ABSTRACT
Introduction “Thailand is not a foreign country [Thai bor mean than pathet],” a Lao man in his forties said to me with a rather wry smile. It was an ordinary Sunday afternoon, and we were enjoying a beer at his house in a village located about four kilometers from a border checkpoint in Thanaleng, Vientiane Capital. From his village just across the Thadeua Road, the Mekong River flows and divides the two countries: Laos on the east bank and Thailand on the west bank. Our conversation had begun with his statement, “I have never been to any foreign countries,” followed by my question, “Not even Thailand?” He smiled because the answer to my question was obvious to him.
