How they make bricks

A man (sitting) operates this simple machine/receives pressed and formed bricks. Women feed the machine with mud/clay and take formed bricks away:


Here they are left to dry:


Then they place bricks in rows 3 meters high in such a way that fire has easy access to every brick:


Then for many hours they feed fire with wood:


When all is well, it can be taken away by customers:


My feeling that Laos now is at a time of rapid changes, similar to what was happening at the time when Soviet Union was falling apart. A school teacher here earns monthly €30 (€200 in Thailand, €80 in Vietnam). A guy who organised a trip to Plain Of Jars was charging us €9 each. I asked him whether it was fair that he gets €90 per day. He paused for a second, looking for a suitable answer, and then we both burst into laughing. Nice guy... At the end I decided to do the trip on my own, hired a motorbike and I am glad that I did that, saw so many nice places.