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Lyons Worldschooling Adventure
  • Lyons Tale
jul. 2024 – jun. 2025

Lyons Worldschooling Adventure

We're using the world as our classroom. Meer informatie
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    3rd Temple Day & Waterpark fun

    10 januari, Cambodja ⋅ ⛅ 29 °C

    Aaron and Susanna took the scooter for a 3rd temple day (kids definitely didn't have an appetite for it!). Gorgeous. Humbling. Wonderful.

    The group went to a waterpark where the lifeguards barely looked up from their phones and the kids could use the slides however they wanted. They loved it. The location also had archery, which the kids enjoyed.

    That day was our final with the group. In the evening we gathered at the shared outdoor kitchen. We bbq'd lemograss meat skewers, others offered delicious cheeses and crackers, and more. It was a nice goodbye to a week with the rest of the families. Not sure we'll stay in touch with them, but it was nice to connect.    Meer informatie

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    Elephant Sanctuary in Northwest Thailand

    12 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Huge. Intelligent. Curious. Ancient looking. Fascinating. We visited elephants and it was such a gift.

    To celebrate Susanna's birthday, we booked an overnight elephant adventure and homestay in the mountains of Northwest Thailand. As soon as we arrived at Chai Lai Orchid, there were elephants to observe and connect with. The guides introduced us to the individual elephants accompanying us that day. We then learned to feed them and made a food mixture that helps keep them healthy.

    The climax of our tour was walking down to the water with the elephants, watching them swim and then being invited to join the elephants. The water was quite cold, being in the mountains, but it was incredible to share the water with them. The guides invited an elephant to spray us visitors with the river water, which was a surprise!

    We were served lunch in their cafe. As we were finishing up, along came an elephant momma and her 4 year old, along with their mahout, or elephant caretaker. These men (we only saw male mahouts) and the elephants have a tender and ongoing relationship. Often mahouts come from a family with these skills. Chai Lai Orchid describes their commitment to offer the mahouts "education and fair wages. We provide them with a knowledge of their rights and also best practices for taking care of the elephants so they can be both happier and healthier.”

    This business does a lot of things right. They aim to improve the lives of elephants and people, especially those at risk of exploitation like displaced Karen (ethnic-minority peoples from Myanmar). Chai Lai also founded Daughters Rising, a non-profit that aims to empower at-risk girls to break the cycle of poverty by giving training and employment to ethnic minority women who otherwise had very limited job opportunities.

    All that said, it's still a bit of a 'tourist show' where the elephants are strongly encouraged to stay here and interact with the tourists, rather than letting the elephants do what they want. But, I get it, happy tourists help pay the high costs of elephant food, land, employment wages, etc. Overall, I'm very happy we went!

    We hung out with the elephants for a couple hours, which was deeply inspiring. They are magnificent.    Meer informatie

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    Nikkul designed the houses, her Dad and a friend built them
    Picking unripe bananasNikkulStrawberries! Our first in many monthsThe family's kitchen

    Karen Homestay

    12 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Nikkul is a Karen woman who overcame many challenges to get to where she is today. She hosted us on her family's land, after we visited the elephants.

    Nikkul used to work at the elephant sanctuary. When she started working there, she spoke no English. Her language skills increased, her job assignments focused more on tourists, and she became proficient in English. At the same time, her marriage was under strain, and she needed to earn more money to look after her family and kids. She went to the city to earn money, like many rural young people in the region. Nikkul didn't like city life. So, she returned home, borrowed money from Chailai (interest free, I believe), and started a homestay business. So brave!

    Nikkul invited us to walk with her around the land. We harvested vegetables for our delicious dinner that night, met her extended family and a waterbuffalo, had a delicious coffee at cafe with gorgeous views, picked flowers, tried our hand at some farming activities, learned about traditional foods, and generally had a great time. Judah said it was the strongest reminder of home he'd had since we left.

    After dinner, we sat around the campfire with Nikul's dad and family. He played traditional songs on a traditional instrument. Nikul gifted us with some stories about her life. She grew up in the mountains, in a Karen village. When she was about 10 years old, her family was forced by the government to come to a village where there was a Thai school. She was bullied for being Indigenous, and was a very shy kid. Today, she has a lot of confidence. And is a very cool person.

