Day 1 Vientiane to Phonom

It was a journey making it to Laos, but it's now time to put the pieces together to officially start the Tour! We must give a big shout out to the students and staff of Sino-Canada, grade 5/6 students of South Meridian (White Rock, BC), grade 2 students of Diamond Elementary (Surrey, BC), CIJS (Japan), our sponsors and of course our friends and family for making this possible! Before my arrival Cyril has been scouting out some equipment stores to support our journey and of course getting a few push-ups in to keep the upper body in tact...My last tour finished in Vientiane which is our starting point for our upcoming journey. The last time I was here I met a person by the name of Noy who owns a restaurant called "Noy's Fruit Haven". If anyone comes to Vientiane you must pay her a visit...great food and she is one of the nicest people I have ever met...这是一段通往老挝的旅程，现在该正式出发了！我们必须隆重感谢中加枫华学校师生们、卑诗省白石市南Meridian5、6年级的学生们、卑诗省Surrey市Diamond小学2年级的学生们、日本的CIJS、以及我们所有的赞助人，当然了还要感谢所有的朋友和家庭成员，是你们让这次旅行得以成行。在我到达之前，Cyril以经去看了很多器材商店，同时做了不少俯卧撑锻炼上身力量。我上一次的旅程终点Vientiane市就作为我们这一次旅程的起点。上次在这里我遇见了叫Noy的人，他开了一个叫“水果天堂”的饭店。任何来这里旅游的人可以去她的店看看，品尝一下店里的美食，她也是我遇见的最好的人之一。

Cyril and I sat down for breakfast and we asked her if she could help us communicate with the local store owners to get equipment shipped to various destinations throughout our trip...Vientiane is the capital of Laos and once we leave, it will be difficult to find equipment in the small villages...Over here "Canadian Tire" or "Sports Check" do not exist.....but Noy took us a place called "Stadium Sports" which is the best place we could imagine...The owner of the store is named "Kydeux"'and she is unbelievable....She was on board from the moment we told her our mission and it was evident she understood the importance of sport and play...She was so thrilled we were helping out her country and we are so lucky to have found someone who not only supports our journey, but truly believes in the message...Noy and Kydeux thank you for all your help and getting the wheels in motion...Trailers are filled, now the journey begins!
Cyril和我去她那里吃早饭，并且我们请她帮忙联系一家当地的体育用品店，请店主将器材发到我们的旅途沿线，Vientiane是老挝的首都，一旦我们离开了，在其他的小地方是很难找到卖体育器材店的，这里可没有Canadian Tire或者Sports Check之类的商店。Noy带我们去了一个叫Stadium Sports的器材店，这是最棒的一家了，店主叫Kydeux，人也很好，一听我们说到此行的目的就明白了，显然她是理解运动和游戏对孩子们的重要性的，她很感激我们来帮助她的国家，当然我们则更加幸运，我们不仅找到了支持我们这趟旅行的人，而且有着共同点理念。谢谢你们，Noy和Kydeux!货已经装满，该出发了！

Inside the trailer we have volleyballs, soccer balls and Takraw balls which is traditional game played by many throughout south east Asia. It didn't take us a long for us to reach the country side and start making handing out sporting goods to the surrounding schools. Riding through the villages we are greeted by the call of "Sabaidee" and I think the locals think Cyril is an ex NFL star giving back to the community....Before the tour the diesel has been putting in the km's getting reading for the hills of Laos...I have been working him out, changing the tempo and my guy looks good...especially given his defensive linemen physique....Cyril is a natural when it comes to interacting with the kids... and the big guy's energy and passion for sports is bringing a lot of smiles to the children we are meeting...
我们装着排球、足球和Takraw球，这种Takraw球是盛行于东南亚的传统运动。不久我们就来到郊区并开始在周围学校发放器材了。骑过村庄时当地人喊着“Sabaidee”和我们打招呼，我觉得他们可能以为Cyril是某个NFL的超级明星了。我们已经给测距仪加好油准备好征服老挝的山山水水，我给它调整好节拍，我这搭档看着不错。Cyril面对孩子们时有相当的亲和力，这个家伙的运动天赋给孩子们带去许多的欢笑。

We are amazed of how the people find a way to be creative and find a way to play...People use sticks to create nets to play volleyball, badminton and soccer and it's great to be able to give them something they can enjoy...We cycled 70 km today and spirits are high. The riding today was mostly flat and was a nice warmup to get us prepared for the climb to Luang Prabang! Our source of fuel has been non stop "pho"...Much love goes to the all the people who made this possible...Amazing we get to share what we love doing most...Jiayou!
当看见人们创造性的想办法运动时我们很吃惊，他们会用木棍搭一个网用来打排球羽毛球。今天我们骑行了70km，很high了。今天大部分是平原地带，作为给我们的热身以准备好翻山越岭到琅勃拉邦！加油声不断，感谢所有对这次旅行做出贡献的人们！能一起分享我们热爱的东西多么美妙！

Paul