Revisiting Laos after 45 years, a country barely recognizable – unless you know where to look


A crowd of friends and pupils hug and kiss her goodbye. Through her tears she calls out that she’ll be back soon.

It’s taken 45 years, but I’m back. I had applied, aged 21 and armed with a languages degree, to Voluntary Service Overseas, hoping to be sent where I could use my Spanish. So little-known was Laos that when the posting came through, my parents and I pored over a map of South America looking for it. Read the full travel article here.

Laos