    Our meals in the Karen area of Thailand were delicious and totally different flavours than Thai food. So many vegetables (including those we picked on the farm!). I would love to eat Karen food again.    Meer informatie

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    First of our many rides in the back of a pickup truck
    Stingless honey bee pot, made from plant resin and beeswaxRemains of bamboo worm harvesting. Very lucrative for the foragers!Cinnamon treeThailand's King and Queen visiting this village to support the economic transition to coffeeOpium fieldsIt was Sakura season

    Pha Dok Sieo Waterfall trek

    13 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    On Susanna's birthday, we woke up in a beautiful place after a night of being absolutely freezing! It gets cold for about a week a year in North Thailand, and we managed to experience it. The temperature went down to about 6°C at night. Our bamboo hut was beautiful, but air passed through the walls all night. Each of us slept in every piece of clothing we brought, and still struggled to stay warm 😂.

    The next day, Nikul's dad drove us to a waterfall where we hiked with a Karen guide. It was quite busy with other tourists, but also beautiful. We saw a stingless bee hive (no honey). We tasted fresh cinnamon (wow!).

    We ended the hike at a coffee roaster. The area specializes in shade grown coffee now. Previously, it was an opium growing area. Sounds like it was hard to transition the economy, and opium-addicted people, but it was overall quite successful.

    As we drove through the area, it was humbling to see the intensive Karen agriculture in this mountainous area. Almost all the plowing, planting, weeding, harvesting, etc. has to be done by hand, using manual tools, due to the complexity of the terrain.

    Lastly, we visited with the elephants one more time before heading back to the city. They are so cool.    Meer informatie

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    Insanely beautiful rice flower dumplings, shaped by hand with specialty tweezers
    Aaron got Susanna a Thai massage for her birthday gift. The best!The level of hygiene at Thai markets blew us away, after months of seeing meat sold very informallyOur flat came with bicycles to borrow!"Century eggs". We didn't like it too muchSweet sticky rice, Thai layer "cake", coconut cake, and moreMet this incredibly cute dog on a bridge, where his owner couldn't walk without people stopping himSo many varieties of tuk tuks in SE AsiaRising stars football academyMichelin-Guide khao soi: egg noodle soup in a curry broth, topped with crispy fried noodles1Apparently the big ones aren't cockroaches, they're giant water bugsThere are still payphones!Many people refill their 40L water jugs at locations like this, as tap water isn't for drinking

    A week in Chiang Mai

    14 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 23 °C

    We lived at a slow pace for our week in Thailand's second largest city. Chiang Mai has a lot going on, of which we only had a very small sample.

    Some highlights include Susanna's birthday dinner, the boys playing three times with the local+foreigner kids football group, sampling a wide variety of Thai desserts and weird-to-us market foods and eating at no less than 3 Michelin-Guide eateries.Meer informatie

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    1Monks' quartersThe view from Wat Phra That Doi SuthepIt was a lot of work to get to the top!1Naga staircase at Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

    Wat Pha Lat วัดผาลาด

    16 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    There are SO many gorgeous and historic temples in Chiang Mai, and we went to basically none. Traveling with kids means you don't necessarily do stuff like that.

    But, if the temple is in a beautiful place, and it's close to soccer practice later that day, we can push for a visit.

    The four of us hiked to a jungle temple tucked into the mountain. As we entered the area, a mediation platform invited you to quietly sit with a loving-kindness meditation. Beyond this was an exquisite waterfall, lovely buildings, and monks quarters.

    We decided to keep walking up the mountain, which ended up being steeper than we bargained for, and far less beautiful than the first part.

    Sadly, we had to rush from the top to a taxi, in order to try to get the kids to soccer on time. Chiang Mai's terrible traffic stymied our efforts and filled our lungs with gross air pollution. Luckily, we had learned by then to travel with facemasks to filter the air.    Meer informatie

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    Folding spring rolls
    Crab sauce fermenting in the grey bucketPayapa salad in the makingSpring rolls1Pad thaiPreparing to make the curriesMango sticky rice! Rice steamed w/ pandan, mixed w/ sweet coconut milk, tpped w/ salty sweet coconutShredding coconut for the mango sticky riceFried bananasGreen chicken curryPapaya saladRed, green and masaman curry

    Cooking class with Mae

    17 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 19 °C

    This was a class to remember. Mae has 20 years of experience running cooking classes, and it shows. We began at a local market. We learned the art of buying rice, explored local herbs, and tasted Thai treats.

    Arriving to her home, we started in the herb garden. We picked sawtooth coriander, pandan, butterfly pea flowers, chard, chives and more.

    From about 10am to 4pm, we cooked under's Mae's expert instruction. Each person had their own wok and chopping area. The boys were champions. It likely helps that we immediately ate what we cooked. We were STUFFED by the end of the day. And, we learned a lot.

