performed traditional Lao dancing for us. The kids wereso sweet. My favourite dance was between a boy and girl, the boy was very cute,he was about 7 or 8 and so earnest. We played with the kids for a while, a fewof the girls attached themselves to Bree and myself...we were tempted to takethem home with us they were so adorable! It was a great day.

Skyping Novices to a school near you!

2011-09-22T01:13:00.000-07:00

On Thursday 15^th September the Intermediate classat Wat Pasviet had the opportunity to skype call to New York. ‘Mr Bob’, a teacher and former volunteer onthe program had asked his high school students to devise questions to asknovice monks. In the week leading up tothe Skype call the novice monks had been brainstorming and researching New Yorkin order to ask American students relevant and stimulating questions. After a week of anticipation and sometechnical issues we established a connection to New York around 7:15pm localtime, which was during school hours in the US. The novice monks at Wat Pasaviet were very excited to see their former volunteerteacher Mr Bob. The exchange ofquestions between the students were at times insightful and funny. Seeing the reaction to questions like “Canyou ski in Laos?” raised entertaining reactions from both groups. After 40minutes or so the conversation cameto a close as both classes were finishing. Both groups across the world in both distance and realities seemed toenjoy the exchange.

Note from Bob: Due tothis exchange several students in New York have approached Bob to arrange afundraiser for Wat Pasaviet’s new library (soon to be included in GVI”sCharitable Trust projects) to install computers and wifi at the templeschool. Thanks Bob, and to yourschool!

GVI Laos work smarter not harder for Moving Planet Action Day!

2011-09-07T02:17:00.000-07:00

GVI Laos is thrilled to be participating in this year’sMoving Planet Day on 24^th September. Moving Planet aims to ‘be a day to put our demands for climate actioninto motion—marching, biking, skating—calling for the world to go beyond fossilfuels.’

GVI Laos has opted to run an all day event by spreading thegood word in Environmental Awareness, so each lesson hosting a GVI Volunteerthat day will have an environmental message – litter and waste disposalawareness, reducing our reliance on vehicles, and what we can each do in ourhomes in Luang Prabang to Reduce, Reuse, Recycle. This equates to some 25 hours or more ofteaching to well over 100 community members!

The GVI team decided this was the way to go, because ourproject’s fossil fuel reliance is somewhat limited due to the propensity forstaff and volunteers to walk or cycle as we go about our days. Gas or open fire cooking is far more commonthan electric at most eateries we frequent, and the message of plastic usereduction is already well established on the project.

GVI volunteers and staff will also conduct a rubbishcollection day. Happily, Luang Prabangiansare frequently involved in village clean ups so GVI are glad to be able tocontribute to community pride.

Wireless novices

2011-09-02T21:10:00.000-07:00

Last night was an exciting one for the Novices at Wat Pasaviet.

A skype session was set up with a volunteer who had recently returned home from the project and the novices eagerly took the chance to chat with "Mr Bob" live from New York.

Having his video image projected onto the classroom wall and his voice booming out at almost the same volume he used to teach made it seem as if he had never left.

Many questions were asked about how he handled the recent wild weather and we got an online tour of his house and even got to talk to him as he sat in his garden.

This was a practice session for another one that Bob is setting up with his own students from the school where he teaches and the novices are looking forward excitedly to the chance to chat with people of their own age on the other side of the world.

Laos Quarterly Report April-June 20111

2011-08-30T21:17:00.001-07:00

Laos Formal Report April-June 20111

Laos Formal Quarterly Jan-Mar 2011 v2-211

2011-08-30T21:07:00.000-07:00

Laos Formal Report Jan-Mar 2011 v2-211

Visible support for Novices

2011-08-20T22:13:00.000-07:00

Through the ongoing support of the GVI volunteers, and the special donations made to the Charitable Trust by a couple of past volunteers, the temple school at Wat Pasaviet was able to have new tables and benches built and these have now been delivered and put to use.

This is part of the ongoing development of the Wat that GVI has been a large part of. It is a popular place to teach due to the enthusiasm of the novices and we have expanded the classes to include an advanced class as well as the regular one.

The next step in the development is the outfitting of a library and we will not only be contributing to the outfitting costs but also donating a number of the books that have been brought to the project by volunteers.

Songs and games

2011-08-20T21:36:00.000-07:00

A group of volunteers had the opportunity to visit a small village school on the weekend. With the help of the local library, who run a book donation project, we made our way out of town by tuktuk. It was a bit of a steep climb through the village itself, up a muddy path in drizzly conditions, but the welcome from the kids made it all worth it.

At first the local teacher had the children line up and sing greeting songs and each of the falang volunteers introduced themselves. Then the 60 children were split up into three groups and the volunteers took classes with the lessons they had prepared earlier. The smaller children were entertained by rapidly tiring staff member and a couple of large beach balls.

