reflected in the fried dough dishes which are commonly sold as street snacks. For most non-sticky rice based dishes, a fork and spoon can be used. Chopsticks can also be used for popular noodle dishes like khao poon and khao soi. Among the Hmong and Yao, who eat more varieties of long grain rice, eating with a fork and spoon is common. The years of French colonialism have also given Laos a number of food items including the baguette or khao jii, as well as omelets, pâté and croissants. The French also introduced coffee cultivation, with the strong variety found in southern Laos near Ban Paxong as the most desired. The common Lao breakfast reflects French influence and is a simple affair of strong coffee served hot or iced, and is taken with a baguette or other pastry which dipped in condensed milk. Sports Football is the most common international sport enjoyed in Laos, with play hosted at the Lao National Stadium in Vientiane. The Lao League was founded in 1995, and fields ten teams. The Lao Football Federation operates a national team within the Asia division of FIFA. Traditional sports include kickboxing martial arts, which are known collectively as muay Lao, are similar to the more popular muay Thai and their Khmer antecedents of bokator and pradal serey. Ka-taw or kick-volleyball is also a traditional Lao sport, where players use a rattan ball and advance play using their feet, knees, chest and head. The end of “Buddhist Lent” or Phansa is marked by boat races on the Mekong River. There are traditional races where villages will each sponsor a team, with a celebration at a designated host village. There are also sport races where rowing teams compete against each other in head-to-head races. The increase of eco-tourism, has marked Laos as a destination for extreme sports. Laos hosts over twenty national parks, with hiking, biking, whitewater rafting, canoeing, kayaking, caving, rappelling and zip-lining being increasingly common activities. International competitions The 25th Southeast Asian Games were held at Vientiane, in December 2009. Laos first begin competing at the Olympics in 1980, and has since sent athletes to compete in: 1988, 1992, 1996, 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2012. Laos has also sent paralympians since the 2000 games in Sydney, Australia. Laos has competed in the marathon, swimming, archery, and other track events. Laos has yet to win an Olympic medal. Festivals