UGLY TRUTH Luang Prabang Alms Ceremony
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- Опубліковано 7 вер 2024
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Location: Luang Prabang, Loas
The alms ceremony is a beautiful tradition that has been spoiled by tourists. Everyone jostles to get the best picture of the monks. As one person moves in closer, so do the rest. The next thing you know, people are standing two feet away from the monks during the alms ceremony.
I believe at one point in the time, the alm ceremony in Luang Prabang was a beautiful ceremony, but sadly it's now turned into more of a tourist spectacle.
Even though we've been extremely negative of the giving of the alms ceremony up until this point, I do believe it's worth the trip. If you're going to be in Luang Prabang, don't skip the alms ceremony. However, mentally prepare yourself ahead of time for the rude tourists you encounter. I believe that you can go to the alms ceremony without contributing to the problem. Just stay on the opposite side of the street and sit respectfully as the monks walk by. The rude tourist are going to show up anyway. You might as well at least get a glimpse of the monks collecting their alms.
If you want to know what it's really like to go to the Luang Prabang Alms Ceremony, check out this VLOG!
Thanks for watching! If you want to follow our adventure, you can do so using any of the social media links below!
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Want to see other videos from the Luang Prabang Night Market other awesome UA-cam creators? Check out the videos below.
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+willian - Laos New Year, Luang Prabang. alms for the poor, Phu Si - • Laos New Year, Luang P...
+Barbra Weibel - Giving Alms to Monks, Luang Prabang, Laos - • Giving Alms to Monks, ...
If you have any questions about visiting Luang Prabang Alms, please leave them in the comments below!
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Dear Kara and Nate, as a local from Luangrprabang, I thank you for your video to shed light on this matter. Personally I am very ashamed that a once beautiful and peaceful tradition has been spoiled by tourists who do not respect our culture. Furthermore, my grandmother no longer goes alms giving anymore, you were in front of her house on the main road and know why. As you mentioned it's like in Angkor Way, everyone want their perfect picture. Tourists who also want to take part in the act are also aren't taught any better. Tourism is our 2nd biggest income earner, and as the country has launched Visit Laos Year 2018, I know your intentions in making this video is well and good, and not meant to defame us or discourage other tourists from visiting the country. I hope that more people can understand more. The authorities are doing their best to address this matter so not only we want to attract more tourists, but can also maintain our traditions. I hope you had a great time traveling in Laos nonetheless and hope that you come back again.
That's so cool u seen ur grandma's house! Also, if one wanted to go enjoy the ceremony, how do they do it respectfully?
@@billymadisonsshampoo8223 just don't be rude and take a picture that is not hinderence to others
Traditions aren't worthy of being maintained simply because they are traditions. Religious ones (some in particular are better left in history). Traditions change and monks bludging food off tourists is probably better than them bludging it off the locals.
@@jtveg Locals will sell to tourists so they have food for offerings. It is still the locals food and effort. I also believe that some traditions and religious traditions that are beneficial to good karma and enlightenment should be maintained.
@@brianafongvongsa2307
Good "karma"? There is no such thing as karma in the way you probably mean it. There is no invisible universal force to balance out good and evil or that meets out justice. It is a human construct and anything can be framed as either "good" or "bad" karma.
If you think about it "karma" is a horrendous worldview. It says that a baby with leukaemia "deserves" it because it did something bad in a previous life. Disgusting. ☹️
I love how the two of you are so respectful of locals and their traditions. Whenever I traveled I always tried to follow along with the traditions as I was always worried about being disrespectful by mistake. Tourists can be rude and neglectful.
U
2020 April .. binge watchin “from the beginning “ playlist
cgpandre me too!!
I started in May
Michael Thomas me too!!
I’m doing the same!!
Same
You are not contributing to the problem if anything you raised awareness and I thank you for that.
"The ugly truth" is very appropriate. I know I've experienced similar situations where I've witnessed such rude behavior to another culture. Definitely makes me angry and embarrassed. Good for you guys for not contributing to that.
Keep up with the great vlogs! Loving them!
+xtothetina thank you! :)
I hate it when people are disrespectful. its stupid tourist getting up that close. I would have told them to go away. I don't care if I was a monk or not.
You both have such patience for things like that. I would not allow that at all. Sorry I am ranting.
Kara and Nate, my children and I have discovered y'all since homeschooling for quarantine. We've binged almost every episode! You are opening the world up to people who may never get to experience these amazing places and cultures. I also love how respectful y'all are of other cultures and beliefs and how it's very evident that y'all love humanity ❤ As a fellow Christian, it warms my heart to see other beliefs and cultures represented without judgement and with a great amount of respect!! WELL DONE!!!!
