On the morning of December 31, I take a cab to the airport to meet up with the group that I will be traveling with for the next 10 days. Dick Grace and his beautiful wife Ann, both 78 years young, will be our leading us. I have had the incredible gift of traveling with them many times in the past, but the rest of the group (excluding Sanjay) have never traveled with them and none have been to Laos or Cambodia before.
I meet 30 something Caitlin, a sassy tattooed korean bar tender, Meredith who teaches art and photography to mentally handicapped adults, Chef Richard, Jennifer and Nino, a couple who are in the wine business, and high school senior Carlo - all from the Napa Valley area and my friend Urmi from India who I haven't seen in over 7 years since I visited her there. And our wonderful tour guide is Sanjay who I have met and worked with in past. He has organized countless trips for Dick and Ann, and this one is sure to be special. We all introduce ourselves and tell each other how we came to be on this trip and what our connection is to Dick and Ann and the amazing work they do.
We board our flight together and are landing in Luang Prabang, Laos in about an hour. We are met at the airport by our local guide, Pong and his helpers in two vans. We are taken to the beautiful Luang Prabang View Resort where we have just enough time to check into our rooms and change for New Year's Eve dinner at the hotel.
The dinner is a lovely affair, a giant buffet of every imaginable food served on the large patio surrounding the pool. Red wine is flowing and many guests are there with Lao singers and dancers to entertain. A bit cheesy but very fun. Until the rain started to come down. We are ushered inside until the rain subsided and then back out to the pool area. By this time the magic spell had been broken and Urmi and I decide to turn in. Especially since we have a 4 am wakeup call.
After a good sleep, we bundle up for the chilly morning and meet in the lobby. We are driven to the center of Luang Prabang so that we can take part in a wonderful, years old tradition of giving offerings to the monks from a nearby monastery. We sit on little plastic stools and purchase big bowls of rice and packaged snacks. Soon they coming down the lane in a silent, bright orange line. They are mostly younger, heads shaven, orange robes flowing and each with a begging bowl in hand. We put little balls of rice and a snack in each bowl. I try and make eye contact with each but some keep their eyes toward the ground. One young monk surprised me with the sound of his voice as he says "good morning" with a big smile. It reminded me of handing out halloween candy but with a much more calm, beautiful spirit.
Such a special way to begin the new year.
By this time it is light outside and we walk to the morning market where my eyes and senses are dazzled by every fruit and vegetable of every color of the rainbow. There are birds and mice and bats for sale - not sure if they will become a meal for someone....there are baskets and bags, spices and crackers, deep fried goodies, incense, dresses, rice and drinks. A feast for the eyes.
We all end up at a tea stall where we have hot chai and goodies bought from the market. A sweet time as we get to know each other better on this first day of the new year and first day of what is sure to be an incredible adventure together.
I meet 30 something Caitlin, a sassy tattooed korean bar tender, Meredith who teaches art and photography to mentally handicapped adults, Chef Richard, Jennifer and Nino, a couple who are in the wine business, and high school senior Carlo - all from the Napa Valley area and my friend Urmi from India who I haven't seen in over 7 years since I visited her there. And our wonderful tour guide is Sanjay who I have met and worked with in past. He has organized countless trips for Dick and Ann, and this one is sure to be special. We all introduce ourselves and tell each other how we came to be on this trip and what our connection is to Dick and Ann and the amazing work they do.
We board our flight together and are landing in Luang Prabang, Laos in about an hour. We are met at the airport by our local guide, Pong and his helpers in two vans. We are taken to the beautiful Luang Prabang View Resort where we have just enough time to check into our rooms and change for New Year's Eve dinner at the hotel.The dinner is a lovely affair, a giant buffet of every imaginable food served on the large patio surrounding the pool. Red wine is flowing and many guests are there with Lao singers and dancers to entertain. A bit cheesy but very fun. Until the rain started to come down. We are ushered inside until the rain subsided and then back out to the pool area. By this time the magic spell had been broken and Urmi and I decide to turn in. Especially since we have a 4 am wakeup call.
After a good sleep, we bundle up for the chilly morning and meet in the lobby. We are driven to the center of Luang Prabang so that we can take part in a wonderful, years old tradition of giving offerings to the monks from a nearby monastery. We sit on little plastic stools and purchase big bowls of rice and packaged snacks. Soon they coming down the lane in a silent, bright orange line. They are mostly younger, heads shaven, orange robes flowing and each with a begging bowl in hand. We put little balls of rice and a snack in each bowl. I try and make eye contact with each but some keep their eyes toward the ground. One young monk surprised me with the sound of his voice as he says "good morning" with a big smile. It reminded me of handing out halloween candy but with a much more calm, beautiful spirit.Such a special way to begin the new year.
By this time it is light outside and we walk to the morning market where my eyes and senses are dazzled by every fruit and vegetable of every color of the rainbow. There are birds and mice and bats for sale - not sure if they will become a meal for someone....there are baskets and bags, spices and crackers, deep fried goodies, incense, dresses, rice and drinks. A feast for the eyes.
We all end up at a tea stall where we have hot chai and goodies bought from the market. A sweet time as we get to know each other better on this first day of the new year and first day of what is sure to be an incredible adventure together.
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