gobbledonk Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 I dont know how many of you have seen the episode, but its a long way from the usual smartarse Bourdain, a man who could easily have been in the cast of Seinfeld (Soup Nazi, anyone ?). He readily admits that he finds it difficult to grasp how Laos people could invite him into their home (the magic of tv aside ..) when his countrymen had dropped the ordnance which crippled the man of the house. I felt a lot of the same pangs in Cambo, despite having been a kid when Pol Pot was busy butchering the population - how could we have all stood by and let these things happen ? I know - even deluded White Knights cant shoulder the problems of the world - but Laos clearly had an impact on Bourdain's cynicism that the other countries he visits just cant muster. http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x60d0v_anthony-bourdain-in-laos_shortfilms The dancers at the end of the TV ep looked more like Thai dancers putting on a show for Farang (it was Luang Prabang after all), but I was impressed by the restaurant owner at the start who insisted that Laos has its own culture - 'Thai is Thai, Laos is Laos'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 That's why there are Lao restaurants all over the world. << Tony visits the mysterious country of Laos, where he explores the picturesque landscape and samples the exotic cuisines. >> Jeez, talk about hype! Laos is about as "mysterious" as Roi Et or Sakon Nakorn. And the cuisine is just as "exotic". (My mother-in-law's favourite dish was made with ant eggs, if she was from Chiang Rai.) I made my first visit there before Hanoi installed the Pathet Lao in power. Doesn't really look much different, except for Wiangchan (not any farking froggish VIENTIANE). << He readily admits that he finds it difficult to grasp how Laos people could invite him into their home (the magic of tv aside ..) when his countrymen had dropped the ordnance which crippled the man of the house. >> My countrymen blasted the crap out of both Germany and Japan, but I've had no problems in either one. Except for the nonsense about being mysterious, it's actually a pretty decent travelogue though. p.s. That noodle dish properly should have ganja in it. Bet it did too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanddawg1 Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Bourdain is an asshole, not a fan at all. Tried to watch his show a few times because of my travel interest but he always comes off like a jerk! S1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozpharlap Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Is this an American thing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Celebrity usually are jerks, but American celebs can do it better than most. Then you've got Mel Gibson, who manages to combine the worst of Yank and Oz jerk-ness into one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coss Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Bourdain is just one of the "blessed". When they need interesting TV, they bless someone, he's no more talented than you or me, but thin works on TV. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LingTalay Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 He readily admits that he finds it difficult to grasp how Laos people could invite him into their home (the magic of tv aside ..) when his countrymen had dropped the ordnance which crippled the man of the house. I do like how they manage to get a little bit of revenge Lao-style, though, with a bowl of 'Kaow Pia', which is described as containing among other things, pork. This would be a bit of a dodge, not because it's pork intestines, which show up everywhere, but in Laos it's the, uh, 'contents' of the intestines - the squeezin's. A popular little joke among the Lao, who while they actually like the stuff, tend not to be oblivious to the fact that we generally don't. If the dish has a bitter edge to it and you don't see those lumpy bitter green gourd slices in it, congratulations, you've been Pia'd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flashermac Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 In Issan there is what the PC vols called "shitty larp". It's made with the intestines and their contents too. Good reason to be a vegetarian in Laos and Issan. Not to mention the raw meat that can give you liver flukes. Bloody larp anyone? Quite a few folks in Issan and Laos die before their time of complications caused by liver flukes. << Opisthorchis viverrini, common name Southeast Asian liver fluke, is a trematode parasite from the family Opisthorchiidae that attacks the area of the bile duct. Infection is acquired when people ingest raw or undercooked fish. It causes the disease opisthorchiasis (also called clonorchiasis). Opisthorchis viverrini infection also predisposes the infected for cholangiocarcinoma, a cancer of the gall bladder and/or its ducts. [color:red]Opisthorchis viverrini is endemic throughout Thailand, the Lao People's Democratic Republic, Vietnam and Cambodia.[/color] In Northern Thailand, it is widely distributed, with high prevalence in humans, while in Central Thailand there is low rate of prevalence. The disease opisthorchiasis (caused by Opisthorchis viverrini) does not occur in southern Thailand. ... In the Lao People's Democratic Republic, the prevalence of opisthorchiasis was 40% in 1992 with about 1,744,000 people infected. >> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opisthorchis_viverrini Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cavanami Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Uhhhh, and I was eating that spicy/raw meet in Khon Kaen, last month when I was there...opppps...just another self-initiated punch to the ol' liver! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buddha Posted March 4, 2011 Report Share Posted March 4, 2011 Plain and simple...Anthony Bourdain is a big mary. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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