On belay!

I am filthy! Just returned from a glorious day trip rock climbing in the Laotian mountains! Today was our scheduled 'free day' and yesterday, as we toured Luang Prabang, I noticed an adventure package that would take me on a climb! Its probably been over three years since I've been on the rock, but it's just like riding a bike. Those of you who knew me in my youthful days (aka before I started smoking) know that I used to be quite the climber. I had forgotten how meditative and good for the soul climbing can be. I feel kind of at home on the rock and more myself than I do anywhere else. So much concentration has to go into every move you make that you can only think about this moment and the important things in life. At least that's what the rock does for me. Now my fingers are chopped up and my legs are wobbly, but I have no regrets. My guide was a Laotian village boy who has come to Luang Probang and has only been climbing for seven months, whereas I have been climbing since I was ten! It was slightly scary because this is not America and they do not take any of the safety precautions that we take in the US. Dude didn't even bring me a helmet to wear and I was slightly terrified each time he kicked a leaf off the rock. As a belayer there is nothing you can do if a rock falls because you can't let go of the rope and you are hooked to it anyways. You just have to lean in towards the rock and hope that it bounces over you. I got to lead belay which was a good experience that I haven't had in a while. Its quite an art--not too much tension or you will pull the climber off the rock and not too much slack or the lead climber will not only fall twice the distance between him and the last bolt he has hooked into, but also all the slack you have left him. My guide told me that I was a great climber and said he was impressed with how fit I am. I neglected to tell him that I have done little besides dwell on a couch for the last few years... Yio was the name of my guide and he was quite good looking. Before he became a climbing guide, he was an iguana hunter in the woods! He also told me about the way that the village people fish (including himself), which is by waking up at three or four in the morning, going to the river, placing a ball of sticky rice on your nose and diving in. The fish will come at your face to eat the rice and you catch them with your bare hands!!! People also hunt monkeys and make their jobs a little easier by leaving whiskey in the forrest to get the monkeys drunk! He also told me my favorite joke so far: There is a Laotian man who has gone into the woods to hunt, but returned unsuccessfully. As he crossed the river to return home, he removes all of his clothes and carries them above his head. While he is crossing the monkeys all laugh at him from the river bank. Why? Because they think it is silly that man's tail is in front instead of the back! Good one, no? Anyways, yesterday we had a lovely tour of Luang Prabang and saw many more temples along the way. My favorite stop was in one of the monestaries where the novice monks had a load of fresh puppies running around and let me cuddle with the smallest one who made little piggy noises. There is a lovely night market with so many arts and crafts and I am very excited to return this evening and make many a purchase. The folks that I am traveling with here are fine, but the couple has not cracked one joke the entire time and I'm not quite sure what to think of people that have little to no sense of humor. The journalist is at least full of conversation, though my wish for him to be good looking is irelevant considering he is over forty and married with children. That's all for today. They're charging me a dollar for every fifteen minutes on the computer and I must also check my email. I'm not sure whether or not I'll be able to upload photos until I meet up with Claudia, because I can not download all my pictures onto the public computers... Anyone more computer savvy than myself with suggestions how to do so?? Must go shower and look into getting a traditional massage.