Beginning of Buddhist Lent

July 30, 2026July 31, 2026 / montanaron / Leave a comment

Yesterday, July 29th, was the first day of Buddhist Lent, Boun Khao Phansa (boon cow PHANsa, approximately), which lasts for three months and ends on October 26th. Lent marks the period when monks are supposed to stay at their home temples throughout the time.

As it is described in the Vientiane Times (subscription required):

“Far more than a religious celebration, Khao Phansa is a season that encourages people to pause, reflect and reconnect with the values of compassion, generosity and self-discipline. It is a time when monks devote themselves to deeper spiritual practice, while ordinary people seek to improve themselves through acts of kindness and moral living.

“Across Laos, families prepare for Khao Phansa by visiting temples, making merit and offering essential items to support monks during their retreat. Candles, new robes, umbrellas, rice, drinking water, dried food and daily necessities are among these gifts. These offerings symbolise gratitude and respect, while helping monks to devote themselves to their religious practice without concern for material needs.”

The Times also tells about the history behind the period:

Often referred to as the “rains retreat,” Buddhist Lent has its roots in ancient India. During the rainy season, travelling became difficult because roads turned muddy and rivers overflowed.

As Buddhism spread and the number of monks increased, many travelled from place to place, unintentionally damaging farmers’ rice fields and vegetable gardens. To protect the crops and the harmony between monks and local communities, the Buddha established the tradition that monks should remain in one place throughout the rainy season.

And in summary:

“As candles continue to shine in temples across Laos during these sacred months, they symbolise more than tradition. They represent hope, wisdom and the enduring light of compassion. Whether through prayer, generosity or quiet reflection, Buddhist Lent is a reminder that true peace begins within ourselves, and that even the smallest acts of kindness can brighten the lives of others.”

I wrote about Lent last year and my partner Nai’s preparation of a goodie basket for the monks. He’s a very devout Buddhist when it comes to these religious events. But for me, about the only real significance of the period is that when it ends on October 26th, the next day is the final day of the Vientiane Boat Racing Festival. I have a few posts that you can read here and here about that festival.

Digital Art Inspiration

June 11, 2026June 11, 2026 / montanaron

It’s about time for me to start creating digital art after a long lay off. How long? It seems like it’s been a year, at least. The last piece of art I created was this piece looking down on the main avenue in Vientiane toward the president’s mansion.

I stated in a previous post that I wanted to get back on the creative wagon, so I’d better start.

I have a few ideas about my next piece of art. The one that most attracts me at the moment is one based on the song “Midnight at the Oasis” by Maria Muldaur that she recorded way back in 1973.

So, the next digital art I post on this blog will probably be from that idea. When will I post it? Who knows, but not too far in the future, hopefully. Perhaps I should make a video about the creative process for making it.

My mentor and guru, Sebastian Michaels of My Photo Artistic Life and Quill and Camera posts in the latest Living the Photo Artistic Life magazine, issue 135,

“The secret isn’t in the material. The secret isn’t even in what you do with the material in Photoshop.

The secret is in loving the process of creating art each day.
The secret is in falling in love with the artistic life itself.

As a creative photographer, it can’t just be about the one shot in a hundred that turns out worthy of your portfolio. It has to be about the feel of the camera in your hands, the controls under your fingers and the compositions you’re framing through the eyepiece. It has to be about that strange, almost dreamlike state you slip into as you seek to create something beautiful, original, stunning…

And as a digital artist working in Photoshop, you have to fall in love with playing with brushes, assigning blend modes, painting on layer masks. You have to fall in love with laying down dramatic lighting and shadows, with finessing textures and making subtle
tweaks to the toning.

You have to fall in love with creating the perfect background, extracting models, and bringing together creative elements and artistic content.

You have to take joy in playing with the Warp tool, adjusting Camera Raw settings, stacking Filters.

To you, all these have to become as delightful as the feel of clay on the wheel is to a sculptor or the mixing of oil paints on a palette is to a painter.

And when each day promises a return to these delights, how much greater and endlessly rewarding is the artistic life you’ve chosen.

Not that being an artist is without its share of frustrations or fallow periods when self-doubt creeps in and threatens to throw a cloud over even the sunniest of days. But the solution when this happens, I’m convinced, remains the same:

Take a deep breath. Maybe revisit some of the issues of this magazine. And remind yourself again what it is you love about art and about the creative process itself.

If you find you’re putting too much pressure on yourself, if you’re wasting your time and energy comparing yourself to others, if you’re spending too much time on social media when you should be sipping tea, playing music, and making something…

It’s time to take up the tools of your craft again and spend some time simply playing, rediscovering the fun in all this, and reminding yourself just how much you love the process of creating something for the simple joy of it all.

