Sao Lao

Unlike the US, most students here take public transportation to school. I take the train and the bus, when the train is not running. When I get to the campus, I walk, walk and walk. The university doesn’t have one big campus like in the US so you can get from one building to the next easily. Walking from one department to another can easily take half an hour. Try that when it is raining or snowing.

To make life easier, most foreign students would buy a use bicycle. It can range from around 100 Euros to hundreds, depending on what you want. Having a good lock is a must. A Korean classmate’s bike was stolen because she didn’t buy a lock fast enough. Another classmate with a good lock had one of her tires stolen. I guess someone needed a spare tire and decided to borrow one from her and never to return it.

My new friend and I went to get his bike after the first day of class. It didn’t come with a lock or even a parking gear. The tail light was missing so he needs to update his bicycle a bit. It is a good bike though and I sat there while he peddled to the administration’s building and to the bookstore. What a gentleman.

Of course I didn’t want my new friend to take me back to the train station so I told him I would take a bus instead. But after a few minutes of standing there waiting for the bus, the sun came out and I decided to take a nice long walk back. I like to walk because I can look at things and take my time to take pictures along the way.

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Is it possible for the dead to speak to you in a dream and tell you to buy the winning lottery number? I would answer that it is possible based on my experience. I will tell you about a particular dream that I would never forget for as long as I am still alive.

In Laos, my mother would buy lottery number, Lao lottery as well as Thai lottery. People in Laos play the Thai lottery by using the last three winning digits of the Thai lottery. I think it was underground lottery system but just about everyone I knew were selling and buying Lake Sarm Tho (three numbers lottery).

My mother won a few times, but only in small amount. One night I had a dream that I was playing on Wat Tad Luang’s ground. It was during the annual festival and there was a Faris Wheel right in front of me. The place was empty so being a little kid I started to walk around. Then I saw an old man, who could be someone’s grandfather. He called my name to go to him. He said he wanted to help me, to make my life better and told me to look up at the Farish Wheel. I saw two sets of number, glowing in red color light bulbs. This kind old man said to tell my mother of those numbers and all our lives would be better.

The next morning I woke up and went to my mother’s room to tell her about the dream. Since I was just a little kid I didn’t know how to tell her the two sets of numbers and I wrote them down backward for her. The set of numbers were 250 and 160. Of course being a stupid kid, I wrote down 052 for her but then 160 for her for the second set. Why would anyone write down numbers backward to begin with?

My mother bought the first set of lottery numbers, 052 and 250. Guess what? She won baskets of Lao kips for the winning 250 set. She was able to buy a refrigerator, invested some money for her pharmacy, and finance our chicken farms. She later won the second set of lottery number 160.

Our winning streak didn’t just end there. My brother Hanh had a dream later about an old man who came to visit him. The nice old man pointed to the license’s plate of my mother’s motorbike. The set of numbers became red. Hanh told my mother about the dream the next morning. I can’t recall the numbers. But one thing for sure, my mother won her third biggest winning pot for Thai lottery (Lake sarm tho).

My mother said it was my Grandfather that came into my dream. She said he must have been worried about us and wanted to help us. At the time there were talks of him haunting people at his old house in Vang Vieng. That is another story all together and I will post for Nye.

On August 14th I had a dream about my deceased Grandmother again. I think it had something to do with talking about her with my mother a few days before. My mother told me how my two uncles in Laos wanted to have a new Tad for my Grandparents. Apparently the two uncles are not able to sleep well at night since they are experiencing nightmares lately with their parents being angry with them. I can only wonder if this has to do with a bit of guilt since the two uncles sold all their inheritances to pay for their gambling addiction. I am not a judge or jury on this matter.

After talking to my mother I called my Grand-Mama in Pakse and she told me about how they will have Boun Haw Khao Padab Din in a few weeks. I then told her about my uncles wanting to have some sort of ceremony and a new Tad for my Grandparents. I also told her about not having seen my Grandmother in my dream anymore. I said to my Grand-Mama perhaps I should think of my Grandmother in Lao language and also talk to her before going to sleep at night.

I don’t know if it possible to make yourself dream about something you want to dream about. I am too busy to check on reading materials on dream subject. But for three nights as I was getting ready for bed. I spoke in Lao to my Grandmother and told her that I missed her and if it is possible, please come talk to me. On the third night (August 14th) I had a dream about her in the early hours of (August 15th).