You know what I love about these vlogs...it’s not all the cool places y’all go or awesome food y’all eat (although that is a highlight) it’s that you guys are such a joy to watch! Honestly, it was so evident even in the first video that there was something different about you guys. I’ve grown up in the South in church and people are always like “I can see Jesus in them.” and more often than not, I haven’t seen much evidence. However, just the way you guys interact with each other and the people around you is awesome and the absolute joy and compassion that emanates out of Kara makes me want to be her best friend lol:) Keep doing what you guys are doing!
We've started watching all your videos from the beginning and were fairly confident that you were Christians so it was nice to hear you say that out loud. We appreciate the respect that you show to the locals wherever you are. God's love definitely shines through you and your kindness.
Covid-19 lockdown, and I'm here to watch. I don't know why I took 4 years to find this, but I'm glad I did. My mom actually watches your vlogs with me :)
The lockdown was pointless
I’m here in Luang Prabang right now due to lockdown.
I'm watching everything binge status during covid-19, 2020 outbreak your videos have helped me through this. It doesn't feel so isolating when you can see the see world through your eyes!
your parents must be extremely proud of your polite respectful personalities :)
Not as a Buddhist, but as a person, thank you two for not adding to the problem, as well as adding a different light/angle to being tourists/visitors, while also trying to appreciate the culture of where you're traveling to! This is why I enjoy you both, even though I just recently found ya'll (within the last 9 months or so), and started seriously watching ya'll within the last month, when I want to binge watch travel videos/vlogs.
well done guys for showing respect, shows you to be very good people
'She rejected me'. Ha, made me laugh. Great content.
The petzel is a sign for "Here is a bakery" It's from the times where only a few people could read.
And its german, not scandinavian.
😉👍❤🇧🇻🇺🇲
We have that sign for bakeries too in Denmark, so it is Scandinavian:))
I have been in love w Kara & Nate for awhile now but I have a lot more respect and appreciation for them after seeing that they did not like the tourists interfering w a age-old tradition.
Wow! I have so much respect for your guys for being respectful to the monks! Even from behind my screen, I felt so uncomfortable with all the tourists. Good for you guys!
And on a lighter note, LOL Kara, you really take your coffee seriously... You rejected empty-handed-Nate hahaha
I felt Kara's sadness when other tourists were rude during the ceremony. 1-2 pictures of them is good enough or stay on the other road side to take pictures. We should respect every religion ceremony wherever country you will go. Thank you Kara and Nate for this video, visitors will be aware of this in case they will go there.
Kara and Nate ❤️❤️❤️ you are so respectful and caring. Loving these older videos
'Just going to walk the streets''...love the way you guys clearly plan a lot then at times go totally random and unplanned. Genius!
Thank you for being respectful to the monks and the ceremony.
THIS is why we all love you guys. It's one thing to just show-off the places you could travel, but it's a totally different thing to have big hearts and respect. It's nice to see that you are socially conscious with your content. Keep up the good work :)
yall are very respectful and that's a reason I like yall so much and enjoy watching
November 2020 binge watching all your guy's old videos and I love em!
Pretzels have been in Norway and other European countries for hundreds of years and are the symbol of every bakery, even if they don't make them. They sell very good around Constitution day and mid summer eve, when they are eaten with sour cream porridge.
Good to see young americans like you respect the local tradition.
My childhood best friend/neighbors were from Loas, we lived in a small town in NC. I would occasionally get to try some of their foods and see their traditions.
Kara and Nate, As a Christian to me the fact that it annoys you shows you to be good Christians, I say that because I agree with you, and though you admit to being a respectful part of the problem, you respectfully filmed it. I couldn't be a Buddhist because like you Kara I would slap ether the phone ot even worse the face of the photographer that were taking pictures as tourist while I was trying to get my food for the day. I expect you have worked this out by now. the spot is from filming into the sun.
That is so sweet! Nate bought the birds and kara freed them ♥️♥️
Thank you for respecting the custom of not disrupting the monk's daily gathering of food. And thank you for speaking out about it. More people need to educate themselves about what is acceptable when traveling in a foreign country. You two are setting a good example.
I do love that you guys really tried and did respect other cultures and religions.
I really like how real this was instead of glossed over and pretending to be perfect.
Proud of you guys for being respectful travelers!! You always impress me with your efforts to be respectful and appreciative of the cultures wherever you are!
