Charlene writes:

The weekend flew quickly.  Saturday, after working on a project Ed had taken on at work, we hopped on our motor bikes and drove 22 km to a beautiful golf course recently built for the SEA professional golf tournament.  It is a 27 hole course, that is lit at night, lights are used mostly during the hot season.  The club house is spectacular, and the green fees are quite reasonable.  Our big surprise came when Ed asked me to buy a dozen balls.  The balls were $7 each!!  I did not buy a dozen-and it sure made you focus on not losing a ball.

When we returned to town, we were invited to join our friends from DDD to have drinks and watch the beautiful sunset over the Mekong.  We were on a roof top terrace/restaurant watching the sun set behind the mountains that separate Thailand and Laos.  The views were amazing. 

What made it so enjoyable was the company-we have been befriended by the DDD managers, who are all so bright and interesting young people.  Most are expats-from all parts of the world France, India, America, Australia, and Malaysia.  Their commitment to the social mission of DDD is humbling; clearly every one of these people could have highly paid professional jobs working for for- profit organizations. 

I truly enjoy having dinner and lunch with our new friends-the discussions range from technical to philosophical.  Everyone is an avid reader and brings their knowledge on many subjects to the table.  A theme that is frequently discussed is the Cambodian Khmer Rouge; the current effects, what led up to the horrible genocide, and how the country has moved forward from its history.

Sunday, we were picked up in the DDD van by a DDD manager, his wife and another DDD talent, who is teaching English.  He actually just finished a 2 year Peace Corp program in Mongolia, shortly after graduating from Berkley.  Anyway, we started the day by having Dim Sum at a Chinese restaurant in the colonial city.  Except for the chicken feet, it was all delicious.  Though to be honest, the chicken feet might have been great-I did not taste them, the visual was not attractive. 

So we left the restaurant and drove about an hour and half to the largest lake in Laos-as we drove away from the city, the scenery turned to open fields where the majority of rice is grown for the county.  You could see the rice farmers wading in the rice water pools harvesting the rice.  As we approached small villages, stands selling fruit, vegetables, meat lined the side of the road.  A small mountain range marked the edge of the horizon; we were told that there is a secret US air force base in the mountains.  Though the US and Lao were not friends to say the least during the Vietnam war, somehow the base was built and is still used today.

So Monday was moving day for us.  We said goodbye to the Leuxay Hotel where we had stayed for 11 days and moved into our new apartment about a mile away.  The Leuxay was a very Asian hotel, spotlessly clean, swimming pool, with fine accommodations, but we needed more room than a bedroom.  The apartment is more Western European/American.  We have a large living room,, kitchen, large bedroom, 2 bath rooms and gigantic closets. 

The first order of business was coffee!!!  I bought a filter drip unit and Maxwell house coffee which was the only option available.  We eat breakfast at the apartment and eat out for lunch and dinner.  Food is incredibly delicious and cheap-dinner for the two of us costs about $7 total!!  Lunch runs about $1 each.  

Riding the motor bikes is really fun-you get a feel for the community and its life, smells and sounds.  The constant smell of sidewalk vendors cooking meals is lovely; children ride in the arms of their mothers or fathers as they drive their bikes.  It is a bit of a zoo at times on the roads-there are tuktuks, bikes, trucks, motorbikes and the rare giant trucks. 

The weather remains beautiful, a bit cooler this week 75ish.  Sunny and NO SNOW.

From Ed:

We are well settled in Vientiane.  The welcoming we got from the folks at DDD has made our stay so far very pleasant.  We moved earlier this week from our hotel to the Park View and are now in a very nice apartment with all of the amenities of home.  Charlene and I early on rented motor bikes, and have explored the city and a number of interesting restaurants.  We have eaten Lao, Thai, Indian, French, Chinese and even snuck home for lunch one day to make toasted P&Js with a glass of milk. 

My mission is to coach middle management and help them improve and automate their processes.  I started with project management.  I spent the last few months preparing, and as planned hit the ground running. I have worked closely with two extremely bright and talented Project Managers, Sambo and Phabphada, on introducing a more formalized product list and streamlined quoting and resource allocation tool into the project management process.  These changes will eventually feed reporting tools that are needed for sales and resource planning.  Our goal is to build a sustainable business that will support our social mission.

Building trust and introducing change are the most challenging things we can do in business, and we have done well in a short time.  Help from some and support and encouragement from all have allowed us to move swiftly.  I have involved the whole project management team, who have provided their input to improve the process.  I can report that we have a 110% buy-in for the changes. 

I have started to spread out to get involved with other areas of management and find the people very receptive and open.  Our training in teambuilding and corporate communication has served us well in breaking down the barriers; and I have found everyone to be open and forth-coming. 

Charlene has taken a more passive roll, and is working with their talented and engaging CFO, Philippe on report generation to develop new reports that are needed.  She is also helping teach English, and is having a lot of fun doing it.  I think she likes engaging with the students best.  They certainly like working with her.