In a dream, I am walking around at a market, somewhere in Laos. There is a water fountain with Buddhist Monks standing next to the fountain. I join a group of people that are waiting to wash their hands and feeling happy to be able to feel a cool water on my hands since it is a hot day.

After washing my hands, I walk around the market and heard a phone ring. A lady picks up a phone which is white with long white cord. Someone on the other end is asking for a girl name Pet (duck). The lady makes an announcement, asking for someone named Pet to come to the phone. After a few minutes, there is no reply. Here I am walking around, looking at various goods at the market and then realized that I have a nickname of little ducky. I raised my hand and said I have a name of duck and went to pick up the phone. Well you know already from the title of the post who is on the other end of the phone. It is my deceased Grandmother.

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I have to confess that I am a very strange person because I talk to people during my sleep. My youngest sister thought it was funny when I was at home last year and we were sharing a bed and I told her not to wake me up because I was having a good dream. She said I woke her up because I was giggling. She asked me what was so funny and I told her to be quiet and that I am in the middle of a very nice dream and don’t want to wake up. I can recall that dream with being at a very beautiful place and experiencing a warmth sensation and I heard my sister talking to me. I didn’t wan to wake up and was fighting my best to stay in a dream state and so I told her to be quiet and went back to my dream.

I dream a great deal and at times would take things in real life into my dreams. For example as a high school student, I would be completing my Calculus problem during my sleep and would wake up to write down the answer. During my undergrad years, I would continue writing essays while sleeping. Perhaps my brain doesn’t know that I am resting and continue to work during night time.

I also dream about dead relatives and would carry on conversation with them like with my Grandmother and my sister in particular. I knew that they are dead and used to be afraid of my sister. But now I talk to her and not afraid of her anymore. My Grandmother and my sister didn’t appear in my dream for many months. The last time I had a dream about my Grandmother was last year. In a dream she appeared and told me how much she and her mother missed my mother and me. My Grandmother said she wanted me to go live with her but I told her no since I knew she meant I would be living with her in the after life. Before having this particular dream, I had a prior dream about visiting both my Great-Grandmother and my Grandmother in the after life. Perhaps those two dreams are related somehow.

When I said no to Grandmother she told me she will go take my mother to live with her. I told her that she shouldn’t do that because my siblings need their mother. I told my Grandmother that rather than taking my mother to live with them, I would go in her place instead since I have no family to care about. She agreed and vanished into thin air. This conversation was taking place at where I am sitting right now, in the computer room.

Then the dream change with me sleeping on my bed. I am experiencing death and having warmth sensation and feeling energy being released out of my body. I look out the window and saw three angels with white gowns and wings and all, just like how they are depicted in paintings and movies. I can see a bright glow around them and they are calling me to go outside. The next thing I knew I was dead. I am now floating by the ceiling, looking at my body on the bed.

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When is it enough to do something for your family members or relative in Laos? I have not asked myself this question yet. Ever since I have found my Grand-Mama late last year and went to Laos to meet her, I have been doing my best to help her. A relative once said you can go to a poor house if you keep on doing something for your relative in Laos. I have never met this relative in person yet but to him he has done enough for his mother in Laos.

I won’t even go into details on how much money I have spent on my Grand-Mama and all my aunts so far. I see what I do as an investment on their future. At times I forget about myself and too eager to help. I could have easily said it is not my responsibility to help them or feed them. After all their own sons and brothers are not doing their parts to help their family. Why should it be my task since my parents were divorced and I have just met these people for the second time in my life?

It would be easy to just walk away and live my own life. After all the only relatives I knew about are on my mother’s side of the family. Most of them are well to do and the rest well I have done my part without even being asked to help. I no longer sent money to those in need once I found out they are addicted to gambling. Here I am a hard working student, not making much in income and sending money to my two uncles so they can throw party on the weekend and play card. I need the money more than they do to pay for my health insurance for start.

Now, with hardly anyone to help my Grand-Mama, I can’t just walk away. I have been sending packages to Laos with clothes, purses, towels, medicine, and other basic things such as lotion, candies, and chocolate. It’s a heavy burden but if I don’t do it, who will then? Even my Papa told me to only help with building a roof for a house and not to build a roof over a rice field. It must be some sort of Lao proverb. I found it to be a simple excuse to not do something. No one is building a roof over a house here. We are talking about feeding and caring for his almost 88 years old mother. Even if I am trying to build a roof over a rice field, it is still possible if all the villagers would pitch in. One can always find an excuse to not do something, rather than to find reason to do something.

