So we finally have something new at dogboy.org.

This site has transformed from Evan’s personal webspace to his family’s blog. There is still content archived. You can start your exploration of that at http://www.dogboy.org.

We plan on having plenty of baby pictures as well as updates on our life. Feel free to post comments, etc.

As part of this effort, I removed our old travel blog. It was way too spam-ridden.

For nerds out there, this is basically a Wordpress blog, with a tweaked custom theme. Most of our photos are now hosted on Picasa, but displayed in the blog via the fantastic Shashin plugin.  Spam is killed (hopefully) by Askimet.

We are not going to Laos because we do not have enough time. However, many travelers say it is a fantastic place to visit. I learned a bit about it since it has some near-history connections with Vietnam. I wanted to share this with everyone since I think few Americans would otherwise learn about it. This is all from our “The Rough Guide To Southeast Asia”.

American Bombings in Laos

In 1964, a new phase of the war in Laos began. With the US pushing hard for an escalation of the bombing. Souvannaphouma (kept in power with help from the US) gave the go-ahead for so-called “armed reconnaissance” flights over Laos, which essentially meant the US could bomb whatever it pleased.

The war took place in total secrecy. US ground troops were kept out and military planes had to take off outside the country. As journalist Christopher Robbins wrote, “There was another war even nastier than the one in Vietnam, and so secret that the location of the country in which it was being fought was classified.” From 1964 until the ceasefire of February 19673, United States planes flew 580,944 sorties - or 177 a day - over Laos and dropped 2,093,100 tons of bombs - equivalent to one planeload of bombs every eight minutes around the clock for nine years - making Laos the most heavily bombed country per capita in the history of warfare.

The Plain Of Jars

The fifteen-kilometre-wide stretch of grassy meadows and low rolling hills around Phonsavan takes its name from the clusters of chest-high funeral urns found there. Scattered across the “Plain of Jars” and on the hills beyond, the ancient jars, which are though to be around two thousand years old, testify to the fact that Xiang Kouang province, with its access to key regional trade routes, its wide, flat spaces and temperate climate, has been considered prime real estate in Southeast Asia for centuries. The largest jars measure 2m in height and weigh as much as teen tonnes. Little is known about the iron-age megalithic civilization that created them, but in the 1930s bronze and iron tools as well as coloured glass beads, bronze bracelets and cowrie shells were found at the site, leading to the theory that the jars were funerary urns, originally holding cremated remains. More recent discoveries have also also recealed underground burial chambers.

During the Second Indochina War, the region was bombed extensively between 1964 and 1973. American planes levelled towns and forced villagers to take to the forest, as the two sides waged a bitter battle for control of the Plain of Jars, which represented a back door to northern Vietnam. The plain was transformed into a wasteland, the treeless flatlands and low rolling brown hills pockmarked with craters which leave a lasting impression on those who fly over it into Phonsavan.

We tried out some vegetarian cao lau, which is a type of salad. It’s made with homemade hot noodles on the bottom, followed cooked tomato chunks and onions, then fresh carrots and mint leaves, topped by crispy noodles (instead of dried pork rinds). The salad has a light, crisp, lemony dressing. It sells for about 7,000vdg ($0.45). Very refreshing!

I’ve taken quite a liking to Vietnamese style coffee. A layer of condensed milk is poured on the bottom of the cup. Then the coffee grinds are placed inside a small metal brewer that sits on top of the cup. Boiling water is added to the grinds and allowed to slowly drip through into the cup. Afterwards, it’s optional to dilute the mixture with some extra boiling water. Stir it up and there you go! It’s sweet and creamy and not on your diet, for sure!

 

Evan bought the metal brewer to try at home.