Phonsavan

I wrote in a former post that Phonsavan had nothing special to it. That's true to a certain extent, yet if one wants to get to know a little bit about this country, one should stay in these smaller cities and villages for a while, as they simply represent the typical Laos. I'm here now for almost a week, and I don't think that I lost time...
A couple of days ago a boy stopped next to me and asked me in English where I would be going. We talked for a while, he (like many others) looked for contacts and possibilities to practice English. The next evening I found myself standing in front of about 40 boys and girls teaching English... It was a private school, and they all enjoyed the possibility to talk to someone different than their teacher. Two days later I went there again, this time staying also for the second level course... I had a lot of fun, it was not precisely a "normal" English lesson, we talked about a dozen different things. In Vientiane someone had suggested to stay there and teach English, as my level would be high enough to do so. I declined, as I have some different plans for the future... After the experience in Phonsavan I have to admit that I almost started thinking about it again...

The encounter with the students also provided for another touch with Laotian reality. Despite the - in parts - shiney Vientiane, the ubiquitous mobile phones, the big 4-wheel-drives, Laos belongs to the category of the so-called "Least Devellopped Countries". The major part of the population lives in the countryside and their existence is called "subsistence living".
Some of the students come from villages close to Phonsavan and their origin was clearly visible, the clothes displayed their economic status. The monthly fee for attending this private school is 45000 Kip, that's 4,50 US-dollars, and they said that they hardly manage to pay this amount... they recognize clearly the importance of speaking English, even more in a country like Laos, but they are never sure whether this month could be the last one to go to this school, as very simply there wouldn't be any money left to pay the fee...