We had about ten days between the end of the Pi Mai holiday and the May Day/ Worker’s Day/ Labor Day holiday weekend to relax at home and spend some time in Vientiane.
Well, relax, I suppose is a relative term — so is “holiday” around here.
In reality, the Pi Mai festivities just seemed to blend into the May Day holiday, making for one combined super-festival over a four week span. Parties continued, drinking continued, and the oppressive heat continued. Not sure how anyone can continue to party so hard for so long in such heat. Leave it to the Lao.
Early in the week after the end of the long Pi Mai holiday, we enjoyed the relative peace and quiet of the neighborhood, save for a single, solitary goat nagging away next door.
Here it was, three days after the end of a very long week of festivities and I almost began to believe the party was over. The neighbors got a Pi Mai goat as a gift, I thought. And then, I noticed something out our bedroom window. Is that? No! It can’t be!!! Pi Mai is over!!!
It was in fact a party tent. Pi Mai may have been over in the rest of the country, but unfortunately for us, things were just getting started in our neighborhood. Thursday? Our next-door neighbors’ 12-hour marathon party, with music so loud it rattled our windows and light fixtures until after 2am.
Yep, we weren’t invited, but apparently neither were the parents. The owners of the house were out of town, leaving their adult daughter to “tend” to the house — and by tend, I mean, invite a couple dozen of her closest friends, rent a party tent and the loudest sound system possible (with a DJ, of course), oh, and of course, what Post-Pi Mai party would be complete without a fricken goat to slaughter for your friends.
Friday? The party continued on the other side of the house at the former prison, now a mysterious police complex that frequently hosts private parties with lots of music and lots of trash burning afterwards.
Saturday? Our neighbors directly behind us get two party tents that almost completely block the side road (not uncommon here in Laos to block an entire road for your party).
By the time Sunday rolled around, we were ready for the party to be over. And after three weeks, it finally was. Noe and Mr. Black Bear had their own celebration.
It’s been nice having a calm, relaxing week to get caught up on things. Lori boiled diapers…
And I got down to business with a newly acquired grill.
For eight months, we had kept the carport free in the hope that we might find a small vehicle of our own. With the insane prices of used vehicles here (and the fact that Lori has access to a vehicle through work), it seems that dream has been put on hold indefinitely.
So…I bought a grill, moved some plants, and eventually our outdoor dining set under the car port and made a nice space for myself. I’ve been grilling out about twice a week, rain or shine, working on my technique.
It’s been about seven years since I’ve owned a grill (since leaving Seattle), so it’s nice to get back into it and add some variation on the nights that I cook dinner at home — which still only average about three times a week.
Lately, Noe’s been enjoying stopping to touch the plants (he’s thrilled, can’t you tell!?)
He also enjoyed his new toy this week!
The empty Pringles can was actually implicated in his first-ever goose egg on his head. He was so attached to the thing, he refused to put it down, even to crawl across the room. At one point, I was working on my computer and he was sitting under my chair playing (as he frequently does). He pulled himself up with the chair to see what I was doing, but dropped the Pringles can. He bent down to reach it and thought he could, but in the end reached to far and bonked his head on the legs of the hardwood chair pretty hard. Noe doesn’t usually cry when he falls or bonks his head, but this elicited a big one, and he had the bump to prove it for the next couple of days.
We tried out a new Vietnamese restaurant right up on Kamphengmeuang Road (the T-4) with Lori’s work crew called Báhn Cuông by Hongthong, serving, you guess it báhn cuông!
Báhn cuông is a rice-flour crepe filled with various ingredients. We got the sampler. This was our first time having this Northern Vietnamese dish and thought they were quite tasty. We also got an order of the fried spring rolls. Needless to say the portions are quite generous.
One evening we took a walk down to Phonpapao Village — a 10 minute walk from our neighborhood but a completely different feel. We always enjoy our walks through here, and I particularly enjoy stocking up on fresh shrimp.
There aren’t a lot of places nearby that sell fresh shrimp. Living in a landlocked country, I don’t know where they come from, but I’ve always been pleased with the quality, so I keep getting them. Lately, I’ve been enjoying…you guessed it…grilling them!
Looking forward to trying something on your grill in a few months! Love you guys!
Yes, the grill master will show off his skills and I will mix up some drinks with local whiskey (Lao Lao)!
My how I well that grandson is growing
Enjoy your new barbecue!
We appreciate the great photos.
And he’s even a month older than this now! (I’m a little behind as you can see)
Love this post. It is always nice to have that family time. Love to all.
Yes, particularly when it coincides with a healthy kid!