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Clothes shopping in the Netherlands is something that I hardly look forward to. I always wait till I go home for clothes and shoes shopping. In the US, my favorite shopping stores are Gap, The Limited, Express Clothing, and of course the local Dillards and Macys, which finally showed up in Kansas City last year.

I like to shop at Bijenkorf, Dutch department store which reminds me of Dillards or Macys. Now and then I can find brands from the US for 30% more in price. The problem is that if I wait for the sale price to kick in, then there is nothing in my size anymore. So, I can only look at the clothes and then talk myself out of not buying anything since to spend money on something that I can buy at half price in the US would bring too much guilt on me. I’m a poor student and having to send money to my Grand-Mama on a regular basis means setting a priority for myself.

Since I have found out about Steps Womenswear last year, I have become a regular member of this clothing company. They actually have size 34 for me most of the time. I have noticed how many foreigners are hanging out at the store, whether Asians or other ethnic groups that are about the same height and size as me.

I was at Steps for their summer sales and got me a couple of skirts for my next trip to Laos. When I saw those skirts I was like yeah these will be perfect for Laos next year. I can’t wait to wear them in Vientiane and Pakse.

See How They Run โกยเถอะโยม Thai movie released in 2006.

This music video made me think of my Grand-Mama’s children. She did so much for her 4 boys to give them a good education at the highest level possible in Laos. They were bunch of Dek Ban Nork from Pakse and were transformed into fine young men at Vientiane. What did my Grand-Mama get in return? They left her to die for many years. When they did send some money, it was only to keep her alive at minimum state of living. It was a spare change for them when they can remember they had a mother. At one point in time when Grand-Mama fell many years ago and thought she was going to die, she told my aunt to not let her sons know if they ever call that she passed away if that was the case.

Why is that some Laotians are so good at Huk Pheun Phoon, Sung Nor Nell Tor or in English words, Love others but hate your own flesh and blood? I feel sick to my stomach each time I think of my Grand-Mama’s sons. Yeah, they might have a big face in the Lao community but to me they are nothing more than Louk Nay Lar Koon.

I was out and walking around Rotterdam, looking for a birthday gift and ran into a herd of elephants all over town. No, they are not live elephants but unique statues as part of the Elephant Parade exhibition in Rotterdam. I read something about the event a few months ago in a Dutch newspaper. I didn’t understand much of what the article was about, but I paid close attention to the dates of the exhibition. After months of waiting I can finally start my elephant tracking mission and will capture them on camera for you to see.

The first one I found was Elvis Elephant, right by Bijenkorf department store.

I found more elephants later at Beurs Plein shopping center.

I like this elephant by Beurs World Trade Center. Too bad it’s not made of real silver.

Please visit Lao Voices Gallery for more photos of Elephant Parade Rotterdam. I’ll upload the rest of the pictures there in the Netherlands album.

I had a long day today since it was the first day of class. While waiting for my first class to begin I spent some time surfing at one of the computer labs at school. Then it was standing in the hall waiting for the class to start. I think it is a bit strange for other Asian students to stare me up and down and then to give me a smile or just to ignore me completely. Today, it was no exception. As I stood there, this one Asian guy who was standing next to me gave me a nod and a smile after he checked me out. Another Asian guy walked out from the class as he was headed somewhere but made a complete stop right in front of me and asked me a question, more like one word question with “Asian?” and when I said “yes” to him, he then went on with “Thailand?” but when I said “Laos” he said “Oh, Laos, nice to meet you” and extended his right hand to me.

I found this meeting with the two Asian male students to be somewhat amusing. When I got inside the class there was this guy that came up to me while I was trying to get a seat and said “Nice to meet you, my name is….” and I had no choice but to be nice and polite. Let’s just say that I made a new friend today. I also met three other Asian girls in the class. The only reason they spoke to me was to ask for my reader so they can make a copy. They refused to buy a reader which costs 33.40 Euros and said it is too expensive. Later, they spoke among themselves while asking if they could look at my reader. Then they were conversing between English and what I thought was Chinese about who they could borrow the reader from.

In the end they asked me and with the Chinese guy they went off to make a copy while I waited with my new friend. In the end I couldn’t find them at the copy machine. So, the lesson is that sometimes you should just say no. I made a suggestion to them that one of them should buy a reader and a book for the class and then share among themselves. But I guess it would be cheaper to just borrow it from me.

I just love the start of a new school year. It’s going to be a great year for me, I can feel it.