An artistic life is a magical life in so many ways. But only when we see its blessings for what they are and continually fall back in love with all the little things that go into it each day.”

~Sebastian

Yes, words of inspiration from Sebastian Michaels, words that give me a bit of a kick in the you know where. So, back at it again. Stay tuned for more.

Sad News From Laos Cave

June 9, 2026 / montanaron

There is sad news from the ongoing Laos cave rescue attempt as divers and officials have indefinitely suspended the operation that was still searching for two other miners trapped in the submerged cave. They stated that the conditions at the cave entrance were now too dangerous for rescue attempts to continue and that the lives of the rescuers would also be endangered.

But, the article also goes on to say that there is the possibility that there are no miners left in the cave system.

“But Richards said some of the rescued miners told officials that there were only six of them trapped in the cave, including one who managed to extract himself at the outset of the emergency and alert authorities.

Richards said that one possible theory is that eight miners entered the cave and three got out on their own and went into hiding because their mining activities are illegal in Laos and subject to prosecution.”

My question is where are the families of the two purportedly trapped miners? Are they still waiting at the cave? Are the two really still in the cave? I’ll keep you posted as possible future developments unfold.

Laos Cave Rescue Update

June 4, 2026 / montanaron

No news is probably, in this case, bad news. Rescuers haven’t reported any new findings from the rescue attempt. They are going to try rappelling down a shaft today, Thursday, June 4th, in an attempt to try to find two missing miners, according to this article from AOL.

According to the article, there may be a chance that there aren’t any more miners left in the cave system, that the only ones in there were the five that were taken out. You can read about that near the end of the article. Let’s hope that’s the case.

Laos Gold Mining Crackdown

June 2, 2026 / montanaron

Here is a Laotian Times article related to my last post about the rescue of villagers from a flooded cave in which they were supposedly looking for gold deposits. The illegal mining was taking place in Xaysomboun Province, the same province where the trapped villagers were rescued. I guess it just shows that some Laotians, villagers and larger mining operators alike, aren’t averse to trying to get the shiny stuff in any way they can, sometimes with consequences of one kind or another.

UPDATE: Laos cave rescue workers report ‘knocking sound’ in search for last 2 missing people

Let’s hope for the best!

Laos Cave News

June 1, 2026June 1, 2026 / montanaron

The news about several Laos villagers trapped in a cave by rising water is probably worldwide news, and, of course, has captured intense interest here in Laos. Here’s the latest information I have.

Introduction

According to the Laotian Times, several villagers entered the cave system in the Long Chaeng district, which is about 75 miles north of Vientiane, back on May 19. Apparently, they were searching for gold and hunting wildlife, activities that remain common in remote parts of Laos but are rarely discussed publicly and are considered to be somewhat illegal.

Because of heavy rainfall, the system became flooded and trapped the villagers inside. The Times article linked above continues

“According to local accounts, the villagers initially avoided posting about the emergency online out of fear of possible backlash from authorities. Only after repeated rescue attempts failed did they seek help through social media, sending a video via Facebook Messenger to a local influencer.

The influencer later shared the footage publicly with a caption asking for urgent help, saying villagers and district officials were trying to pump water out of the cave to rescue the seven people trapped inside.”

The Rescue Attempt

This was a similar situation to the Thailand cave rescue of 12 boys back in 2018. Lao and Thai rescuers found five of the villagers on May 27, and they were finally removed from the cave, alive, on May 30th, but two still remained trapped inside. An international team of rescue experts was requested to help with the situation.

Latest

I haven’t heard or read anything lately about the two people still trapped in the cave. Have they been found or rescued yet? Let’s hope so and hope for a successful and happy outcome to this situation. Upshot: don’t go into Laos caves during rainy season, even if the weather looks OK. It can change in a few moments.

Update from CNN : The other two trapped villagers haven’t been found yet. Apparently, they weren’t part of the group of five who entered, but had gone into the cave system some time before the later group and had taken a different route. They are still being looked for, and an exciting discovery of a new way in has been found. Click here to read more.

Art–Live Longer?

May 14, 2026 / montanaron / 1 Comment

Here’s an interesting article from NPR that says “A new study finds that enjoyment of arts and culture slows down biological aging.” You can read the article here. The article states that you can slow down your biological aging by not only doing art, but also by going to concerts, museums or art galleries.

That reminds me that I haven’t done any digital art in a month of Sundays, so I’d better get going again. I’ll tell you my plans in a future post. I haven’t give up on creating digital art at all, I’ve just gotten too busy doing other things. For me, creating art is like doing meditation, another activity I haven’t been doing lately. So, look for a near-future post about about my creation efforts. More later.

