I was invited to make a contribution to the funeral expenses of a deceased villager and I enquired how much would be appropriate. I was told that 30,000 or 40 000 kip ($4 or $5) would be fine. I only had a 50,000 note so handed that over, but as an afterthought enquired how it might be spent. Oh, we need it it to buy 'paper money' to burn at the funeral, I was told. My suggestion that I just set light to the bank note, and cut out the middleman was greeted with some puzzlement.
I forgot to mention last week that I was just leaving the police station....oh yes! I assure you that there is nowhere better than a police station here to watch c.30 uniformed young people, without a single brain cell between them, smoke, and scratch their private parts (yes, I agree, there are better ways to spend your time;it is just a suggestion) and coming down the road to meet me was was an elephant. Is there anyone who does not adore elephants? But she was big and the road was narrow and as she got close I got a tiny bit anxious, having a rather solid brick wall on my other side There was just the smallest amount of space between us as I squeezed past, but she never moved off a straight line and I got by, just grazing her tummy as she passed.
Other invitations this week included one to a New Year's Eve party and to 2 parties this evening. I hid from the former, and am claiming that tonight I am at the 'other' party and therefore unable to attend. My reluctance to attend is for all the reasons that I regularly spell out here, but mostly because it is made so hard to leave a Lao party. If I could pop in for an hour or so I would happily attend, but to sign up for a 6 hour musical extravaganza and drinking session is not something I often want to do.
Another, especially charming invitation, which again I might just decline due to pressure of work, has been extended by the Children's Cultural Centre which has invited me to join its weekend camp. I am genuinely touched by such an unexpected invitation, but I am not wholly convinced that 2 nights under canvas with thirty or so 11 year olds is really my preferred option for the weekend. Should I change my mind, please be prepared for the next Letter to bear a resemblance to Alan Sherman's "Camp Granada"..aka Hello Fadda, Hello Mudda for those of you old enough to understand the reference.
But thinking about it, it might be some while before the next legitimate LetterfromLaos, as my monthly tourist visa expires next week, and as some of you might have read, I do not intend to renew it. So unless things happen in the next few days, Tuesday will see me back on the Ship of Fools to Thailand and not returning to Laos until April.
New Year is proceeding quietly after rather a noisy NY Eve. Oddly, although banks and offices close for Happy New Year whilst most business stay open, for Chinese/Vietnamese NY the reverse is true. We have celebrated it by daily power cuts and lack of water in the pipes. But to be fair, the former are planned cuts to enable improvements to the supply to be installed and the latter caused by children with time on their hands.
We have had a few rain showers which is also odd, or so it seems to me. I am used to settled weather only making few seismic shifts in the course of the year, not English changeable weather. The mornings are noticeably less cold right now, and indeed I have slept the last 2 nights with a fan on, so maybe we are stuttering our way out of our winter.
For those of you who have been kind or curious enough to express an interest in the orange shirt which has been mentioned before, here is a treat for you.
Best wishes
ALAN
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