Falang

Mir and I have lived in Laos now for 15 months. And for 15 months almost everyday a Lao person will stop what they are doing, look at me, point, and say "falang." For those of you who don't know Lao, falang technically means Frenchman, but is commonly used for any foreigner who is white.

I don't know why seeing me is so interesting to Lao people, maybe its because their TV is boring, but sometimes I feel like a circus freak in this country. Their reactions are even worse if I am doing something that they find even remotely unusual, like walking the dog, sweeping, breathing, etc. It wouldn't be so bad if I didn't understand what they were saying, ignorance is bliss I suppose. This is a conversation I overheard the other day when I was walking my dog.

Old Lady 1: "Look, the foreigner is walking his dog! Hahahaha."

Old Lady 2: "Walking the dog, haha."

Old Lady 1 (to Old Lady 3): "Did you see the foreigner? He's walking his dog."

Old Lady 3: "He sure likes dogs."

(All laugh)

It goes on like this for several more minutes, but I'll spare you the rest of the conversation.

THE END