    Our menu included:

    Appetizer
    Papaya salad ~ Som Tam Thai
    Thai fried spring roll ~ Po Pea Thot
    Fresh & Spicy beef salad ~ Yum Nua Yang

    Stir Fried Thai Dishes
    Thai Style Noodle ~ Pad Thai
    Chicken with cashew nut ~ Pad Met Ma Muang
    Minced chicken with holy basil ~ Pad Ka Pao

    Soup
    Hot & Sour Prawn soup ~ Tom Yum Gung
    Chicken in coconut milk soup ~ Tom Kha Gai
    Noodle Soup with Chicken ~ Guay Tiew Gai

    Curry Paste
    Red curry paste ~ Namprik Gaeng Ped
    Masaman curry paste ~ Namprik Gaeng Massaman
    Green curry paste ~ Namprik Gaeng Kheaw Whan

    Thai Curry
    Green, red and masaman curry with chicken

    Dessert
    Deep Fried Banana ~ Gluey Thod
    Sweet sticky rice with mango ~ Khao Nuaw Ma Muang    Meer informatie

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    Photo shoots at temples and other iconic places are a very real thing in SE AsiaTemple to Ganesh, the elephant god, at the White TempleLots of waterfalls in the Chiang Rai area. We had this one to ourselves for a whileSusanna ended up at this farm, trying to buy fruits. The farmer was so sweet and generous.Mathai had a loose tooth from NYE that was still wiggly. Luckily the dentist said it was doing fineThe team cheered a welcome when our boys arrived to practice (about 40 of them in unison!)

    White & Blue Temples in Chiang Rai

    20 januari, Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    The White Temple, Wat Rong Khun, represents the human journey from hell to Nirvana. It's a "fusion of religious symbolism and contemporary art, made by the great visual artist Chalermchai Kositpipat." This temple has an incredible amount of detail embedded in each aspect. Blindingly white on the outside. On the inside, it was bright red and painted with contemporary icons representing greed. The white temple is an ongoing project, worked on by Chalermchai and some 300 apprentices.

    A bike ride away from our Chaing Rai lodgings was Wat Rong Suea Ten, known as the Blue Temple. This temple was also overwhelming. Incredibly rich blues and strong images. In the heat of the day, it was hard to experience it as a temple, it was more like a visual art experience.

    Here too, our boys joined football practice, after a morning of visiting a local waterfall.

    For dinner, we had our first Food Panda delivery experience, a very common way to eat in the region.    Meer informatie

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    The view from our accommodation in Pak Beng, our overnight stop
    Immigration lineups!Common bathroom type in this regionBoat eating areaTraditional house in a village we visitedRiver lifeAnimals often live under the raised floor of a houseBoat repair in Pak BengTiny kitchens like these have so often fed and delighted usLao-lao, rice whisky, is fermented and made medicinal with insects, herbs, or poisonous animalsPak Ou Caves, home to thousands of Buddha statuesA party van picked us up in Luang Prabang

    Slow boat down the Mekong

    22 januari, Laos ⋅ ☁️ 18 °C

    March and April are burning season in northern Thailand, Laos, and Vietnam. Traditional farming practices clear land through fire, followed by a few years farming until the land no longer yields well, and then next area is cleared by fire. This practice also controls the risk of wildfires, and has other benefits I'm sure. However, it means that the air quality is atrocious in these regions, every spring. The Thai government is working to change burning practices, but I'm sure it will be a long effort.

    In order to avoid this air pollution but still experience these northern areas, our travel patterns are a bit of a zig zag. Cambodia, north Thailand, north Lao, then south Thailand.

    Another benefit of taking this approach was being able to follow the Mekong River south as we travelled from Thailand to Laos. The Mekong is SE Asia's Danube. It travels through China, Myanmar, Lao, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. It's influential in providing water and nutrients (through flooding) necessarily to grow rice in low lying areas near the river.

    Early in the morning, we were driven to the Thai-Lao border. There's no e-visa for Laos, meaning that we and dozens of others waited for over 90 minutes to have our paperwork reviewed and visas prepared.

    We chose a middle-of-the-road boat for our journey. The regular, and far less expensive, boats are crammed with passengers, with no space to move around for the 8 hour journey, and no noise protection from the extremely loud engine. The expensive boats have a bit more space to move around than we did. We were happy with our option.

    On the first day, we were assigned seats at the back of the seating area, and even with a closed door to separate us from the engine, it was difficult to speak to one another without yelling. We asked to be shuffled to a new location for day two, and it was far more pleasant that day.

    The Mekong is a busy river. Traditional villages rely on the river for washing dishes and their bodies, fishing for food and selling, and transport. Huge machines were dredging up the river bottom looking for gold, as were small groups of men using hand panning methods. Lots of boats moved to and fro with passengers and goods. And, this was just the part we saw over two days of travel.