Pi Mai Laos 2026 pt. 2

April 26, 2026 / montanaron

After the last post of April 15th, the next day I went into Vientiane to take in a few other places, a temple (wat) and one of the few restaurants that were open. Rather than post a lot of individual photos, I ran all my videos through the DaVinci Resolve editor and made one fairly short 10 minute video. You can watch it below. Enjoy.

Pi Mai Laos 2026

April 25, 2026April 25, 2026 / montanaron

Pi (pee) Mai (my) Laos translates into Happy Laos New Year, which occurred last week from about April 13th through the 18th. The official observance was from the 14th through the 17th, according to the government, with the New Year day on the 15th. I usually go out to Nai’s sister’s house near the Mekong River about 8 km from my house, an easy ride out. The celebration includes house cleaning, sprinkling and washing the Buddha statues at the various temples (wats) throughout the country, water play (a lot of it) among friends and family with buckets of water and high-powered super squirt guns, and eating and drinking, a lot of that too. Which category do I fall into? Probably visit friends, clean my house (a usual daily chore anyway, no holiday necessary), and drinking too much?? beer Lao. But not too much!

It’s mostly a fun time and it occurs during the hottest time of the year, so the water play is usually welcome. Some foreigners living in Laos hate Pi Mai, but mostly don’t mind it or actually enjoy it. Me? I mostly like it. Here are a few images from this year’s celebration.

These photos are from the 15th, when I went out to the farm along the village. Click on them 2 or 3 times to see a full size view. Below is a photo of Nai’s farm, which is usually tended by Nui.

This very new road, opened in January, out to the villages along the Mekong River was a great revelation. The old road was one of the worst around this area that you could travel on. It was a nightmare during rainy season, with no street lights, severely pot-holed, dangerous at night. This new one is great, lit with street lights and very smooth all the way out to the village where I’m going and beyond, traveling along the river all the way to Vientiane.

new road to villages along the Mekong river

The new road out to the villages along the Mekong River.

Now, about the water play. Despite the great road, I’m sure I’ll get somewhat wet going out to the village. Here’s what I have to look forward to! However, I didn’t get too wet going out there, but coming back later in the evening was horrible. I got soaked, my glasses got wet ( I couldn’t put down my motorbike helmet visor because it has a dark tint), and I don’t see that well at night. I made it home OK, though.

Not looking forward to this.

OK, I got to Nui’s house without too many water problems. Here are a few of the people who were there and a look at the food we ate, along with the ubiquitous Beer Lao.

Here’s Nui along with her friend, Ms. Tia, from the neighborhood.

Nui and Tia.

This is another of Nai’s sisters, Lot, in the blue dress, with her girlfriend, Bui.

Lot and Bui.

Here Lot and Bui enjoy a little water play.

Lot and Bui enjoy some water play.

This cute young boy of about 3 1/2 years old was given to Nai and Nui by one of Nai’s nieces to look after until he’s grown up, not an unusual practice among some Lao people.

Young boy Ai (pronounced eye)

Here’s some of the food we ate. Plenty to go around for all.

Some of the food we ate.

Here’s one of my favorite Laos foods, grilled fish from the river. Yum!

More of the food, including my favorite, grilled fish.

Lot, Bui, and Ai play in the water from a hose. Looks like they’re having fun.

Lot, Bui, and Ai play in the water from a hose.

Oh-oh. Lot has a bucket full of water and she’s heading straight for me. However, she only got me wet a little bit and doled out wetness to the others around the table. This happened quite often, though, with Ai being the chief perpetrator.

Lot with a full bucket of water.

That’s all for the time I spent out at Nai’s sister’s house. The next day I went into Vientiane to check out the celebrations. I do that in the next post. I’ve also made quite a few posts from past Pi Mais. You can do a search in the search box, but here are ones from 2014, 2016, 2017, and 2021. That’s all for now. Stay tuned for more later.

P.S. Oddly enough, I didn’t get any photos of Nai. I think he was mostly in back doing the cooking. Oh, well, sorry Nai. If your curious, you can see him in the 2016 and 2017 photos by clicking on the links above.

Aquarium in Vientiane?

April 14, 2026 / montanaron / 2 Comments

The Laotian Times reported that the first-ever aquarium is proposed for Vientiane. Wow, that’ll be so awesome if it’s done. The Times says that

Once completed, the facility will serve as a major education and tourism hub. It will provide learning opportunities for students, support research activities, and contribute to the conservation of endangered aquatic species. The project will mark the first aquarium of its kind in Laos.

You can read the entire article here.

Right now, the first day of the Laos New Year holiday (I’ll post about that later.), with maximum temperatures being at or near 39-40 C. (102-104 F) for the last couple of weeks, an aquarium evokes feelings of calm and coolness in me, but I think it will be quite awhile before it is realized. So, along with everyone else, I’ll just have to wait patiently.

MontanaRon

An English teacher's blog about his travels and his digital art.