Taiwanese star to visit Laos

Popular Taiwanese actor Mr Wang Lee Hom will visit Savannakhet province this week as part of activities to raise funds for development projects in Laos.

A press release from World Vision Laos stated that the organisation had invited Mr Lee Hom and his entourage to visit the province from November 24 to 28 to inspect World Vision-sponsored development projects and meet local children and community people.

Mr Lee Hom, who is also a singer and song-writer, appears in the recently released motion picture Lust, Caution, a film by director Ang Lee, personally sponsors 10 Lao children in Savannakhet through World Vision...more info

The celebrity will trek through poor rural communities for five days to visit the children he sponsors and their families, and learn how he can respond to the needs of the communities they live in.

After the trip, he will return to Taiwan as World Vision's Sponsorship Ambassador, to raise awareness and encourage donors to provide funds for Laos and other parts of the world.

According to the press release, the hope is that through Lee Hom's personal experience and example, the people of Taiwan will be moved to action and become more active in their support for those living in poverty, especially for the children of Laos .

To date, Mr Lee Hom has recorded over 10 albums and has seven movie appearances to his credit. He has also won numerous music awards and his talent is highly recognised across the region in Taiwan , Hong Kong, mainland China , Singapore , Japan , and Southeast Asia .

World Vision Laos is an international NGO working in 31 districts across six provinces to create lasting change for children, families, and communities living in poverty. Through child sponsorship funding, World Vision works across many sectors including Mother and Child Health, Food Security, and Education.

By Vientiane Times



A Different Kind of Giving Thanks,

In the Wang household, Thanksgiving has been the one time each year when my family gets together for dinner cooked by the greatest chef on earth (in my eyes) Wang Mama.

No matter how busy I am, or where in the world I am, I always stop work and fly to New York for a taste of that mouth-watering turkey stuffing.

Just thinking about it now: fresh, juicy, chock full of the flavor that is synonymous with Thanksgiving...it's almost enough to make me book that flight back home. But this year, for the first time in my life, I'm choosing to cancel my reservation. This year, I'm trading turkey for crickets.

Or I should say, rice, bamboo, crickets and crabs, to be more exact, which will probably be what I eat on my trip to Laos as World Vision Taiwan's ambassador this Thanksgiving.

The origin of Thanksgiving is to "give thanks", for being blessed with a fruitful harvest, and having enough to eat.

The way I see it (and I know my family agrees), what better way to give thanks,
than to help children living in poverty, who perhaps didn't have such a fruitful harvest. I'm excited for this trip, to meet my 10 sponsored children for the first time face to face, and to share with them the universal language of music.
I can't wait to see them smile, and to hear them sing. And of course, I am looking forward to the work that lies ahead of me in presenting,
as ambassador, a clearer picture of what World Vision Taiwan has
accomplished and has yet to accomplish in the impoverished areas of Laos.

My new album, "Change Me" delivers a message of power to the people,
that we all have the ability to do the right thing, and to make a change for good.

To change the world. Whether it be in environmental conservation, charity work, or in my professional career, I am inspired by this message,
and hope that you are inspired this holiday season as well.
After all, inspiration is the first seed for a fruitful harvest!

Happy Thanksgiving!

王力宏
Wang Leehom
2007.11.21

THE Tourism Ministry wants either Malaysia Airlines (MAS) or budget carrier, AirAsia, to operate Kuala Lumpur-Vientiane direct flights to woo more Laotian tourists to Malaysia.

In the absence of such flights to Kuala Lumpur, Laotian tourists had to transit either in Bangkok, Phnom Penh or Hanoi, which was time-consuming and costly, Deputy Minister Datuk Donald Lim Siang Chai said today.
“This inconvenience has led to many Laotians to skip Malaysia in their travel,” he said.
“Laos is the only Asean country without direct flight links from Kuala Lumpur. This has hampered Laotian tourist arrivals to Malaysia, more so this year being Visit Malaysia Year (VMY),” he told Malaysian journalists covering his two-day visit to Laos to promote VMY 2007.

Lim said the ministry would discuss with the Transport Ministry to order MAS or AirAsia to start KL-Vientiane and Vientiane-KL flights in the next six months.

Source: www.nst.com.my

Salamander Energy negotiating for license in Laos

A newly listed company on the London Stock Exchange is in final negotiations for what will be the first oil and gas license in Laos since 1998. Salamander Energy says it has received approval in principle from the Laotian government for a 31,000 sq km Production Sharing Contract (PSC) covering the Vientiane and Savannakhet blocks. If awarded, a 2D seismic survey is planned over both blocks in 2007 with possible exploration drilling to take place in 2008... more info

The majority of the Vientiane block was previously licensed by Monument Oil & Gas under the 37,250 sq km SDC Contract Area. Monument drilled Laos's only exploration well on the acreage in 1998, Naxay 1ST which was plugged and abandoned at a depth of 650m without having reached its primary objective. The last geophysical activity in the country was in 1996 when Monument acquired a 75km dynamite/vibroseis survey in the Vientiane region. UK-based Salamander focuses its operations in South East Asia, primarily Indonesia and Thailand. The company owns 27.2% of APICO, which in turn has a 35% interest in Phu Horm field, an onshore Thai field recently brought onstream by Hess. Salamander's working interest production rate has risen to about 6,600 boe/d in two years time. The company employs about two dozen and has offices in Singapore, Jakarta and London.

