The picture I’ve chosen is one that I took last spring while I was in Laos with International Travel Studies. It is located right outside of the village where our work project took place, and it remains one of my favorite pictures that I’ve taken. I enjoy it not only because it is nice to look at, but because of what it represents. When I took it, we had just arrived at the village on the first day of the work project. As we were the first group to arrive at the village (and since it was my first ITS trip), I will admit it was a little bit worrying how little I knew what was going on. However, the scenery and atmosphere of Laos was always so calming, it definitely helped me. If I tried to describe the country of Laos, it would be ‘beautifully simple’. There, the people are so kind and welcoming even though by western standards, a lot of them have very little, and to see people so happy despite tough circumstances, it is very humbling, and this photo serves as a reminder of the lessons that the Lao way of life taught me.