This
blog now forms part of a book titled "Lesser Trodden Laos" available
as e-book and also in print form
at https://www.amazon.in/dp/B09FGJDXKZ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=Lesser+Trodden+Laos&qid=1630747625&s=digital-text&sr=1-1
Thank you so kindly for your
patronage!
Until again, sok dee (Good bye)!
Krutagjnatalu (Telugu), Nanri (Tamil),
Dhanyavaadagalu (Kannada), Nanni (Malayalam), Dhanyavaad (Hindi), Dhanyosmi
(Sanskrit), Thanks (English), Dhonyavaad (Bangla), Dhanyabad (Oriya and
Nepalese), Gracias (Spanish), Grazie (Italian), Danke Schon (Deutsche), Merci
(French), Obrigado (Portuguese), Shukraan (Arabic and Sudanese), Shukriya
(Urdu), Sthoothiy (Sinhalese) Aw-koon (Khmer), Kawp Jai Lhai Lhai (Laotian),
Kob Kun Krab (Thai), Asante (Kiswahili), Maraming Salamat sa Lahat
(Pinoy-Tagalog-Filipino), Tack (Swedish), Fa'afetai (Samoan), Terima Kasih (Bahasa Indonesian) and Tenkyu (Tok
Pisin of Papua New Guinea), Malo (Tongan), Vinaka Vaka Levu (Fijian),
Hemantha Kumar Pamarthy
Chennai, India
Very detailed account of your monsoon sojourn in Laos, Hemanth! I’d certainly take this as a reference guide if I ever get to visit Laos or if anybody known to me visits the place. Lovely photographs, especially the One of Buddha amidst the lush greenery and the quaint guest houses located in scenic places close to a river or near a mountain or among green vegetation! Enjoyed your writing- the sequencing, the food, the prices in different currencies-Laos Kip, USD and INR and the relevant pictures. Some more pictures of your interaction with farmers and of the beautiful girls mentioned would have added to the charm your pictures evoke. Thanks for sharing your experience! Makes great reading!
ReplyDeleteThank you dear Savithri.
ReplyDeleteI made it sort of a policy not to detail anything of my official work and hence no photographs of those interactions.
Thank you for your kind words.
Best wishes and warm regards
Hemantha Kumar Pamarthy
Interesting read about the monsoon adventures, Hemanth ! All pics are beautiful. I did notice the CAT dumper :) Losing 7 kgs in 3 weeks shows the lack of veg food there. So happy that you enjoyed yourself in the villages of Laos 👍
ReplyDeleteThank you dear Maya!
DeleteIt's not that we don't get vegetarian food. Only it will not be enjoyable for us!
Best wishes and warm regards
Hemantha Kumar Pamarthy
You are doubly blessed. Not only do you have a sense of adventure but you also have an open mind. I often meet travellers from India who are hypercritical of Laos - even a former Indian ambassador. Different cultures are not weird or strange or to be laughed at. They are just different until we experience them.
ReplyDeleteMy one fear is that so much of lovely Laos might disappear once the Chinese-built railway comes to this country. Already the pastoral scenes are starting to disappear by mindless development.
Percy
Thank you so much for your observations dear Mr. Percy.
DeleteMuch appreciated and much obliged!
I still say that Laos is a beautiful country with good people. I don't see anything to be critical as every civilisation has something great and not acceptable by others. As a tourist, our main qualification is to have the ability to adapt and blend as much as possible.
Despite my own weaknesses like inability to have any other food than vegetarian and swimming, I still love travelling and enjoy the adventures Laos offers.
If others can't see the good things it is their loss!
Thank you once again.
Best wishes and warm regards
Hemantha Kumar Pamarthy