This evening the subject of beer came up, which is far from unusual in a place like Bokeo. However, towards the end of the conversation, my partner surprised me by comparing spending patterns towards alcohol to investment in education.

The stark difference in spending habits for the two has always puzzled me, but it was the first time I had heard my internal thoughts expressed by a Lao citizen. We were sitting around a patio table and it’s clear she was saying whatever came to mind, but since she is the manager of a private preschool 10 ft. away from where were were talking, she has most likely reflected on this paradox before.

Woman: Bokeo people are good  at drinking beer. We are the best at drinking.

Me: Yes, Bokeo people are really good at drinking. [chuckling]

Woman: Bokeo people like to have fun. We like to go out with friends and spend time together. Other people come from different provinces and they cannot hang. 

Me: Hmmm…Is that really true? Are people from Bokeo really better at drinking than other provinces?

Woman: Yes, definitely. People from other provinces cannot drink like people in Bokeo.

Me: Why is that?

Woman: Because, well, people in Luang Prabang are frugal, frugal when it comes to drinking. They don’t want to spend money. When you go out, you spend money, right? But people in Luang Prabang don’t want to. Not like people in Bokeo, Bokeo people are giving, they buy beer for their friends, want to have fun together.

Me: How about in Vientiane?

Woman: Oh! They are frugal too. They don’t drink as good as people in Bokeo. Vientiane people don’t like to spend money to go out with friends. Vientiane people spend money on their children’s education. Vientiane people are not selfish when it comes to sending their kids to school, right? When it comes to that, they spend money. But for drinking beer, they are selfish. Have you seen that? In Vientiane parents send their kids to study and study again after school, right?

Me: Yeah, that’s true.

Woman: In Bokeo, it is the opposite. Bokeo people spend money freely to go out with their friends. But when it comes to education, parents in Bokeo are frugal.