    We spent the night in a village where the economy is driven by one-night stays like ours. We also visited an incredible set of water-access-only caves filled with thousands of Buddahs.

    The more than 4,000 sculptures of Buddha have been placed there by worshippers.

    There are over 100 poses illustrating the life of the Buddha. Each hand gesture, or Mudra, and body position (standing, sitting, walking or reclining represents) represents a teaching.    Meer informatie

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    1Swimming on Nam Khan
    There are many temples, and many monks in L.P. Morning alms giving is a big tourist activitySoup and steamed Chinese bunsFootball jersey shopping is a constant on the trip2Shabbat with packaged bread and lao-lao whiskySticky rice is rolled into balls and dipped into the food. Our favouriteLaap: traditional minced meat salad and a national dish of Laos. Bold flavoursJeow bee: unique Lao bitter and spicy dip, made with beef bile. We didn't like it1Locals invited the boys to play with them!So many flavours of Oreos around the world

    Luang Prabang

    23 januari, Laos ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    This ancient city is a UNESCO World Heritage site due to its unique mix of traditional and colonial architecture. Luang Prabang was the Laos royal capital until 1975, when the 600-year old monarchy was abolished and the Lao People's Democratic Republic was established.

    There's lots to do in this town, and lots of culture to absorb. Our highlights included river and waterfall swimming, zip lining, taking a knife making class, learning about the farming cycles of rice growing and Susanna taking a Hmong embroidery class.    Meer informatie

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    Traditional piston bellows to raise the fire's temperatureSplitting the metal1Marking each knife with lettersGrinding the knife"Master will fix"Sharpening the edge2Final productCooking sticky rice in traditional Laos styleLaundry

    Knife making

    25 januari, Laos ⋅ ☁️ 30 °C

    A master knife maker guided us through the process of heating, forging, cooling and finishing handmade knives. Our knives were made of car suspension; others are made from found metal like bomb shells.

    We loved getting to pound the metal into shape. Sadly, many of the other tasks were just a light touch by us learners, with most of the work done by the knife making team. Still, pretty cool!    Meer informatie

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    1Dried rice that was saved for plantingSprinkled rice seed & sprouts ready for replantingRice startsPulling rice sproutsRice paddyTraditional ploughing methods1Planting rice startsHarvesting basketHarvesting basketSeparating rice from huskLao rice wineSticky rice: rice soaked overnight then steamed, not boiled

    Traditional Rice Farming

    26 januari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Rice is an essential part of every meal in South East Asia. We've seen rice paddies in each country we visited. Sometimes people we met would describe how much work it is to farm rice, or we'd visit a rice paddy at various stages of productions, but we still had a lot to learn.

    So, we spent the morning at an organic rice farm called The Living Land Farm, for an immersive experience in traditional rice farming. Here, we were walked through the 14-step process of rice farming, which included sorting good seed from bad, planting seeds, replanting seedlings, plowing fields with a buffalo, learning how rice is harvested, threshed, processed into flour and noodles, and steamed the traditional Laos way.

    Our guide was highly knowledgeable and full of joy.

    We also enjoyed fresh sugarcane juice that we helped to squeeze from the plant using a traditional tool made by an elder who used to farm rice on these lands. He is mostly retired now, and delighted the visitors by making intricate tiny animals out of bamboo strips.

    For many meals afterwards, we would look down at our food and be amazed, thinking about how much work goes into each mouthful of rice.    Meer informatie

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    Silk worms
    Silkworm cocoon trayEach element of the design has a strong connection to Lao cultureTraditional dyesLearning Hmong embroidery1Incredible works of art2While Susanna was taking the class, the boys were invited to play with a local football team

    Hmong embroidery and weaving

    26 januari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    The Hmong are Indigenous mountain people who originated in Tibet and Mongolia and now live in several countries we visited, including Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand (and other countries we didn’t visit). Hmong people are a small part of the Lao population (7%) but have a strong cultural influence in northern areas of the country. The Hmong language didn’t have a written form until recently, so textiles were an important form of transmitting knowledge.

    To learn more, Susanna split off from the boys one afternoon, and took a Hmong embroidery class. It was frustrating, painstaking work. Using burlap, the fabric weave became a grid, onto which brightly coloured threads are sewn.

    OckPopTok was the location of the class. It’s a cultural hub that showcases traditional Lao arts and supports women artists around the country. The main focus of this hub is weaving, particularly silk weaving.

