{"id":1072,"date":"2008-08-23T23:45:05","date_gmt":"2008-08-24T04:45:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/?p=1072"},"modified":"2011-08-22T15:19:30","modified_gmt":"2011-08-22T19:19:30","slug":"sangha-restaurant-art-class","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.b-vong.com\/journal\/sangha-restaurant-art-class\/","title":{"rendered":"Sanga Restaurant Art Class"},"content":{"rendered":"

It became a recurring thing, the Hmong \u201cLost Boys\u201d coming up to us, and asking\u00a0us to buy them\u00a0shoes or pants.\u00a0 It’s a tough predicament to be in.\u00a0 On the one hand, just giving away money encourages life on the streets.\u00a0 Turn your back on the hungry, and of course it makes you feel bad for living the charmed life that most of us have taken for granted.<\/p>\n

It is customary for Lao people to ask company if they’ve eaten yet.\u00a0 Even if you are a complete stranger, some type of refreshment or nourishment will be offered.\u00a0 It’s that hospitality that makes me feel proud to be Lao.<\/p>\n

While we were having a literal feast in Phonsavanh, some of our group members noticed the Hmong kids darting in front of the restaurant.\u00a0 ST says that all they asked for was our\u00a0rice.\u00a0 Having way too much food, the kids happily wolfed down all we had left.\u00a0 I guess word got out that we weren’t your typical \u201cfarang<\/em>\u201d tourists or backpackers.\u00a0 Most of us were of the Laotian Diaspora, leaving as refugees, yet still keeping the culture, language and heritage, and returning to Laos to reconnect with a lost homeland.<\/p>\n

After dinner I asked the kids to draw some pictures in my journal and also just asked them their interests and future goals, the same thing I do with the kids back home.\u00a0 No matter the country, poverty level or social situation, every child likes to draw.\u00a0 I had a \u201cNacho Libre\u201d moment while engaging in the short art session.<\/p>\n

\"bvong_pix_laos_art_class.jpg\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

It became a recurring thing, the Hmong \u201cLost Boys\u201d coming up to us, and asking\u00a0us to buy them\u00a0shoes or pants.\u00a0 It’s a tough predicament to be in.\u00a0 On the one hand, just giving away money encourages life on the streets.\u00a0 Turn your back on the hungry, and of course it makes you feel bad for […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":11354,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[4,59,7],"tags":[58,62],"class_list":{"0":"post-1072","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","6":"hentry","7":"category-lao-culture","8":"category-laos-trip","9":"category-photos","10":"tag-laos","11":"tag-xieng-khouang","13":"post-with-thumbnail","14":"post-with-thumbnail-large"},"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t