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Eleanor warned me. The humidity in southeast Asia hits the hair hard. Trivial I know, but I've been freaking out the people of Luang Prabang with my white person's afro.
Last night me and Bruno went to see some entertainment Laos style. A fashion show of ethnic costume and then some break dancing at Hive Bar. The fashion show was awesome, beautiful ethnic clothes modelled by equally beautiful Laos students, who giggled the whole way through the show. Delightful. The dancing was five teenager guys, popping and spinning to funky tunes. I'm a big fan of break dancing ( he's spinning upside down on one hand!) and this was genuinely some of the best I've seen. We were at the front and I was whooping like a crazy person as was everyone else in the crowd from middle aged Australians to Japanese cool kids.
Met my first smug traveller. A guy from Estonia who sniffed at every place I said I was going as not discovering the 'real' Asia. Ok dude. In fairness he was actually pretty fun and taught us how to say cheers in many different languages. May explain why I have a bit of a hangover today ( we were in ikon bar, great place packed full of interesting people.)
Nursed the sore head with a massive plate of fried spring roll goodness and a visit to the museum about ethnicity and tribes. The museum runs some really interesting projects encouraging lao women to video blog their lives. The best part was the explanation that these ethnic groupings are ingrained in lao culture and they don't stand still in time. They are modernising just as any other culture does but the importance is to remember heritage, whether that's documenting lives by film or continuing the tradition of passing on ancestry through stories. Inspiring stuff.
- comments
Loz Some kind of hair net may be needed? Don't listen to the smuggits, they don't understand that they dont own the rights to joy and awe. "Urgh Heaven? So touristic. I went to Asgard and stayed with a family of wood elves who knitted me this waistcoat from unicorn hair" etc.
Rebecca In that kind of humidity my hair turns to the opposite a flat cow pat so which would you rather...? I'd love an Afro! Xx