khao jii pate

That's just jian1 tou2 mian4 bao1 with pate and some leaves from the roadside.. I normally don't like pate but this is actually ok... It's my breakfast, which I am eating as I type.. Going to catch the bus in an hour or so to Tat Lo, where hopefully its nice and quiet enough to spend 2 nights before heading back here fri morning and taking the direct overnight VIP bus to Vientiane.

Forgot to add to the what was eaten: I just love seeing the kids having such good innocent clean fun: climbing trees, playing in the river, catching fish, swimming, playing who can throw the slipper furthest, tying the leftover bamboo strips around their heads and limbs and swaggering around pretending to be 'some gang' =P to hear the sounds of their laughter just makes me so happy, and they seem to be having so much more fun than our kids stuck in front of the TV or computer the whole day...

The women here are also less modest than I thought. In the village they just walk around in spaghetti straps or even just the bra and of course the always present sarong, and lots of them wear sleeveless stuff everywhere. The men just wear a towel around the waist or undies or a loincloth. They usu change to something nicer and more decent when visiting or going to another village. At first, on all the public transport, everyone's pretty covered up, usually with a windbreaker or jacket or long shirt, but now I realise, after having my blue pants turn brown, not to mention my white tee, that it's just to protect them from the dust of the road, and from sunburn... I also realised that the women don't wear undies.. cos when we stop for toilet breaks by the side of the road they just squat right in the open, do their stuff and get back up on the bus without having to adjust anything.. =0

I am feeling much better today. Spent most of yesterday under the blankets and my sarong and windbreaker trying to sweat whatever it was that was making me sick out... Seems to have worked.. Had 'foe' (rice noodles soup) with very nice peppery beef balls last night. All the portions they give are damn big... I can never finish a meal...

I have not found the peace I am looking for ("if you find peace not within yourself, you will never find it without"), but it's still good to be here.. I will continue looking....