LisaBird

I'd love to learn Lao! Languages always fascinate me, I was a linguistics student, but all I've ever studied were languages of Latin origin and some German. Getting to learn something so different, especially with a different alphabet, would be such a great experience! I love the culture of SE Asia. It's vastly different than Western culture, and I feel as though the best way to learn more about it is to immerse myself in it- especially in such a "developing" country as Laos. I looked into South Korea as well! It was definitely on my list of potential places to apply, but when I read the country description it kind of turned me off. They were super strict about medical things- for example, I have a peanut allergy and wear contacts- and I got the impression that it would hurt my chances of getting the ETA. What was your take on that? And what are your feelings about the homestay situation?

That's too funny, I considered Indonesia and I decided on Laos! I'm really fascinated by the whole area and their focus on a more traditional way of life. I spent some time in Myanmar and Vietnam last year, so I did a little reseach and talked to some Fulbrighters who had been to Laos and it seems like a mixture of both countries and some aspects of Thailand (which makes sense, because it's in the middle of all three!) What about you? What drew you to Indonesia?

Hi all! I'm another one of the site lurkers who has been reading what all of you have hashed out on here and gleaned some advice. Of course, I didn't find this forum until after I had already hit that submit button and was trying to fill the void that was once consumed with tirelessly editing and re-editing my statements. I graduated in May, and I'm applying for an ETA in Laos. Is anyone else applying for Laos? Or even SE Asia? I've seen lots of research grant posts, and it looks like they're mostly to Europe! Looking forward to sweating out the next few months with all of you! -Lisa