Two years on you might know this by now, but the pretzel sign that the Scandinavian bakery used is just a sign that is commonly used as a bakery sign in Scandinavia (at least in Denmark it is). I don't think I've ever seen pretzels in those bakeries. But there are so many other delicious breads and pastries in our bakeries. So if you find yourselves in Scandinavia look for the pretzel signs for a guaranteed treat. 😉🥐🍰
Thank you for showing the sad truth regarding poorly behaved tourist’s.
I agree with the comments below. However, I highly doubt that any of the tourists are purposely trying to be rude. Rather, they're either completely thoughtless, or else figure that the shot is more important than anything, including the feelings of those they're photographing.
The difference between you and those who were in the Monk's faces is you two have respect for other cultures and traditions. Thank you so much for always respecting the ways of the countries you visit. I'm saddened and sickened by the Ugly Truth you witnessed.
Thank you for bringing light to the issues with Alms. I agree with Kara. You don't have to be from the same religion to be disgusted by people degrading a scared tradition from another religion.
I love how culturally sensitive you guys are. Don't need to be from a place or a religion to feel offended
Thank you for being respectful and observing from a distance. Why are the birds in cages? Do they catch birds just so people can release them again? Seems almost as ugly a truth as the tourists being disrespectful.
Also think it's funny how Nate always points out how "excited" Kara is about steps... I actually really do like steps! I look at it as bonus exercise. 😊
I KNEW you guys were Christians. I heard you say the word small group and I knew. it. Love your vlog and your travels! I'm watching all of them as I sit and edit weddings! :0)
I live in Phuket, Thailand and the monks from the temples walk daily in the morning to collect food and bless the locals... it is not commercialized at all here and my Thai fiance gives to them a couple times a week... Its a beautiful thing when done in this nature...
you are raising awareness about the ceremony. btw pretzels aren't Scandinavian, it's German, The pretzel sign is a sign for bakery here in Norway
Pretty sure pretzels are German.
They are :) greetings from Germany f.k.a. Bretzelland
@@Silvie-nt8bu No one really knows where they are from:)
Brezte mit butter, yumyum.
@Hailey Hedland There are numerous unreliable accounts regarding the origin of pretzels, as well as the origin of the name; most assume that they have Christian backgrounds and were invented by European monks.[2] According to legend, as cited by several sources, including The History of Science and Technology, by Bryan Bunch and Alexander Hellemans, in 610 AD "... [a]n Italian monk invents pretzels as a reward to children who learn their prayers. He calls the strips of baked dough, folded to resemble arms crossing the chest, 'pretiola' ('little reward[s]')".[3][4][5][6] Another source locates the invention in a monastery in southern France.[2][7][8] In Germany, there are stories that pretzels were the invention of desperate bakers held hostage by local dignitaries.[9] Food historian William Woys Weaver (only) traces the origin of the pretzel to Celtic harvest knots and the worship of the Celtic goddess Sirona;[10][11] however this association does not appear in any of the other rare mentions of this goddess.
Love watching you travel. Thank you for commenting back. Feels like we're sort of traveling with you. Fun! Love Kara's happy smile. You too Nate. Maybe you could show some dance moves?
6 years ago when i visited and it is not so bad...very few tourist...i am glad we visited Luang prabang last time
Been to both places and ruining the alms with disrespect is way worse super sad. I had to walk away when I witnessed it. Great video guys.
We discovered your vlogs last weekend and have now watched them all. Thank you so much for doing them, it gives us great ideas to plan our vacations. Kara you are so talented and disciplined to edit them daily and Nate you are so clever to work the air miles etc. Can't wait to see more. Would love to see a vlog that explains how much you are spending per day in each country to give us an idea of budgets for our vacations. Hope you make it to the UK - we can give you some tips!
+Emma Hayes (mytravelbugbite) Awww thanks Emma!!! So glad you are watching and enjoying! :) We try to stay under $75 a day no matter where we are. So if we are in a more expensive city we try not to eat as much hahaha ;) We'd LOVE to come to the UK one day!!! I think we will ;)
The pretzel sign is showing that’s a baker. It’s all over Denmark
You guys are so fortunate to be able to see the tradition there :D can't wait for more great journey ahead..
+flossy sky Thanks for watching!!! :)
I will say this, you two are awesome, you work hard , you tell it like it is, but you keep your cool, on the other side of the spectrum, if a city doesnt want tourists to take photos, they need signs , and the tourism department to tell them , before they come there, it is natural to want to take photos, of things you do not see everyday, but at the same token, you need to be very aware of what you are doing, and the possibility of making someone feel uncomfortable, guess it kinda works both ways, tourism isnt perfect, so just know before you go! Do research!
