Have anyone of you here have the same notice like me? I feel that many people in Vientiane like to spilt (Tom Nam Lai) in everywhere and any where without shy. I feel it is not good for the image of Laos, because it shows that lao people are dirty, and low education.
It is been awhile (almost 5 years) since I've been back to Laos. I didn't really notices that laotian folks like to spits all over. It is an asian thing, I've seen so many viets/chineses spits all over the places here in U.S.
i didn't notice that in laos, but in very cosmopolitan shanghai, the locals SPIT everywhere, even while on escalators and inside malls and movie halls - which is really gross. it is a habit that needs re-education. it is unhygienic and spreads diseases too.
lao people in laos ( TOM NAM LAI ) i know that no good for visitor low class we can say that but nothing we can help this from our great grand father doing it till now ,but lao people is over sea country bring food to work at factory skingky smell bad some lao food look awefull for white people like kai look (babe egg ,jail pa dek skicky ping pa etc.... ) don`t lao peples not shy to them ? coz I been in California for a year Taxas 6 month ,lao pples tom nam lai on street too I saw but lao pples in laos tom num lai more then pples over sea
It is SPIT not SPILT, and I am sure it is a common problem around the world, not only for Lao people. I didn't notice it anymore in Laos than other places to be honest.
some ppls from countryside come to vientiane and they dont get used the city.. but lao people are not bad compared to vietnamese and chinese. we love clean.
I dont remember many Lao spitting anywhere all the time when I was in Laos. Some yes, but the number is not comparative let’s say to the chinese and indians whom I observed spitting even inside their house in front of visitors. That is really disgusting.
Lao people love to eat in groups. It seems that eating is a social thing (which is not bad in itself). When they eat they share food, which is again OK. What I find disturbing though, is before they eat some don’t wash their hands or if they do, they often wash in a common basin without replacing the water. I even observed this in some local restaurants in the country side where the basin is at the entrance and teh water look dirty already and yet still used by the people to wash their hands. Only some slices of lemons served as disinfectant (that is not really an effective one). They also rarely use serving spoon. So since food is shared, everyone dip into the same viand to get a portion and eat them with their bare hands. This is repeated until all the food is consumed. I mean they should at least use a serving spoon even if they prefer to eat with their bare hands rather than using the same hand to put food into your mouth and pick food from the dish.
Spitting and eating with bare hands without using serving spoon are both an ideal way to transmit respiratory and gastrointestinal infections.
-- Edited by 2010 on Sunday 17th of January 2010 05:47:11 AM
-- Edited by 2010 on Sunday 17th of January 2010 05:47:32 AM
"Even here in America is not illegal, if there is no available trash can near by I too will spit on the ground, just mind your manner as you do, because I am not about to swallow it for haven sake, to do that so why is bad when its done in Lao. I do not find that is a: Big surprise in Laos at all. ***************
I think of all SEA our people are mostly modest. When you visit your families in Lao "Teach them, tell them to teach forward" on every aspects that you think that would benifit our country, our image and our people.....Remember majority of Lao people never leave the country so how do you learn?
When I visited I try to do as much as I can.
(I see this all over the world and I have been to many countries and most of these are civilized) What I can't stand is when I am eating in a restaurent fancy or not people blow their nose and pick their teeth. Now that is disgusting.