SOurce: energy.ihs.com

Progress announced on two more Thai-Lao bridges

BANGKOK, April 17 (TNA) - Thailand and Laos affirm that no obstacles will be encountered in building the third and fourth Thai-Lao 'friendhip' bridges respectively. Both will be completed in 2011 as planned.

Thai Foreign Minister Nitya Pibulsonggram met Lao Deputy Prime Minister Thonglun Sisulid regarding the progress of the bridges construction at his office in Bangkok.

The third bridge will connect Thailand's northeastern province of Nakhon Phanom with Thakhek in Laos' Khammuan province. The fourth bridge will connect Chiang Mai's Chiangkhong with Huayxai district in the Lao province of Borkaew... more info :.

Following the talk, a spokesperson of the Lao Foreign Affairs Ministry said Thailand will contribute half the construction cost of the Chiang Mai-Borkaew bridge, and Laos has sought a Chinese government loan for the balance.

China's President Hu Jintao earlier confirmed his government's readiness to provide financial support, according to the Lao spokesperson.

Thailand requested nine more months to complete the bridge design, after which construction will begin, and will take about four years.

Laos considers the northern bridge as very important because it connects Chiang Rai and Kunming, a highly important road link for Asean countries in the future.

As for the southern Thai-Lao bridge, land must still be expropriated on the Thai side, but can be done soon, the Lao spokesperson said.

Pending settlement, construction is expected to start at the end of this year or early next year, and is likely to be completed before the fourth bridge.

Tharit Jarungwat, spokesman of Thailand's Foreign Affairs Ministry, said that the Lao Foreign Minister had invited his Thai counterpart to visit Laos and participate in a meeting of the Thai-Lao joint committee.

The Lao government will host the next construction progress report meeting.(TNA)

Source: MCOT

Vientiane authorities will not organise as many activities during the upcoming Lao New Year celebrations as in previous years.

Don Chan beach will be quieter compared to the year before, with fewer activities such as friendly sports matches, but will still be open for the public to make sand stupas and bathe in the river... more info and photos

District governor Mr Saithong Keoduangdy explained that the main reason for not having many activities this year was that the Vientiane Mayor had approved the district's projects too late to organise the activities on the beach in time.

“We wanted to encourage businesspeople to organise activities, but we couldn't, because the mayor took too long to approve them,” he said.



“All our plans have collapsed. For example, we planned to organise a Miss Sangkhan beauty competition and a procession of the Khamtan Buddha between Ongteu and Simeuang temples.”

Last year, Don Chan beach was crowded with people, who came to play on tubes and jet-skis, as well as dance with live bands, and motor-cross sports, and other activities for children.

This year, some waterfalls in Vientiane will be quiet as businesspeople have withdrawn from organising live bands to attract tourists due to low water levels in many of the rivers.

Governor of Naxaithong district Mr Khamphan Bounthengmixay said only one live band would play at Namxuang river.



“At Tadxone and Hinkhanna waterfalls, there won't be any live bands, due to the lack of water,” he said.

However, various parties will be held in villages so people can enjoy themselves together, and all activities related to temples will remain the same, as part of the entrenched culture of Laos .

All this means the skydiving festival from April 13-16 will be the highlight of the Lao New Year celebrations near Don Chan Palace Hotel, as there will be few other activities in the area.

The Chief of Vientiane's Department of Tourism, Mr Padith Khemmanith, said he would focus more on making sure proper services were upheld by business operators over the weekend.

“We have held a meeting to advise business owners not to increase their prices over the holiday,” he said.

“We will send our officials to monitor this and make sure tourists do not get taken advantage of by businesspeople.”

He explained that the cost of cars, tuk tuks, songthaews , hotels and food at restaurants and markets needed to remain the same, along with fees at various tourist sites.

For security issues, more forces will be sent to important areas to prevent house robberies and bag snatching. Authorities also urged the public not to play dangerously during the Lao New Year, such as using water mixed with ice to splash people, because this would cause road accidents.

People should also use only clean water to splash over each other and respect older people by asking before pouring water on them.

Village authorities in Vientiane have met with their communities to talk about the rules during the Lao New Year so that parents can explain to their children how they should behave during the celebrations.

More traffic police will be deployed to stop people from drink driving.

By vientiane times

Lao Airlines celebrated their International Arch of Europe Award on 22nd February 2007, at the Don Chan Palace hotel.

The 33rd International Arch of Europe Convention for Excellence and Business Prestige is part of the annual program of Business Initiative Directions (BID) Awards, designed to recognize the prestige of outstanding companies, organizations, and businessmen in the business world.

This year, in Frankfurt, during the International Arch of Europe Convention on February 18th and 19th, 2007, the Awards were handed out at a ceremony in the Inter·Continental Hotel.