After a little break of binge watching your vlogs I can finally continue 😍👍
Just found your channel last week and its one of the best channels I have ever seen on youtube! I love the authenticity of your vlogs and the editing style (kinda of like Casey!) Also thanks for covering my country so beautifully (Singapore) even thought I suspect you were stuck with nothing much to do
That's SO nice of you to say!! Thank you so much :) we love Casey so that's a great compliment. And Singapore was awesome!! especially the food :)
That's terrible, rude tourists ruin everything for everybody. Bless you guys for being respectful of the ceremony. I'm just about to watch the video (and I know I'm going to get pissed) so I don't know if they already do this but, maybe put up barriers? It's a shame to resort to that but some people make it necessary.
It is sad to witness the slowly disappearance of traditions because people are less and less in tune with inner-peace and more full of the consumerism garbage. Thank you guys for bring awareness to this ugly truth.
i got 'addicted' to your vlogs!!! i watched it all Friday night! More!!!
+Marlon Reyes hahaha thank you Marlon!!!
+Marlon Reyes same. I watched 3-4 videos in a row, now I have to slow down or there will be no video to watch. so today only 2 :)
I'm going to comment on every vid from now on...lol...just bcuz :0) can't get enough and spend hours watching all the vids...started from the beginning after stumbling on to the vlog about a month ago...LOVE TRAVELING with ya :) BIG HUGS FROM IDAHO ♡
Love the videos so far guys, great job!
Huge respect to you guys in your research and respect for the cultures. Love your vlogs - keep it up :)
+Kevin Jones Thank you Kevin!!! :)
I just love watching your vlogs, it’s like you wisk me away to paradise🙂🌴🐚🎋☕️
5 years later, so someone else might already have commented this before me. 😅 But the sign at the scandinavian bakery actually depicts a “kringle”. Is a type of yeasted sweet bread, usually filled with fruits, marcipan, nuts and sugary remonce. It’s very good. Maybe you already tasted it when you visited Denmark?
I feel calm watching your guys'vid.
I so love that you bought the birds and freed them! Dont you wish you could free them all? But at least those two you could do somthing for. Bless you!
Is it just me or is Kara adorable when she's morning grumpy?
She’s childish
I love how you guys were so respectful to the monks! It's sad that people are not as culturally respectful but making videos like this will help to educate people!
Oh, I have followed you on instagram with my personal and my blog insta for a while now I believe! @pawspassport is one of them! And I usually always share your vlogs on my blog's twitter! Keep at it guys!
+Ashleigh Phifer Thanks girl! We really appreciate it! :)
I just checked and found that pretzels are German in origin. Scandinavian food would be Swedish pancakes (very thin), boysenberries, Swedish meatballs, kroppkakor, pepparkakor, the last 2 being desserts. Then, there are some weird things which are eaten only by locals, like fermented shark in Iceland, and lutfisk (cod preserved in lye) in Norway and Sweden. I'm not very familiar with Danish food, and many times Finland isn't considered part of Scandinavia, mainly because their language isn't related to the others. On the whole, it's really good food.
I'm Buddhist and Lao... love your video and agree 100% on the poor representation of the alms ceremony... that would never happen normally
Wow, shows how much your channel has grown over the years - "Kara: Sarah, you get this super cute post card. Nate: We need to get her address. Kara: Its okay, I am friends with her on Facebook!"
That alarm in the beginning gives me nightmares because it's what I wake up to haha
There's nothing wrong with travelling and witnessing local cultures and traditions, but you must respect people and their way of life. They are not there for your entertainment. This isn't Disneyland. This is people living out their daily lives and beliefs. Kara and Nate did the right thing - stand back, show respect and walk away with memories and videos of rude tourists. While travelling, you must have seen 'no photography' signs, and the number of tourists who blatantly ignore these requests. I loved the releasing of the birds. That's something I would do. Very informative video guys.
love the vlog! ive watched in the morning before work for the past week or so... gotta say.., its a great way to start my day! ( even tho im commenting after work right now lol )
+Jessica Arias Awww yay! Glad you like them! :)
Glad you guys kept a respectful distance AND showed the downside of tourism sometimes!
The thing you did with the birds was cutest!
When Nate said you can buy sticky rice for the monks, I thought he was going to carry on and say but we’re just gonna eat it ourselves 😂
I love the old cars, especially the old Merc's
And I’m still here. Hourrrs later 😂😂😂 just a word of advice which no one ever wants...but pointing can be seen as rude or disrespectful in many of the Hindu and Buddhist countries. I suggest using ur entire hand to gesture instead of pointing. Ok. I’m on to the next video. I have literally been binge watching y’all all day!😂😂🤦🏽♀️🤦🏽♀️❤️❤️ Thanks for sharing y’all. I’m totally enjoying all of it lol
I love that Nate bought Kara birds! 💕
Good for you not abusing the experience. I'm iffy about whether or not I want to even go to this when I make it to Luang Prabang. Tourism: you got love it, even if sometimes it means you love to hate it... Did you see the monk throwing away some of the alms?
