Mar. 11, 2009 -- VIENTIANE, LAOS: Buddhist monks ride on a "songthaew" in Vientiane, Laos. Songthaew literally means two seats but has been adopted to mean a pickup truck converted to carry passengers by adding two benches to the bed of the pickup. Songthaews are commonly used as buses in rural Thailand and Laos. Photo by Jack Kurtz / ZUMA Press