We are in Bangkok now, catching our breath after our main mission work before we head back to the states on Saturday night/Sunday morning. As I did in an earlier update, below are some random thoughts on the trip as it winds down:

  • No Wal-Marts in any of the four countries we visited. I guess it would put all the street vendors out of business, although that is hard to imagine, as inexpensive as they are. In fact, I have not seen any American department stores on this trip. Plenty of Western fast food restaurants in Bangkok, but very few in Saigon and Phnom Penh — none that I saw in Laos.
  • I have not seen wall-to-wall carpeting in any place yet — residence, hotel, store, official building — not any place that I can remember. Tile, linoleum, or occasionally hardwood.
  • No air conditioning at Wattay International Airport in Vientiane.
  • Other than the Bangkok Christian Guest House here, the most comfortable accommodations were in Vientiane at the Anou Hotel.
  • Out of Communist Vietnam; Communist Laos; Cambodia, where the Communists are the ruling party; or Thailand, which is free but governed by monarchy — which do you think has the Web site YouTube blocked in the entire country? The answer is Thailand. Apparently something got posted that ticked off the king. The message you get here when trying to bring up the site is this: “Sorry! the Web site you are accessing has been blocked by ministry of information and communication technology.”
  • A few of the various countrymen we’ve visited and talked with, who know some English, are just a little off on some phrases, as I mentioned in an earlier post. One common phrase they use, when only a simple answer of “yes” is needed, is “of course.” Our friend Luy is one of them who uses it frequently. It’s funny because the tone comes out like, “of course (you idiot, you should know better than to ask).” But their intention in saying “of course” is simply “yes,” and not meant to offend. It took some getting used to.
  • Another thing different here, and from what Tim Bunn tells me, in other Third World countries, is that people want you to pray for them. Here. Now. Pray for me. You can’t leave until you do. Do it. We’ve gladly obliged. 
  • That Christian bookstore in Vietnam, I forgot to mention, carries books that are approved by the Communist government. There is an actual stamp on them that says they’re okay, so Christians there can feel comfortable carrying them around publicly. And there are some good materials the government has approved. But don’t carry around your Bible uncovered.
  • I came here carrying a lot of money, a brand new digital camera, and other valuables. I repeatedly would pat my pockets and check my backpack to make sure nothing fell out of them. But now that I’m about to leave, probably the most valuable thing I’m carrying around is my almost-filled spiral notebook.