He Built it and They Come

Flying Lao Airlines was like revisiting the 1960's. The first time I ever flew was a short flight from Newark to Boston. The stewardesses (that's what they were called back then) were all young and beautiful, even for a short hop you were served a snack, you walked out on the tarmac and up a flight of stairs to get into the plane, and the plane had propellers. All of this happened on my flight from Siem Reap, Cambodia to Vientiane, Laos. The new twist was going through customs and immigration in a place called Pakse, Laos. The Pakse airport looks like something out of an Indiana Jones movie- one long bumpy barely paved airstrip surrounded by overgrown jungle.

I got off the plane into intense 95+ degree heat and stood in line to get my VISA. I had all I needed: my passport, a passport size photo, the required form all filled out, and most importantly $35 US dollars. There were no ATM's nearby as there had been in Cambodia so some people were scrambling to dig out enough cash. An unsmiling, uniformed man wordlessly took the all my papers (but not the money) and motioned for me to move along. The second person took the money. The third person, in their non-automated human conveyor belt , handed me back my passport and waved for me to go stand in another line across the room. There sat two more uniformed, unsmiling men, one with many stars on his epaulets, wordlessly and resoundingly stamping and stamping my brand new Laotian VISA.

Near the door into the terminal stood a young man handing out plastic signs that indicated
one was a 'transit' passenger. He handed one to me and led me to a very hot waiting room.
After about 15 minutes all we 'transit' people were led back onto the same plane we had come just come off of. The flight continued on to Vientiane where I was served a second snack in less than two hours by a young, beautiful, smiling stewardess.

After picking up my suitcase I proceeded to customs where I, along with everyone else who had arrive on the plane, was waved through. Val and I were met by our new guide and driver. The way we did this trip was to have all our hotels booked, internal and inter country flights arranged, airport pickups and drop offs and a just a couple of tours. It has worked out quite well as we decide after we see a place what we want to do. I will repeat again and again that there is nothing quite so sweet as arriving in the chaos of 2nd and 3rd world country airports and seeing your name on a sign.

Vientiane is the capital of the country. The population is roughly 205,000 give or take another 50,000 or so. There are signs everywhere saying that only the Kip, their official currency, will be accepted. I guess that department didn't tell that to the airport VISA guys as they would only accept US currency. While it is smaller than Hanoi and larger than Siem Reap, it has a very European feel to it. It is clear the French were here for many years ( and before that the Khmer, the Siamese, the Burmese, the Chinese, and the Vietnamese- all their 'neighbors'). There were also 'covert' CIA operations run by Air America in the 60's and 70's. It's amazing they even grant US citizens VISA's as, even though Laos was granted neutrality by the Geneva Accord of 1962 and forbade the presence of all military personnel, we dropped more bombs on Laos than we did worldwide during WWII. Our hotel, the City Inn, is about 100 yards from the US Embassy, a rather non-descript , and to be honest, shabby looking building. After having visited the US Embassy in Peru which is as large as the Capitol building and looks like a grounded ocean liner, I was a bit taken aback. Here is a country that borders China, is only a few hours by plane from No. Korea and our embassy looks like a dilapidated white Taco Bell with surrounded by huge satellite dishes and towers. I have no doubt they are reading every e-mail we send.

The first thing I noticed in Vientiane were all the SUV's and large extended cab pick-ups trucks- some fully pimped out with chrome bumpers and other details. At night when they are parked outside clubs, it appears they have young men watching their vehicles. The other thing that was a bit jarring were all the restaurants with an international flavor: Italian, many French, the Scandinavian Bakery,many Japanese and Indian and so on. our hotel is also surrounded by ministries- next door is education and next to that the Division of Economic Police. There are a few motor scooters but nothing compared to Hanoi. the tuk-tuks are set up to carry 7 or 8 Lao people or 2 -3 Americans. Attached to the rear of the motor scooter is a small truck like house with benches on both sides. One must hike themselves into said truck and sit on a bench while holding onto the metal rails that line the ceiling and sides. Each tuk-tuk is gaily painted in rather garish designs. Because there are so many large vehicles the drivers are much more careful. SUV's and trucks rule the road here. And the best news is that there are actual traffic signals that seems to be obeyed right down to the little red and green man that tell you when to cross. Hallelujah!

Being 'market groupies' , one of the places we wanted to visit was the famous Talat Sao (morning market). We had help finding it from two young women who help guide us across streets without traffic lights and then took us right into the door of the market. What? Where were the muddy floors with squished vegetable leaves strewn about? Where were the basins with live fish being aerated with a pump? Where were the ladies with stalls piles high with glorious pineapples, oranges, dragon fruit? Instead this was a like a mall with individual shops selling clothes, toys, glasses, appliances, electronics - lots and lots of electronics. There is something a bit disconcerting about seeing two monks sampling all the different cell phones and ipods. We were a bit dazed and confused by it all. We decided to take the escalator upstairs- yes, you read that right. We could have taken the elevator but it looked too crowded. The entire second floor were shops selling gold jewelry, precious stones, and diamonds. We continued on up to the 3rd.floor where there were more shops with what looked like more modest clothes for women and also a kiddie ride land. Down the escalator we went and headed outside, forsaking the luxury of air con to more shops that lined the perimeter of the market. These were mostly stores selling paper, housewares, jewelry repair, larger appliances, and trinkets. We never did find the fruits and veggies.

Next stop was Pha That Luang or the Great Golden Stupa. I read that it is the most important national monument in Laos as it is a symbol of both the Buddhist religion and Lao sovereignty. And I quote from a guide book, “legend has it that a piece of Buddha's breast bone was buried her by a missionary from India in the 3rd.century BC”. The huge golden stupa was built around 1566. It was a solemn place to visit as there were many people there to pray and make offerings.

Today we drove about 25km south of the city to Xieng Khuan ( Buddha Park). We wanted to make this trip for two reasons- 1.to see what it what the countryside looked like and, 2. to see all the Buddhas. The park is described as “ a monument to one eccentric man's bizarre ambition”. It was built in 1958 by a yogi- priest- shaman who merged a group of different philosophies and mythologies into a whole. There are Buddhas, to be sure, but also many figures from the Hindu religion, also snakes, and elephants. An enormous circular structure greets you. It can be entered through a man size mouth so that when you exit it looks like you are being vomited out. The structure stands about 40 feet high and about 30 feet diameter. The other large structure is are reclining Buddha that looks patterned after the one on Bangkok. This place is not to be missed. If you are lucky a stray cow looking for green grass might wander into your picture from the banks of the Mekong River.

We were delighted to see that houses along the entire route were made of sturdy cinder blocks with the top floor of wood. There appeared to be electricity into every home. Not sure of the water situation but on the whole it looked a lot more developed than either rural Vietnam or Cambodia. There were also factories- beer, pharmaceuticals, some constructions projects in short a much more prosperous( relatively speaking) than we ever would have expected.

Tomorrow we head to Luang Prabang which is much smaller and more rural. Perhaps the situation will be much different there. Will let you know.
Carolyn

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