Sucker for Street Food

My favorite Lao delicacy, vegetarian deep fried spring rolls

Some travelers wouldn’t even think about eating street food while traveling overseas but I salivate at the prospect. In Bangkok, I snack throughout the day from vendors that line the major avenues and in Pokhara, Nepal I patronize steel food carts that prepare everything from Tibetan momos (similar to Chinese dumplings or pot stickers) to … Read more

The Royal Ballet Theatre of Luang Prabang, Laos – A Cultural Miracle Under a Communist Regime

Beautiful Lao women perform perfectly syncopated dance steps

The Royal Ballet Theatre troupe in Luang Prabang achieved the impossible on the evening I attended a performance of Phra Lak Phra Lam, the Lao version of the sacred poem known as the Ramayana. Dancers in monkey masks sat on their haunches, scratching the backs of their necks. Tall men wearing hawk-billed masks and elaborate … Read more