Without doubt everyone who went was touched by the enthusiasm and joy shown by the local kids and we all got as much out of the visit as the children obviously did.

Boat Racing Season is here again!

2011-08-15T22:23:00.000-07:00

It's another very hot day here in Luang Prabang and as one of the new batch of volunteers here, I can tell you it takes some getting used to but after a few days of adjustment, we all decided to head off to Nam Bak on Sunday for the local boat race. It's a 3 hour journey from Luang Prabang but the journey was worth every second. All the local villages participate, and the race heats are held in all the villages but for the final boat race, everyone heads to Luang Prabang on the weekend beginning 26th August. On arrival in Nam Bak, we were met with a sea of locals. The narrow street was packed with people, vehicles and stalls selling anything from scarves and bags to chicken feet and other Lao delicacies.

We crossed over the river and dug ourselves into a great spot by the riverbank to watch the races. It was quite clear to us at this point that we were not a common sight in Nam Bak, which led to much curiosity from the locals, especially the kids. Most of the kids would stare but I was lucky enough to have one little local girl wave and say "Sabidee". Too cute!

We decided to test our constitution to the max by tasting the local food on display, goat, chicken feet, fried banana and other unidentifiable snacks. Some were good, some not so good but that's what Lao is all about, trying new things and of course, it was all washed down with the delicious Lao Beer!

The boat race itself seems to be an extremely popular activity. Watching the locals jump up and down and shout as loud as they could for their favourite team was as entertaining as the race itself! We weren't entirely sure how the boat race was arranged or how it ended, as all the commentary was in Lao and unfortunately at this moment in time, we are only managing to say "Sabidee" and "Khop Jai" with any conviction. As we watched the races, the teams with their colourful red, yellow and orange team colours, a lovely local woman approached our table and began chatting (in Lao of course) but the guys responded by asking her what she was eating and she kindly allowed us to pass her snack around, so we could all have a taste. Mmmmm, it was beautiful sweet sticky rice wrapped in a giant green leaf. On her seeing our delighted faces as we munched on this tasty snack, she presented our table with more than enough sweet sticky rice to go around. Now that is Lao hospitality. There may well be a language barrier, but friendship gestures are very easy to interpret.

By Susan Dunn

Lao's love their food!

2011-08-10T20:27:00.000-07:00

It seems there’s always something going on here in Luang Prabang on the project that involves food! That’s because sharing food and eating together is such a quintessential part of Lao culture. Last night volunteers were treated to a banquet...a feast fit for kings! The Director of Sikeud School prepared the sumptuous dishes herself....everything ranging from fried rice, to laap (a traditional Lao dish made from shredded meat and delicious herbs and spice), noodle soup, steamed vegies in a tasty broth and, of course, sticky rice.

To add to the festivities, we had a karaoke machine with both Lao and Western songs and teachers and volunteers alike all danced in Lao style...or something resembling Lao dancing! Two particularly musically gifted volunteers tuned an old guitar and sang a ditty for us all to join in. What fun!

Of course a few Beer Lao were enjoyed with frequent ‘cheers’-ing (‘tham jok’ in Lao), much laughter was shared and a sad farewell to both volunteers leaving us this week and also a Sikeud teacher who is heading back to Vientianne for now. Nevertheless, safe to say a good evening was had by all, and GVI are so grateful to Sikeud’s Director, Miss Seng, and teachers for their generous hospitality!

Food eaten together always tastes good

2011-08-07T19:14:00.000-07:00

Food is a quintessential part of Lao life. Their cuisine is unique and diverse, incorporating tastes of sweet, sour, bitter and salty.

Eating is a very social occasion with everybody gathering around the table to eat and drink together. Low woven bamboo tables are placed on the floor, and everyone squeezes up to fit so they can reach the array of dishes.

Lao food is usually served as it comes from woks. There is no concept of entree, mains or dessert. All the dishes are shared with everyone dipping in their spoons, forks or hands. It is said that food eaten alone doesn’t taste as delicious.

This passion for food was shared with a group of volunteers who attended a Lao cooking class, hosted by Tamnak Lao Restaurant. The day commenced with a trip to the main Lao food market, where we were taught about all the Lao ingredients. For the more unique fruits and vegetables we were told of substitutes that we would find in our home towns.

We then returned back to cooking school where we had two popular dishes demonstrated to us which we then cooked for lunch, sharing with our partners in traditional Lao style. For dinner we were demonstrated five dishes which we sampled, and cooked three. After this we also learnt how to cook sticky rice; a Lao staple, and jeowbong - a famous Luang Prabang chilli paste.