+JP Goes Global So true JP. Hahaha no when does that happen?! Totally missed it!
Have spent all weekend watching all of your vlogs and they are great. Very inspirational as much as Casey N and 8 miles from Home, keep up the great work and don't go home, keep on vlogging please and take care.
Hahaha that's awesome! So glad you like them! We will travel as long as possible ;) we love Casey, I'll have to check out 8 mile! Thanks for the compliment!!!
Love all of these! Also, laughed out loud at "that was not Scandinavian!" Haha followed y'all on insta! 👍🏼😃
Tourists can really spoil things ! It only takes a bit of courtesy !! We went to the back of Angkor wat for the sunrise and were the only people there except for hundreds of monks and it was truly amazing !! While the front was packed!
+Darren Turner great tip! I wish we would have known about that. I bet that was an awesome experience!
When u have pretzels on ur sign it’s means bakery in Scandinavian county’s.
Aw that's sad. When I went in 2009 I'm not sure if it was just still less touristy or because I was far from the main area of the road but it was such a different experience. I hate to think that people can't now experience it that way.
+TL Travel It was pretty sad. Nate went the next morning to a less popular road and said it was much better though!
If I was one of the monk I would drop kick one of the people taking picture right in your face
+Thong Inthavongsa agreed!
But you two are a perfect couple .I hope you Guy grow old together and wish you two all the luck.
Laos looks AMAZING! I cannot wait!
The coffee bags are really cool 😎😂❤️💕
Wow I just love you two!! It's so cool to see how rapidly your subscribers are growing!
Also I followed your insta :)
+Lynn Miriam Thank you Lynn!!! We are glad you're watching :)
Excellent videos you two, well done! I'm just wondering whether it is possible to have a numbering system for your videos so that I and perhaps other new viewers could watch your fantastic videos in the right order? Keep up with the good work and enjoy your year long vacation. :)
Aww thank you! If you go to "uploads" on our channel they are all in order there! I'm glad you like them :)
there was Lao lady traditionally dressed there. and giving all does not necessarily you must be local but rather Buddhist regardless where you are from. to me it is okay if you are there to experience and learn new culture. the real problem is if you disrecpect local culture and others right to be there too.
Alms Ceremony
There are many facets to this.
Traditionally the food would need to be prepared by the alms givers or purchased from the market, not from the food vendors. Even in Thailand there are vendors selling food that they prepared and packaged. When my wife and I presented alms at Luang Prabang, we went to the market first to pick up sticky rice and fruit.
The locals are found on the side streets. There will be more givers on "auspicious" days. I could not explain them all. My wife and I get a calendar from our temple that lists all the "Buddha" days.
Another side of this: My wife and I spoke with some of the workers at the guesthouses. Many of they boys started as monks as they would get excellent English education at temple. They would later leave the monastery and enter into business or international school.
Lastly having the city put under the UNESCO program has increased the "problem". There is no right or wrong here, the ceremonies and traditions will need to find a way to co-exist with tourists that want to capture the moment. If you want to go very authentic, find some Laotian hosts that can put you up in a village outside of LP and go through all the steps to prepare and present your alms.
Cheers!
Andrew
Started following you two on youtube and instagram, really love your vlog!!! Also that postcard looks so nice!!!! :-)
+Isabel Pinto Thanks Isabel! :)
wow - sharing it! What a sad experience - on ur birthday!
I bet those birds love you guys now. You let them out of their prison.
I'm so confused about the birds that you guys released. Do they catch new birds every day for people to release? Is there some significance to it? My wife and I want to know, and thank you for shedding light on the alms giving. I have heard of it before, but didn't realize that reality of it.
I've been following you both on instagram for a while now! lovely pictures!
+lalala17x Thank you!
You guys are the best!
+Hongi Luo Aww you're sweet! Thanks for watching :)
Kara: Drum roll please!!!
Nate: (makes unusual car noise)
Also Nate: (spits on camera)
Those birds are like ‘homing pigeons’, they’re trained to return and be sold again :)
This video is one of the most moving I have watched. I’ve watched a lot of your videos. This one was different. Truly so interesting and fascinating.
What happened to the Monks in 2020 without the tourists! And if anything will change when tourism starts again. So interesting being retrospective after this year.