That Luang Festival 2

The main part of the That Luang festival took place early in the morning on November 28th. Monks from all around Laos come to receive alms from people who come from many different provinces. The alms are given in order to store up merit for rebirth into a better life.

Vientiane Boat Racing Festival

On Wednesday afternoon, a friend and I joined the thousands of people by the Mekong to watch the boat races. This festival signifies the end of the rainy season and the beginning of the cool*/dry** season. 

*cool = upper 70s
**dry = less than 100% humidity

Mekong Lights

One of my favorite celebrations in Laos is the night before the Boat Racing Festival. While the main downtown streets are insane with thousands of people and super loud music, the banks of the Mekong are a bit more peaceful. People light lanterns to send to the sky and candles on banana-leaf boats that they send down the river. It's such a beautiful time!

Two Videos

Both of these videos were taken during my time in Malaysia.

This first video is part of a traditional Malaysian scarf dance (during the show blogged about here.)

The second video is of the orangutans. I could have watched these guys for hours! It was so fun to see them without bars or glass in the way.

Kuching! Tradition

While we were in Kuching, we were able to see some traditional houses and dances. 

This guy was intense. That long stick in his hand is actually a blowpipe used for hunting. His uniform was also quite impressive.

 In this dance, there was a pole. Then a guy climbed and sat atop the pole.

Hong tried out some dancing, 

blowpipe shooting, 

and instrument playing, 

though both agreed that each of those activities would have been greatly enhanced had he been wearing a feather headdress and black underwear.

The Baci- A Lao Tradition

The Baci (pronounced bossy) is a staple of Lao culture. It is a ceremony and party for anything that needs to be blessed: a new house, a baby, a marriage, someone who was in an accident, etc.

First, the family sets up a Baci tree (Mak Beng) made out of marigolds and candles.

Oranges, tamarinds, and other food may be placed at the base of the tree to attract any spirit to come and give blessing. The family then ties strings to the tree and invites a monk to come and bless the strings.

The monk chants for about 30 minutes, then takes a string off of the tree to tie around the wrists of the family members who need blessing. Others are invited to tie strings to their wrists as well.

This Baci was for a new baby girl, so I tied a string on her...

...and Hong tied a string on her grandmother. They leave the strings on as long as possible to receive the maximum amount of blessing. 

Then they dance.