    “Legend has it that a Chinese princess discovered the secret of silk production when she was sitting under a mulberry tree and a cocoon fell into her tea. She noticed the filament unravel and, like this, silk production was born. Silk is one of most heavily guarded secrets in history. After discovering how to make silk, the Chinese tried to keep the mystery under wraps - they guarded it zealously for more than 3,000 years. The penalty for revealing this secret was social disgrace and even death. Silk was traded throughout Asia and Europe on the famous silk roads. It wasn't until the Byzantine Emperor Justinian sent two monks in 552 AD to China to steal the secret, that silk was produced in Europe.”    Meer informatie

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    Ban Man Da museum, showing bomb shells and personal items left behind during the Secret WarShelter cave where hundreds of villagers lived during the day for 3 yearsSleeping platform in the caveThick bamboo forests, found mid-mountainWonga wonga vineBamboo ladder towards the top of the hike

    Gorgeous & terrible in Nong Khiaw

    27 januari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 16 °C

    We heard marvellous things about the natural beauty of Nong Khiaw. We had to pass by there on our way to our planned visit to Nam Nerm Park. The guide's office and materials looked legit. So, we paid a bit too much money to have our upcoming travel stops and outdoor adventure organized by someone else. Oy, this was a real mistake.

    The day before we were planning to leave Luang Prabang, Aaron's bank card was swallowed by a bank machine. Unfortunately, it's very typical in that city. So, instead of waiting with the rest of the family for our bus, Aaron went to the bank and got the card recovery in motion. Susanna tried to communicate with the driver that we needed to pick up Aaron. Sadly, he didn't speak English and Google Translate was seriously messed up in Laos. After many challenging exchanges, including one where he stopped at a third ATM that was not the one where Aaron was waiting, the frustrated driver started driving away. No! yelled all the passengers together, as they by now understood the issue. We waited, and Aaron walked to where the van was parked.

    The agency showed poor organization and greed at every step of our trip. There wasn't enough space for all the people and bags that they stuffed into our van. The pick up order seemed to be the order in which people booked, with nothing to do with the city's geography. The pick-up took so long that they rushed us to the museum and cave and lunch and hike start. They overbooked the trip so 1/3 of us went to a location that didn't have a toilet or hot dinner. (They other group didn't have enough sleeping bags!). The guides were adolescents, a good number of whom hadn't been to that destination before, and none of whom spoke English. The tents were flimsy and the sleeping bags insufficient for the altitude. The list goes on and on.

    --

    Before the hike, we began to learn about the Secret War. The "Secret War" in Laos was a clandestine, CIA-led military campaign from 1961 to 1975 to disrupt communist supply lines during the Vietnam War, and prevent the spread of communism in Southeast Asia.

    During this time, United States dropped bombs every 8 minutes in Laos. It is, still today, the most heaviest bombed country in history. And, the American public had no idea this was happening for the first 7 years of the war.

    We also visited the Pha Thok Caves where locals hid from the bombings. During the day they lived in the caves. At night time the villagers came out of the caves to get food and work on the rice fields. This was a very dangerous situation because at night the unexploded bombs were difficult to see.

    Sadly, the bombing campaign resulted in tens of thousands of civilian casualties and the displacement of a quarter of the Laos population. It also left a large amount of unexploded ordnances (UXO), which continue to maim and kill today, *fifty* years after this campaign ended. For example, between 2008 and 2017, one person was killed almost every two weeks by UXO in Laos. Shocking.

    --

    Although we were dismayed at the travel company and shaken by the area's history, the views at the top were truly gorgeous. Stunningly beautiful. And, the boys successfully tackled the very steep hike by chatting with some of the other travellers. We're so glad we got to see those places.    Meer informatie

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    Dusty Laos roads
    These stacks will be made into broomsMuang Hiam morning market: fresh, deep fried breakfast treats, gloves and tuques.2Weavers in Nam Nuon, the village where our boat departed11Traditional homes along the riverJungle bananas: they have big black seeds, making them hard for humans to eatWeaving bamboo leaves on the riversideMartin and LenaOur English-speaking guide, SomleiNight safari!

    Nam Et-Phou Louey National Park

    28 januari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 18 °C

    Aaron saw Nam Et-Phou Louey National Park on a map when we were still in Canada, just dreaming about the trip. Then, months later, we were figuring out how the heck to actually get to this place. It's off the beaten track, which in Laos, means the roads are abominable.

    One very dusty and very long car ride later, we arrived in Muang Hiam for the night. We were exhausted after the previous night's very cold and broken sleep at the top of a mountain.

    In the morning, they brought us to a very small town. We started the trip with some forms, a gift of Laos weaving for each of us, and a tour of the local village. They recently got indoor plumbing. A sacred animist place was moved from the forest during the upgrades, and is now situated behind a chain link fence so the kids don't play on it.

