But right now, we're on the cusp of losing or preserving the tradition, because the long isolation of Laos is ending. The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in this news report may not be published, broadcast or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of the Associated Press. The lazy one tried to speed up the process, tying thread to the feet of chickens and turning them loose on her loom.
Most women follow the diligent path.
The colorful, intricate patterns they learn to craft from age 7 in brocades, shawls and tapestries are considered a woven equivalent of Shakespeare. If a woman from Sam Neua can't weave, she can't get a husband. Their weaving is becoming known to the wider world with the gradual opening of communist-run Laos to international markets and two contradictory contacts with the United States. The first was the relentless bombing of the headquarters of the Pathet Lao revolutionaries near Sam Neua during the Vietnam War. It drove people to less isolated provinces, even neighboring Thailand, unintentionally spreading weavers to more accessible areas.