Having the opportunity to cook, understand and taste the array of flavours and dishes has installed the Lao delight for food into us and we look forward to sharing with our friends and families.

For those reading this missing the taste of Laos, enjoy the recipe below. For those of you looking to come...a sample to whet your appetite. Enjoy!

Tamnak Lao Luang Prabang Salad

This recipe serves one or two people if eaten on its own. If eaten with other dishes, the salad would be enough for three or four.

Ingredients

Salad leaves – any can be used (mixed leaves or baby leaves are ideal)
Watercress – if not available, up the amount of salad leaves
1 sliced tomato
1 sliced medium cucumber
1 tablespoon crushed, unsalted peanuts
1 tablespoon minced pork (optional)
2 hard boiled eggs
1 sliced hard boiled egg
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1 tablespoon sugar
½ teaspoon white pepper – finely ground black pepper can also be used
¼ teaspoon salt
Coriander (Cilantro) for garnish

Prepare the mayonnaise:

1. Take two of the hard boiled egg yolks and place in a food processor, blender or other suitable mixer.
2. Add the oil, vinegar, sugar, pepper and salt.
3. Blend until smooth.

Make the salad:

1. Spoon half the mayonnaise onto the salad leaves and watercress, and mix well.
2. Place the salad leaves/watercress on a plate or in a bowl in a pyramid shape.
3. Place the sliced cucumber around the base of the pyramid and the sliced tomato on top of the cucumber slices.
4. Place the sliced egg on top of the cucumber and tomato. Use the leftover hardboiled egg whites to garnish the salad.
5. Sprinkle the crushed peanuts and some of the coriander on top of the salad.
6. If using pork, fry it in a little oil and when cooked, place it over the top of the salad.

TIP: If you like the flavour of mint, feel free to add this to the salad.

By Chloe

An impromptu but age-old 'blessing ceremony' for volunteers!

2011-08-01T19:47:00.000-07:00

I can’t tell you how special it is to have a Bacci (‘blessing ceremony’). The Laotians hold them frequently for all manner of special occasions, but it is quite something to not only be invited to one, but for it to be held for you!
Hence, we were touched when guest house owners, Joy and Ot, offered to hold a Bacci for the volunteers as a way of saying thanks and farewell to some long-stay volunteers, welcome and good health to some of the new ones. In fact one lucky volunteer got off the bus just that morning and was able to come along!
The auspicious time of 10am was chosen and we all arrived in our traditional sins (Lao skirts) and scarves tied in the traditional manner. Everyone looked resplendent in their Lao best! Village elders initiated the ceremony, which starts with uttering (Buddhist) prayers and blessings, before moving on to tying of the white strings onto each others’ wrists – a signal for our body’s spirits to return home to keep us safe, well and protected. These strings are left on for 3 days (or more).

Following the blessings with the strings, we gather around the ‘alter’ tree once again for chanting – a truly moving experience – and share around the offerings....sweet sticky rice packages, rice cakes, a traditional Lao sweet, fruit etc.
Guest house staff had also been up since dawn preparing a feast for lunch...a delicious curry courtesy of Ot (with plenty of help for veggie preparation!), salads and rice. My biggest regret is not being able to eat more! It was amazing :)

Suffice to say it was a wonderful morning and one of those special, unplanned occurrences that make being in Luang Prabang such a profoundly moving experience.

A Teachers' Dinner: A Volunteers' treat

2011-07-26T19:18:00.000-07:00

The call was sent out...a Teachers’ Dinner at the rice and noodles place with the plastic bag fans...and was responded to with enthusiasm.
Volunteers enjoyed the opportunity to catch up with their Lao teaching partners outside school, while the teachers from various schools had the chance to chat to their rarely-seen counterparts in GVI’s other partner schools.

The poor restaurant staff were greeted by a sudden influx of 22 volunteers, teachers and GVI field staffers....all with different food orders and in need of beverage refreshment, but in typical Lao fashion handled it without fuss or fluster! The fare is simple and oh so good at Luang Prabang’s worst kept secret restaurant, and they coped just fine albeit having to miss parts of the finale of a favourite soap opera/drama on the in-house TV to serve us..although several volunteers and teachers were a little distracted with the plot too!

Volunteers hosted our Lao guests for the night and it was the perfect type of experience in cultural interaction that tourists rarely enjoy. Besides, any excuse for a good noodle dish and a few casual beers over lively conversation always goes down well! Thanks to the fantastic teachers at Sikeud, Xayadeth College, Wat Pasaviet and MEC, without whom GVI volunteers would certainly be at a loss.

Giving of Alms

2011-07-23T22:27:00.000-07:00

Waking up at five o’clock in the morning can be a daunting task for any one, especially considering I had lots of energetic teaching to follow. But nevertheless I arose on time and met my fellow volunteers outside to proceed with the Monk ceremony known as Alms; a ceremony I knew very little about up until this point.

