On November 3, I left Sarnelli House and Northeast Thailand to travel to neighboring Laos. My arrival in the capital city, Vientiane, (by chance, not forethought!) coincided with the That Luang Festival, one of the biggest in the country. In the slide show below (more technology! courtesy of slide.com), you see me wearing a (rented) Lao skirt over my own - required to enter the temple area. Behind me are offerings of flowers, etc. placed as people circle the stupa with candles, stopping to receive a blessing from monks and nuns (who tie a string around your wrist in the process). This is the night before the big day. Next you see morning pics (~6:30 am)...of people preparing their alms and waiting for the prayers that will begin the almsgiving...of people giving sticky rice, money, cakes, etc. to the monks...Thanks to zoom on my new camera (who remembers when I used to cry for the lack of it?!) I take all of these pics from a culturally sensitive distance (cheesy grin) unlike so many of my fellow tourists (grr).