Going to Lao PDR in 2007 – coming from Thailand – was my second time to transfer from one country to another by land transportation. (The first time was going to Hai Yai, Thailand, coming from Penang, Malaysia.) Instead of landing by plane at Vientiane, Lao PDR’s capital city, I took the bus. Hence, I crossed the Thailand–Lao PDR border going to Champasak by bus.

And my ‘dilemma’ began there when I realized that I had to get off the bus to clear the immigration on both sides of the border. I will write later what the ‘dilemma’ was all about, and how it was eventually solved.

My first article about Lao PDR is about Renewable Sources of Energy. More specifically, I will describe/discuss the small-scale machines/turbines that generate electricity due to the flows of small streams. I was amazed how these machines/turbines were able to provide power for small houses for lighting, electric fans, television and radio. I cannot help but reflect on the book Small Is Beautiful by British economist E. F. Schumacher.