Empty Nesters on a Green Global Trek

We have long been intrigued by ethnic minorities – so much so that we created a business several years ago — “Ethnicities” — based on the import of ethnic craft, fashion and artisanal furniture from Argentina’s Mapuche Indians.

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The artistic talent and craftsmanship we found was superb and it was great fun and a memorable life experience to be able to try to open up a U.S. market for these ethnic artisans: See http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2004-05-23/news/0405230405_1_international-home-furnishings-market-geometric-artists-and-designers

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A few years later, we launched into our socially impactful bamboo housing adventure, (CO2 Bambu) which was centered in Northern Nicaragua, working with ethnic Mayagna and Miskito indigenous communities.  Less “fun” (man, that was tough!!), but still kept the ethnic flame going: See a beautiful video on our work with Mayagna indians – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zzNGsQ3A3zc

Looking back on past choices of travel we are often drawn to countries where the ethnic dimension is palpable through the arts, the architecture, the food and of course the people.

We travelled to Guatemala, where the ethnic population who live in mountainous regions were more vibrant than in our Nicaragua home base.  Their textiles, for instance reflected different regional communities, each wearing a dominant color (red, blue, yellow…) based on the natural dye available in their communities.

We also very much enjoyed our time in Morocco where the beauty of Berber women was only matched by the beauty of their jewelry and textiles.

More recently, our current travel through Southeast Asia has been rich with ethnic influence.

In Viet Nam, we spent time in mountain villages during our Ho Chi Minh Trail week long motorbike ride ~ the tall houses of the Bahnar Central Highlands people were particularly memorable ~ http://greenglobaltrek.blogspot.com/2014/04/bahnar-village-village-of-children.html

In Cambodia, the Khmer boat people with their floating villages were highly impressive for their climate adaptation and resiliency ~ http://greenglobaltrek.blogspot.com/2013/09/staring-down-climate-change-flood.html

In Bali, Indonesia, a rich local culture that distinguishes the island as a Buddhist pocket inside the world’s largest Muslim country led to our discovery of the Balinese ethnic culture manifested through Balinese architecture, religion, dress and culinary culture ~ http://greenglobaltrek.blogspot.com/2014/02/30-year-cycle-ceremony-at-gyanyar_20.html

So now, we are in Laos, at the epicenter in Southeast Asia for ethnic minorities -~ one of the reasons we are drawn here. Economically a poor country, yet rich in its’ ethnicities.

The notion of “ethnic minorities” is a misnomer in this part of the world. In fact, ethnic “minorities” are the overwhelming majority in  Northern Laos.  Mostly rural and living in remote mountain villages, these minorities are an extraordinarily rich cultural asset of Lao.

There are some 100 or so ethnic sub groups, distinguished by their ethnic make up, but also by their languages, clothing, food and cultural practices.

A map of Laos (at the small cultural center in Luang Prabang) which indicates where the Ethnic minorities live.

Of course, in a town like Luang Prabang, a large portion of the ethnic population works and lives in this “urban” setting, but their families are from mountain villages and they come to “the city” (it is a city, but feels more like a town), for specific trading opportunities, to attend University, or as novices and monks in the town’s many temples.

These 100 or so ethnic groups can be a few larger ethno-cultural families or groupings, which are:

The Hmong: The most famous ethnic group which today has large overseas communities in the U.S., Australia and France.  The history is complicated (and brutal), but essentially, the Hmong partnered with the United States during the Viet Nam War, along with the Lao monarchy, with disastrous results.  Squeezed between North Viet Nam’s Viet Cong and the United States, Laos was forced to make a choice between the Laos Pathet  and the United States and they opted to side with the U.S.  Costly decision.

Ultimately the North Vietnamese won the war (and retributions against the Hmong population was swift and harsh), but not before the U.S. opted for a vast secret war that destroyed northern Laos.

While everyone knows of the American war (or Viet Nam war), few Americans are aware that the U.S. waged a highly bloody war in Northern Laos where they dropped  more bombs per person in Northern Lao than they did against Nazi Germany.  Trying to disturb the North Vietnamese’ ability to go and replenish in Northern Lao, the U.S. carpeted (cluster bombs), its allies’ land, destroying villages, and killing civilians on a massive scale.  This was the outcome of the Hmong people’s support of the U.S. war effort.

The Hmong were considered the most ardent soldiers with detailed knowledge of the mountainous terrain.  After the war, many Hmong sought to escape retribution from Viet Nam and resettled in the U.S., Australia and France.

This region has the dubious record of having the largest amount of bombs dropped than any other country in the history of the world.  To this day, the quantity of UXO (Unexploded Ordinance) is so large, that there continue to be victims in the Lao countryside routinely, 40 years after the war ended.

The Khmu:  The majority ethnic group in the Luang Prabang province.  Traditionally animists, believing in spirits and the spirit world.  Unlike the Hmong who came down from China several centuries ago, the Khmu are the indigenous population of Lao.

The Akha:  They live in the far north of the country and are well known for their elaborate headdresses made from silver coins.  They have a distinctive traditional cuisine which relies heavily on unique herbs and spices