The first thing I noticed was how cool and fresh the city of Luang Prabang was at that time in the morning. Walking towards the location of where we would be giving Alms, I noticed how calm and deserted the river was except for the lone fisherman rowing across it. The roads were empty and the air was clean. Not having to shelter your eyes from the sun, you notice things you have never seen before and you begin see the city in a new light.

Upon arrival to the main street we all took our place along the side of the road. The women dressed modestly in a traditional Sin and scarf, kneeling on the ground. The men dressed in long trousers and a shirt accompanied by the scarf tied in the traditional way. Then in the distance you see a line of orange approaching you, as if it is the first ray of the rising sun coming to greet you. As the line of monks approach, people begin to prepare themselves for giving the food offering (Alms giving). Being briefed earlier, I knew that I shouldn’t touch the containers the monks carry for their food collection as I place my offering and I should offer a sincere pray as a mark of respect. I gave a food offering to about 90 monks and novice monks in total, which was a fraction of the total number of monks I saw walk down the street. Watching from afar you see how the subtle morning light and bright orange robes of the monks create a picturesque and soothing scene.

I found the Alms ceremony to be more than just giving a food offering. It was also to experience the other extreme of city life; where you are greeted by a cool, fresh and silent morning. Where the normal hustle and bustle is non existent and your daily routine is yet to start. Beginning the day in a relaxed and humbling way as oppose a manic western morning rush was a great experience; even if that meant getting up at five o’clock in the morning.

Sushil Pal

Lao lessons and Lao Lao

2011-07-09T03:51:00.001-07:00

You know you’re in a very foreign country when you realise the only words you can say are “hello” and “thank you”, and when even your water bottle label looks like some alien medical supply. Lao is not one of those languages you “just pick up” – and so, being the intrepid volunteers we are, we decided to embark upon a course of Lao lessons, taught by Mr Xay, who boasts arguably the best English of any of our Lao colleagues (and welcome enthusiasm for Pimm’s).
We quickly found though that his most-used English word is “no”. Imagine a group of alleged adults sitting in a classroom making very strange noises, immediately followed by his “no” and another (subtly different!) strange noise and you’ve got our classes. Bravely attended by myself (Sarah), Helia, Dan, Sushi and Yana, we have been valiantly soldiering on Sunday after Sunday, even in the face of adversities like “It’s hot” and “I underestimated the lao-lao” (local whisky).
On top of a newfound respect for our long suffering students, we have pciked up some great phraseslike “khoy pen aajan” (“I’m a teacher”....apparently) and even mastered the delicate difference between “duck” (“bpen”) and “spicy” (“phen”)...or maybe it was the other way ‘round? We’ll keep trying....

Temple Life presented in Powerpoint

2011-07-07T22:54:00.000-07:00

Novices and the Abbott of Wat Pasaviet – a Buddhist Temple which GVI are privileged to work at with volunteers teaching English – were given a real treat recently with a powerpoint presentation depicting their temple lives. Recently departed volunteer Edward stayed at the temple overnight in his free time. As a keen photographer he took dozens of photos which he then put into a presentation with music for the novices and monks. GVI volunteers and staff, sans Edward himself sadly, watched the show together. Nervous giggles, raucous laughter and sighs at the simplicity and beauty of the pictures could be heard across the room, and indeed temple grounds.

It was a special thing to share and on behalf of GVI we thank Edward for this incredible gift to the Wat Pasaviet students. See it for yourself at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mByirfuNqJM

Never expected that! What a privilege!

2011-07-07T22:37:00.000-07:00

Volunteers enjoyed a rare privilege recently when the graduating students in Year 3 at Xayadeth College made their final presentations at the school. Volunteer teachers were asked to be on the assessing committee for the students, grading the presentations according to a range of criteria including knowledge of topic, presentation style, English fluency and pronunciation etc. What an unexpected honour to be invited by the school’s Director to sit alongside the Lao teachers and score the students in their final examinations!
Volunteers relished the opportunity to ask questions at the end of each presentation and due to the diversity of topics covered – everything from blacksmithing, to rice growing techniques, and local tourist attractions to sweet orange exports – learnt much about the life of Lao people and local industries.
Officials from the Education Department also came along for part of the presentations, and the Director opened and closed proceedings with speeches, including an expression of thanks for the ongoing work of GVI and volunteers in the school.

Following formalities teachers, students, volunteers and GVI staff enjoyed a luncheon consisting of delicious Lao/Chinese foods and some drinks for those not having to teach later in the day. A great day was had by all (including the students once the nerves passed!) and volunteers can now say they’ve been part of a school matriculation committee!