the team is growing

2 weeks until opening!
we had planned to move to the hospital on Monday 26th January
but we're not quite ready.
the team is growing in the build up
3 new expats have arrived, a doctor and 2 nurses and the admin director arrives in a week
we've recruited new Laotian staff too, a pharmacist, a doctor and 4 nurses
one of the ex novices is going to work at the visitor centre
so jonathan decided we should all give an 'ice-breaker' presentation about ourselves
i spoke about my godchildren and the lessons medicine had taught me
it was great hearing about everyones diverse backgrounds
and we have a great team, we're going to be a huge success!
then a team lunch to welcome everyone and also to say goodbye to yvonne

a photo shoot

our new children's hospital open in 3 weeks
and so some decorative, commemorative photos to mark the big event

role play

whenever we have to do role play for doctor training at home there is usually moaning and cringing
but here, the guys loved it, it was a big game!

I've been on holiday

next a yoga workshop

2 days of full on yoga with some scary moments
i didn't squash Kathrin when we swapped!

first of all a trip home with my step-son Novice Vanh

Novice Vanh asked if i would travel home with him to donate books to his villages' primary school and visit his family
Novices Vanh, Somchit and I arrived at school with books, pens, footballs and fruit - the teachers were very grateful and informed us about school activities and that the school did not have a water supply, luckily I know Wendy from Swiss Red Cross who runs programmes to supply water to villages and schools, SRC to the rescue.
The children were very well behaved, when we arrived they all ran outside and the teachers asked them to fall into line and sing the national anthem!
They were then sent back to class but whilst we spoke to the teachers in the office, they were curious and soon there was a big crowd of excited kids gathered at the office door!
We visited each class in turn, the children were very lively and enjoying lessons, Novice Vanh taught, he was a natural, I asked who wanted to come help at the new children's hospital, heaps hands were raised.
There was so much laughter and good feeling, we were all very happy.

Next stop Novice Vanh's family home for lunch, as a guest I was presented with the chicken's head, eek, help, what to do, I asked Novice Vanh , he said it was a great honour to have the head! gulp, guess what happened next ...... i became vegetarian
Yes, I know I'm terrible, being at Novice Vanh's home i could appreciate the poverty in which his family live and felt awful for not eating food they had prepared at great expense and with such generosity, I was very grateful

then a couple of days at Wendy's

house and cat sat for Wendy,
she has a beautiful home, wall to ceiling windows with fantastic views
really enjoyed the days sitting on her balcony gazing out at the Mekong and watching life.
Out front a funeral was underway
People paying their respect at the open coffin, women preparing food, playing cards and chatting, men watching TV, drinking beerlao and chatting.
Out back the women were tending the vegetable gardens and the men were fishing and hunting birds and small mammals with rifles.
And the locals gave me a papayas fresh from their trees so i could feed my guests

and finally a yoga retreat in Nong Khiaw

Nong Khiaw is beautiful, the scenery is stunning
and the town has a great vibe which i loved - friendly, relaxed and vital.
Kathrin and Julie, the yoga teachers, I know from Luang Prabang
they were fantastic, their yin and yang energies complemented each other.
And I loved the warm, kind and fun energy of the group
came back feeling very zen

Sok Dee Pee Mai

Happy New Year guys!
reach for the stars in 2015

New Year's Eve was fun in Luang Prabang
delicious dinner, all was looking civilised
lit lanterns with my dad and christine and made a New Year's wish
then we were given shots of laolao at bamboo tree restaurant
a slippery slope! yikes
what followed - a pub crawl, dodgy dancing, more shots, takela
staggered home with half the town at 3 o'clock

i'm too old for hangovers! one day i'll grow up
had to cook New Year's Day dinner - ooohph

New Year lunches

there are big celebrations for new year here in Laos
we've had heaps of invites at work to lunch parties from other organisations
we went along to the Luang Prabang Department of Investment and Planning's bash
nosh, beerlao, dancing and karaoke from 11.30 a.m. until night
no beerlao for me, i had to return to work in the afternoon
a good excuse to dodge the karaoke which is all about volume and nothing to do with talent!

christmas dinners

2 Christmas dinners this year

one on a riverboat floating along the Mekong

and one at one of luang prabang's poshest restaurants

suddenly it felt like Christmas and I needed to sing carols
a few drinks led to whaling carols at the top of our voices

apologies to the other diners! not everyone appreciated our tuneful harmonies!!
merry christmas guys xxxx

a trip to the waterfalls

the novices at wat naluang suggested a trip to the waterfalls
well it's the christmas holidays, they've been studying hard and rarely have treats
so we got a tuktuk and riverboat up to tad say waterfalls
the novice monks dived in fully robed, it was wonderful to see their shear joy 

simple pleasures are the best