Laos, tourists and poverty

A little girl aged ten approached me, she came across the river and is soaked. She is truly beautiful and kneels next to me. After her hello (Sabaidi) she asks for money, looks at my stuff and my writings. With her eyes on me she stays with me for a while. With mixed feelings I give her my bottle of water. I don't know if it was a 'right' action. In the meanwhile two other children joined her. They left slowly back through the river.
Laos is showing me new things. Another side of poverty, signs of a typical 'developing country' or should I say underdeveloped or just poor. Leaving the question 'What is development?' aside. Houses are not more then bamboo and some wood. The water wells have signs of World Vision Australia or World Vision Singapore. The only colourful signs in the villages are the boards advertising the support of Germany, Japan or New Zealand for the building of the local schools without windows. Laos has only a few cars, a few roads and no supermarkets or convenient stores. I hitched a white jeep with the European Union sign on it. Some other cool cars have logo's like German Agro Action."Isn't it amazing how simple those people live and they don't seem to be more unhappy then we are." A lonely tourist in his thirties approached me with this sentence while I was strolling the small village and temples across the bamboo bridge in Luang Prabang. I had to pay to cross the bridge. "People are saving to build a beach" an older man managed to explain in English. In the poor old village we find a former 'bomb-dropper'. Many bombs are still around in the jungles of Laos waiting to explode. He is fixing his motorcycle of which parts are sown together many times already. He tells us about the hunger and that also they have to pay to cross the bridge. The beach is another 'tourist-development-thing' just like the side of the river I was standing on before. Luang Prabang is one of those 'tourist traps', marked in Lonely Planet and on Unesco's list of world heritages. To me it is another place in the world that has become a museum instead of a reality and a paradise for travellers who like to find what they left at home. Steak frites, hamburgers, pancakes, bars with western music and internetcafe's. Of course there are some old houses, some nicely renovated, some temples and beautiful sunsets. Those guided by Lonely Planet are surprised to find an ATM which according to the book should not be there. Prices are higher and on the markets you find mostly souvenirs. Oooh I forgot to mention the massage services which are affordable for any traveller. Ed and I did not really like the town. A girl named Pepsi just came to me when I was putting my thoughts in my diary at the riverside in Vang Vieng. She was equally wet as the previous children. She observed my writing upon which I asked her to write down her name. She writes mine as well in those beautiful curly Lao letters. From the paper I gave her she folds an airplane. I realise I wait for the moment she asks for money. Assuming that I recognize her demanding eyes on my bag. But she leaves without asking. Before we arrived to Luang Prabang there was not a single child asking for money. We received plenty of smiles and hundreds of 'Sabaidiii's'. Nevertheless from the first small city we passed in Laos we saw foreigners, mostly travelling with guides in brand new minibuses and eating in the small places that have even menu's in English. Something we never encountered in China's countryside. Also hitching went fine until we arrived in Luang Prabang. An English speaking tuk tuk (small pick up motorcycle) driver negotiated when we jumped out of the back of the truck that had just given us a special ride. When we got this ride the smile on my face was big. After waiting quite long in the darkness which we entered after a 'Today we hitch until we are in Luang Prabang' and after going 30km on the wrong road and back. The roof of the truck was nothing but a bamboo-frame. The stars and the moon lighted up the mountains and villages and Ed playing the guitar accompanied me during this nice ride lying in between the bags of goods. Lacking our hitching cards explaining in the local language that we ask a ride for free and facing those friendly people who definitely don't have much money we paid for the ride. We continued paying truck drivers to get from there to Vang Vieng, another strange tourist hub. The tour packages offered consist of tubing down the river along the many bars, kayaking, cycling, visiting caves and waterfalls. Quite similar to those extensively advertised in Luang Prabang where also the Elephant rides were pretty popular. We were informed about their presence with the signs warning for wild elephants crossing along the road.
While I sit at the riverside I feel something is wrong. Six young boys dressed with their beautiful orange kashaya's are bathing and playing in the river. One of them just came to talk to me, using his few English sentences. I tried to find out what he felt about all those noisy tourists floating by but he did not understand. With my shoulders uncovered I officially offended the novice monks. I realise that if I would be alone among a culture with those rituals or customs of respect I would align but among those hundreds of tourists dressed in their own way I choose the 'wrong' camp.
The tourists on one side of me and the the monks with the farmers on the background on the other side I feel things don't fit! The town has too many restaurants with all the same menu. Some where you can lay down, eat and watch almost 24 hours Friends others would change everyday because they are not more then some tables along the road and a small open kitchen. In the evening the children of the young Lao couples sleep next to the low quality amplifiers playing 'western music'. At night they are like refugee tent camps.
Discussions about tourism, lonely planets and economic development are held from time to time. I am afraid Lonely Planet has maybe destroyed what it originally valued and communicated. Places mentioned in 'the book' have undoubtedly changed because of the typical 'lonely planners'. Vang Vieng used to have just a wooden plank to cross to the island three years ago, now at least 5 bamboo bridges bring you to the bars that are multiplying. To questions about responsible travelling typical 'responsible answers' have been created which I like to question as well. Visiting 'authentic' villages, participating in handicrafts workshops etc. Some might be successful now resulting in the development of many identical projects. Just like there is not one bar showing Friends but at least eight. Young families take risks when designing their lives based on travellers needs. The speed at witch the interest of travellers and 'lonely planners' whose books are constantly re-edited, change might become like the average switch to a new mobile phone which is about eighteen months. What will happen to those families? Or should I not think about the future and be happy that they make a little income where competition is very strong? And of course I am one of them. I am a traveller as well! Ed and I don't need much. Currently we need three trees to sleep in our hammocks. We do not ask for special air conditioned minibuses or VIP buses as they are called here. We prefer the back of a pick up who is driving anyway. Any local restaurant or street vendor is fine to fill our stomachs. But we do eat the pizza baguettes and french fries as well when it offered. Though need remains a too big word!
The Thai people I met adore Laos. It reminds them of their own land. Also travellers and their books talk about finding in Laos what you used to find in Thailand. Birma and Malaysia are now on the 'not spoiled yet -list'. I wonder if I ever will understand the word development. The same for experiencing cultures. I feel a little hunger for another more deep experience like wwoofing and regularly think about language barriers. But if you ask me about plans. I am heading to Thailand to meet friends from Estonia.