Lao Children

  As we've seen across Asia, the parents here allow children quite a bit of freedom. Children here are not the center piece of the family, they are just along for the ride.  While their mothers tended their stalls at night market, small children ( 5 years old ) wandered around alone or with friends. Tiny children play in front of their house's unattended. Very small children are sent to a store on errands for the parents. There are no hovering parents here. 

    In prosperous Luang Prabang, school children enjoy a good education at their well run schools. The are taught English at an early age. ( in Vietnam and here, their parents were taught Russian ) , Thses city kids have a bright future. 

   We saw little evidence of this in the countryside. The government appears to ignore the 40 % of the country living in small villages. This population segment lives on less than a dollar a day. Their abject poverty is hard to imagine for us Westerners.