Water

So many of my cultural mishaps and adventures here seem to revolve around water. Too much water, not enough water, not the right kind of water. I've slowly learned that my Lao friends do not consider a person to be truly clean unless they've had at least three bucket showers that day, I've learned how to use the minimum amount of water possible to wash dishes and clothes, but as is evident in this next little incident, old habits die hard.

"Ao nam baw?" I ask. "Would you like some water?" My family could not contain their laughter and cries of astonishment as I filled their water glasses after one particular meal. Let me elaborate. It is the custom of the Lao people to wait until after a meal is complete to drink water. Despite living with two toddlers, it is me who feels like a baby most of the time, wide eyed and helpless, and so I try to offer help in whatever little ways I can. The tap water with which I filled their glasses, however, may as well have been gasoline from the looks they gave me. Tap water here is almost as potent. How naive and lucky I am to have been brought up in a country where it seems like the most natural thing in the world to turn on the tap when thirsty!