I am excited to go to Laos! I have been researching Lao culture, traditions, and popular cities since June of 2022 when I started writing drafts of my Fulbright essays.

Here are some interesting web pages, pictures, and videos of Laos if you would like to learn more.

What people know about Laos

Most people that I have talked to have not known anything about Laos because there is not a lot of information available. It seems that most of the tourism and international recognition in Southeast Asia goes to neighboring Thailand. (Thailand is located to the left of Laos.)

Below is a picture of the resources available for learning about Laos at a local library. Countries like India and China had several entire bookshelves filled with books on history, language, art, and culture. Laos, by comparison, had very little information available. (I drew brackets around the books that focused on Laos in red to show what books were available.) This is a reflection of the lack of scholarship available on Laos and not a reflection of the local library’s holdings. So, even if one did really want to learn about Laos, it would be relatively difficult to do so. This makes Laos a hidden gem in need of more attention and research, if anything!

Guerra, C. (2022)

Country Profile of Laos

The National Geographic Kids Country Profile of Laos is a great resource for a brief summary of Lao culture, traditions, and way of life.

Check out the Wikipedia page for Laos

Geography of Laos

Laos borders five countries including Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), China, Vietnam, and Cambodia. Laos is the only land-locked country in Southeast Asia. The Mekong river divides Laos and Thailand and runs throughout the rest of the country. Nearly three-quarters of Laos is covered in mountains.

Courtesy of BBC

I will attend orientation in Vientiane, the capital of Laos. Vientiane is the biggest city in Laos and has around 721,000 residents. After orientation, some of the other English Teaching Assistants (ETAs) will travel to Savannakhet and Champasak to teach English. I will be teaching at the Naitonal University of Laos, so I will stay in Vientiane for the duration of my grant.

Courtesy of World Atlas

Famous sites in Laos

Laos has many sites of cultural importance in Vientiane, which is where this stupa is located. This stupa is called Pha That Luang and is the most important Buddhist monument in Laos. It is believed to enshire one of the Buddha’s breast bones. The ETAs will probably take a field trip here to learn about Vientiane and Lao history and culture during orientation.

Courtesy of Wikipedia

Hidden Gem

Here is a youtube video about Laos’s natural beauty!