Phanoy Restaurant

As the last vestiges of daylight succumbed to darkness and the air quickly chilled, Mike, Art, Sean, Khamdee, Oudom (Khamdee's brother), Khamdee's brother-in-law, and myself gathered at Phanoy Guesthouse restaurant in the village of Sop Houn for dinner.

While we chatted over dinner that night, I discovered that Khamdee's brother-in-law worked as a de-mining technician for UXO LAO. Prior to visiting Laos, I had done extensive research about this dark time in Laos' history and its deadly legacy - a legacy which hinders its economic development to this day. In the process, I learned about this organization which is dedicated to helping Laos rid itself of the tons of unexploded bombs - haunting reminders of the secret bombing campaign by the United States (1964 - 1973) - still scattered throughout its countryside.