it s a lot of money. this one, the local snack. anthony: ah, chicken feet. good. older sister: and, ah, buffalo tendon. anthony: oh nice, good. yeah, i m gonna try that. older sister: and the dried squid? anthony: dried squid. older sister: mmm. anthony: ah, i love this, this is delicious. older sister: when we eat and there, we enjoy food. in lao, we say seplai. anthony: seplai. older sister: seplai. anthony: your hotel. mama vaughn: my hotel. anthony: how long has it been open? mama vaughn: well, it s been about twenty years. anthony: today, i m having lunch at the ban lao hotel, during the secret war it was the offices for u.s. foreign aide mission. the building was also a cover for cia headquarters. mama vaughn: that big building used to belong to usaid. anthony: can we say wha michel: are you sure? usaid or cia, i don t know. anthony: well this is what i want to ask. generally speaking, in tho in tho michel: at that time, we never kn
anthony: in those days, back in the 60s and 70s mama vaughn: 60, yeah. michel: yeah. anthony: usaid and cia had a lot of, let s say, overlap. anthony: mama vaughn, who i met here on my last trip is making lunch. an elaborate spread of dishes whose recipes are left over from imperial times. anthony: mm, so what do we have here? mama vaughn: this is lon song fish from mekong. we cook with shallots and garlic and chili, and coconut milk. and pork. anthony: crab?
anthony: mm! mama vaughn: see? anthony: it s good. michel: mm-hm. mama vaughn: it s only in luang prabang. anthony: you could eat the shell? mama vaughn: yes. anthony: mm. mama vaughn: and fish with pork grill. michel: all in banana leaves. mama vaughn: banana leaves. mm. and then this is ginger sauce. eat the pork skin. anthony: pork skin, of course. and we have to have sticky rice. michel: yeah, sticky rice. mama vaughn: okay, bon appetit! anthony: food like this, uh, this is an imperial dish, a royal dish? mama vaughn: mmhm. anthony: have these disappeared, these recipes, or are they still here? they still are? mama vaughn: they re still here but you know, cause to, it some timehey it not the way that sup not supposed to do it. they change ingredient a lot. my grandma teach mhoto do this. anthony: now you were born here, yes? in luang prabang? mama vaughn: yes, in luang prabang. yeah, mmhm. anthony: and ah, michel, you michel: i was b
anthony: mama vaughn s long time friend michel is a journalist, though what that means in a communist one party state like laos is necessarily different than what you and i might define it as. michel: when i was in paris, i studied ethnology. when i came here, they said, ethnology can wait. what we need it journalists. mama vaughn: journalist. that s why you get your job. michel: that s how i became a journalist. anthony: american involvement here remained a particularly painful and even taboo subject with the lao government. anthony: obama, the united states president, just came here to visit. what do you think it means for lao? michel: well, i think one important thing is the uxo, unexploded ordinances. anthony: right. michel: american b52s, they came on bombing missions in laos. every day, every day, every day. and after bombing, they have to cross mekong back for and, and land. but they are not allowed to land
anthony: dried squid. older sister: mmm. anthony: ah, i love this, this is delicious. older sister: when we eat and there, we enjoy food. in lao, we say seplai. anthony: seplai. older sister: seplai. anthony: your hotel. mama vaughn: my hotel. anthony: how long has it been open? mama vaughn: well, it s been about twenty years. anthony: today, i m having lunch at the ban lao hotel, during the secret war it was the offices for u.s. foreign aide mission. the building was also a cover for cia headquarters. mama vaughn: that big building used to belong to usaid. anthony: can we say wha michel: are you sure? usaid or cia, i don t know. anthony: well this is what i want to ask. generally speaking, in tho in tho michel: at that time, we never know. anthony: in those days, back in the 60s and 70s mama vaughn: 60, yeah. michel: yeah. anthony: usaid and cia had a lot of, let s say, overlap. anthony: mama vaughn, who i met here on my last trip