    We piled into long, narrow boats with inboard engines that have a 2 or 3-meter long pole with a propeller mounted on the end. Very loud. And then, we began our journey UP river. The drivers were incredibly skilled, maneuvering around rocks and through currents, with the help of a younger man with a long bamboo pole. River cowboys.

    Our bamboo cabins were very comfortable and lovely. Although, a forest rat decided to poop in the boys cabin. Luckily it seemed only to have eaten fruit.

    Somlei introduced us to the park and its initiatives. The Nam Et-Phou Louey National Park is one of the most biodiverse places in Laos. It's named after the Nam Et River (“Nam” means “Water”) and Phou Louey Mountain (“Forever Mountain”).

    To provide wildlife-friendly livelihood opportunities for local people, the National Park established an ecotourism program about 15 years ago. "All tours are designed to create a direct link between conservation and tourism, ensuring that visitor fees positively impact local efforts to protect endangered wildlife." That means that the local communities get paid each time a tourist sees an animal (we filled out a form after our trip). It's a direct incentive to the surrounding communities to stop all forms of hunting in and near the park.

    On our first evening, we rode up river to have dinner on the riverbanks. A serow (antelope goat animal!) walked across the river at dusk, and all the guides got excited. At dark, we were handed strong headlamps and told to keep them off until the guide spotted something. We silently made our way down river, soaking in the stars, and occasionally seeing the shining eyes of deer and civets in trees. Night safari!    Meer informatie

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    1If the sap of this plant makes you itchy, you don't have malaria. If you do, the root is medicine
    21Green pigeonSnake skinSuper tasty Lao lunch. Chicken lapp, banana flower salad, sticky rice3Banana flower salad and chicken lap wrapped in a delicious jungle leafTeaching the boys how to weave bamboo1

    Soaking up the jungle

    29 januari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 17 °C

    Forest foods and medicine were the focus of our morning walk with the guides. We were in awe of their knowledge.

    On the evening of day 2, we explored the river, then and slept in cosy tents.

    Very early the next morning, we floated down the river, spotting a few birds.

    As we returned back to the starting village, the wholeness of the jungle and the clarity of the river changed dramatically. A mining operation located on an offshoot of the river made everything downstream muddy. Farming, forestry, homesteads and other forest uses denuded the hills. Amazing that I didn’t see any of that change as we entered the jungle on the first day...    Meer informatie

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    Leaving the national park
    Traditional Laos homes are raised. Below the home can be weaving looms, animals, & other activitiesSomeone saw us weaving bamboo sticks, leftover from the previous night, and came to helpNo bus, so we got back into the pickup truck for a 4 hour, dusty rideEncouragement to support conservationThe roads were full of huge trucks maneuvering through the pot holes1$10 CAD a night; Laos was the least expensive lodging on our trip

    Travelling in Laos

    31 januari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Riding in the back of pickup trucks is a common way to travel in many parts of the world. Safety bars are added so you can stand. Doing this in Loas means you also become covered a thick layer in dust.

    We got a ride from the National Park to a junction where the bus would come by in 4 hours. We read, Susanna worked on her embroidery, the boys did some screen time on our phones (but not their iPads so we didn’t call more attention to ourselves than necessary). We also played with some very cute puppies!

    We were hungry while we waited, but didn’t know where to find food other than highly processed packaged food and a bit of fruit. It was interesting knowing that there must be a place to buy meals, but we couldn’t see it anywhere. Turns out, you can ask the convenience store owner, and there’s sticky rice and other hot food for purchase. But we had no idea.

    The bus finally came by, and… it was full. Not even room for Martin, who was travelling with us. Then, it became clearer why the guy who drove us to town was waiting the four hours with us. He was our backup plan. We negotiated a price for him to drive us to the next city. The guys piled in the dusty back, Susanna got in the overheated front cab, and away we went.    Meer informatie

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    Knife makingRice wine drinkingCommunist art1Misleading and hilarious translationsVictory Gate, monument to the Heroes of the Lao People's Army1People in this region may anything that moves3Aaron's happy place, buying knivesNight market balloon dartsCrazy fun riding kids toys around the square1The soup here is not as good as Vietnam 😢2Embroidery finished!

    Sam Neua

    1 februari, Laos ⋅ ☀️ 20 °C

    Located near the China border, the Sam Neua market was full of furry creatures we were sad to see laid out for eating. The importance of the National Park's conservation efforts was underlined by these market offerings. Even endangered civets were for sale. You could buy dead parrots, field rats, and other small birds and mammals.

