Laos

This was the view sideways from the the road through the little village (from the same position as the PiP).

Laos is a very poor country, but it seems to be placing a high emphasis on education. It was particularly good to see that international organisations are helping by building regional schools such as this (details in the PiP). This is in the same village as the houses I posted yesterday and it really gave a very positive feeling that some aid is being provided. One of our group was a retired teacher, who asked our guide if it was possible to visit a school. After a few phone calls for approval, we were welcomed on this visit which would be considered totally out of the question in Australia!

The old school is alongside the new school and, as far as I could tell, is now used only for storage (see PiP). Apart from being much larger, there is no comparison with the new school.

Amazingly, not only were we invited to visit the school (see earlier images), we were allowed to take photos in the classrooms. This young girl looked somewhat inattentive in class - probably distracted by the "farangs" (Lao term for westerners) with cameras. In the PiP an image of the early primary classroom.

If the girl with the pink pen (previous image) was distracted, this young lady in the upper primary was totally focussed on me wandering around, so through sign language we agreed I could take her portrait. She burst out laughing when I showed her the photo on the screen. :-) Another classroom photo in the PiP.

Down the road from the school, these village men were busily repairing a net. Nets such as this are used to capture birds for eating and, in that regard, it must be recognised that these areas largely operate on a subsistence economy.

The term "Banyan" is generally applied to all the Bay Tree fig species. This one is at Wat Visoun monastery in Luang Prabang, Laos. The special significance of the Banyan is that Buddha is supposed to have attained enlightenment while sitting under one.

Also known as the Great Stupa, the gold-coloured Pha That Luang is the most important Buddhist stupa in Laos and a national symbol. Apparently dating in its earliest form from the 3rd century, it was built on its current site in Vientiane by King Setthathirath in 1566. Even so, as a consequence of wars it has had to be rebuilt a number of times. It appears the top spire is gold plated, the rest is done in gold paint.

The gentleman commemorated by this statue in Vientiane, the Lao capital, is Setthathirath, who became King of several of the regions now forming Laos in the mid-1500s. He successfully fought off invasions from Burma and built many Buddhist structures. Behind his statue is the golden stupa, the Pha That Luang (see also clickable PiP). HFF, stay safe and best wishes for the weekend, everyone.