    The saddest though was guinea pig, still alive, stuck in a cage where it could only move forward or backwards about an inch, but not turn around. It looked terrified. And we felt incredibly sad for it to be imprisoned in this way.

    The night market was full of highly processed meats, fairly typical for Laos street food, so we ate elsewhere. But first, the boys careened around the town square, riding around on tiny machines rented by a drunk man.    Meer informatie

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  • Lyons TaleReizigerLyons Worldschooling Adventure
    Nam Neua waterfalls
    Squeezing onto the public busFirst, but not the last, sketchy bridge of the day11Hitchhiking success!Average table condiments in LaosKaysone Phomvihane led the Lao revolution and subsquently served as the nation's leader for 50 yearsAir filtration for the cavesBomb craters from US air raids1Finding joy among the (boring) history learning3Dog meat2Chicken feet!1Aaron played a football game with some locals

    Vieng Xai historical caves

    2 februari, Laos ⋅ ☁️ 27 °C

    We visited Vieng Xai for its history and small town vibes. There are very few Western visitors in this area of Laos, making it feel authentic and relaxed. This area is also gorgeous!

    There's no taxis in this village, and buses are somewhat infrequent. With this in mind, we set off for the main road to try to get to some waterfalls we had heard about. We managed to flag down a bus, and we squeezed in. They dropped us off at an unmarked part of the road. The driver and ticket seller got off to take a photo with us! Getting to the falls was difficult. We explored an old metal bridge, pathways and other things, only to struggle to find an access. So, we walked about 30 minutes in the heat to a gas station, where we managed to beg a ride from the one person in the area who had a car and spoke English. He drove us right there.

    The Nam Nuea falls were incredibly tall. And, we were alone at the water. We managed to catch lifts back in two pick up trucks. They boys loved getting to experience hitchhiking. It helps that it was quite successful, as far as hitchhiking goes.

    Vieng Xai has a great market. We got some delicious eats, but also saw dog meat for sale. Ugh.

    The main attraction for this area is the Victory Caves, where the Laos People's Revolutionary Party was based during the secret war. "It sheltered and protected the leaders of the party as they orchestrated their war effort and tried to unify the country under communist ideology."    Meer informatie

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    1Power and chicken. More poor AI translation!That Dam Stupa, in the center of the cityNight market road under constructionBalut, 18-day-old fertilized eggsOutdoor excerciseFire beef

    Vientiane, capital of Laos

    4 februari, Laos ⋅ ⛅ 24 °C

    Our two days in Vientiane were a bit of a culture shock after experiencing rural and communist areas of Laos. The city felt like many other cities, offering electronics, food markets and fancy restaurants. We devoured some authentic Italian pizza, and on the second night ate some delicious foods at the night market.

    The boys dropped into a soccer practice that was likely their least favourite of the trip. They were assigned to the newbies group, which was not very fun for them.    Meer informatie

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  • Lyons TaleReizigerLyons Worldschooling Adventure
    Incredible Khao Soi at a random streetside restaurantThe old and the new, money and poverty - it's all herePublic transport along the canalsThailand's KingChinatown was busy with commerce and delicious foodsStar anise, cinnamon, cashews and moreChao Phraya RiverModern conveniences!

    Bangkok

    7 februari, Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 33 °C

    During his third year of university, Aaron lived in Jerusalem. This included some months renting an apartment on the Mount of Olives. Aaron’s roommate was a Quebecois guy named Guillaume. Twenty-plus years later, Guillaume lives in Bangkok, and warmly invited us to stay a few nights with him and his teen son.

    These few days were filled with comfort and hints of home. The boys each had their own bed. There was maple syrup in the fridge. The cereal had English and French on the boxes (they visit Canada with an empty suitcase so they can bring back their favourite foods). Guillaume made us hamburgers! Aaron picked up Subway sandwiches for the boys. We did laundry, used the pool and gym, and hung out in the living room while Aaron and Guillaume chatted about the two decades since they’ve seen one another.

    On day one in Bangkok, we got some essentials done. New socks and T-shirts for Judah, replacement prescription glasses for Susanna, some new headphones, and other bits and bobs. Susanna visited with an old friend from university who happened to be in town (she lives in north Thailand).

    Judah was feeling sick on day two, and Mathai didn’t want to walk in the heat. So, Aaron and Susanna left the boys at ‘home’ and went exploring. We took the public bus-boat down the canal. Then, we walked through the campus of a famous Budhist temple. This led us to a part of town that specializes in car parts, followed by our arrival in Chinatown. The food stalls were all heaving gorgeous smells out into the street. There, we soaked up some hipster vibes, watched the sun go down on the river, and headed home.

    Our short stint in Bangkok gave us a sense of its powerful contrasts. Insane wealth and debilitating poverty exist side-by-side. Sex workers stood outside various shops while monks walked down nearby streets. Dozens and dozens of international schools provide education to the elite. Clean and efficient subways run by roads choked with traffic. Many workers live in tiny apartments without kitchens, while street stalls and exclusive restaurants serve perhaps equally delicious meals. It’s a fascinating city.    Meer informatie

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    1111

    Koh Samui with the Haas Family

    8 februari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Our Copenhagen family had school vacation in mid-February. So, we planned to meet up in Thailand! For weeks, our family plotted how to best surprise the Haas girls at the Bangkok airport. They thought we were going to meet them at the rental! There was lots of delightful shrieking as we jumped out from behind a pillar.

    Jeffrey’s friend from his poker days owns a gorgeous group of properties on Koh Samui. Our week there was by far the fanciest accommodation of our trip. It was SO beautiful. Gorgeous infinity pool with sunset vistas and views of both island coasts. Some very nice staff took great care of us, making insane breakfast feasts, organizing minivan transportation, washing our laundry, making our beds, and more.

    The best part of the week was simply hanging out together in our beautiful place. We also had lunch at a gorgeous viewpoint, which required a pick-up truck to transport us to the top. We visited the night market and our boys ate a variety of strange foods. The Haas’ took Judah and Mathai to visit elephants! During that time, Aaron and Susanna got a massage and soaked up sun on the beach.

    Thailand is a Buddhist nation, so we dove into the culture a bit by visiting a couple of temples. A local woman was trying to throw a coin up into the Buddha’s lap but kept missing. She asked Susanna to help her, and Susanna tossed it in on the first try. The woman shrieked and wrapped her arms around Susanna, resulting in a very sweaty stranger hug.    Meer informatie

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    Wat Plai Laem
    Stir fried cashew chicken seasoningsThe results of our cooking!Mango sticky rice!This mama cat and kitten came by our place fairly regularly2

    Samui 2

    12 februari, Thailand ⋅ ☀️ 28 °C

    Did you know that Capybara cafes are a thing? Yep. You can pay for 30 minutes inside a café, plus the purchase of a drink, to have the privilege of hanging out near the animals. The capybaras were very bored of people, and not interested in being fed (likely already having eaten by the hoards previously visiting). The meerkats were cute and interesting though! All in all, the experience was something the kids enjoyed and the adults felt a bit sad about.

    Jeffrey arranged for a cooking class at the villa. In rotation, the eight of us made a variety of yummy Thai dishes.

    Our host invited us down to the water for a special surprise. We arrived to find delicious drinks and appies, which we enjoyed while watching the sunset. Then, a troupe of fire dancers turned up the music and began to spin their poi. Gorgeous and awe inspiring. And, also very weird to be such a small group seeing such an intense show.

    To cap off the week, we had a shabbat dinner complete with challah from the Israeli bakery on the island, candles we’ve been travelling with the whole trip, and wine.

    We also had a mini celebration for Mathai, whose birthday was coming up. So nice to be together as a family for these occasions.    Meer informatie

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  • Lyons TaleReizigerLyons Worldschooling Adventure
    2Mangroves at low tideStingless honeybeesArcher fish: they spit and jumpMangrove crabsSand bubbler crabs feed by filtering sand through their mouthparts, leaving behind balls of sandDessert roti is a big thing here

    Arriving in Koh Lanta

    15 februari, Thailand ⋅ ☁️ 28 °C

    Goodbye dear family! We sadly said goodbye to the Haas’ and took a ferry to the mainland. Some hours later we took a second ferry, after driving across Thailand’s mainland peninsula.

    Koh Lanta was one of the few travel destinations we had planned in advance. During the summer, Susanna connected with an Alberta family who was, at the time, also driving a camper van in southeast Europe. Both families were planning to join a “worldschooling hub” in Koh Lanta. The moms decided to rent accommodations in the same place, during the same period. Little did we know it was going to be a boys-match-made-in-heaven. The families met in Hoi An, Vietnam, and the boys got on like wildfire.

    Our first full day, we went to a mangrove festival. This was one of the few activities we did during our entire time on the island that felt like it wasn’t in a tourist bubble. There were panel discussions and presentations in Thai, for the locals who are working with the mangrove forests. Information booths introduced us to the mangrove ecosystem. A boardwalk stretched through the mangrove forest, allowing us a peek at the mudflat crabs, troublesome monkeys, and tides.    Meer informatie

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