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Published: November 8th 2007
Wat Xieng Thong
Luang Prabang’s most impressive and ornate temple conveniently across the road from my guesthouse. I knew I’d love Laos, even before I got there. I wasn’t disappointed. Quite simply, it’s combination of placid, often cheeky locals, untouched natural beauty and lazy lack of commercialism makes it unforgettable. Pronounced ‘Lao’, but spelt ‘Laos’ owing to a French spelling error - tourism is a very new concept here.
Within minutes of arriving in Huay Qai - Laos border town (just a short boat ride across the Mekong from Chiang Khong, Thailand) I receive a marriage proposal. Lan is a good foot shorter than me, has an irritating laugh, terrible jokes and his job is to get us to the slow boat. I politely decline - another country, another broken heart!! Exchanging currency into the local kip proved to be quite the money belt challenge - $9000 kip = AU$1. So I ended up carting a massive wad of cash held together with elastic bands. The border town is industrial and you can buy anything here - guns, liquor complete with cobra inside, opium. I’m glad we’re not hanging around long.
Around 11am we find ourselves boarding the slow boat - a basic wooden construction, with roof, hard skinny timber benches, toilet up the back and
limited floor space up the front. Quite by chance, Trev, Jen and I sit up the front and soon a rug is put down and we can stretch out to sleep and play uno. The envy of everyone who’d rushed on board early to reserve the bench seats! The duration of the trip is anyone’s guess - but we’re told 10-12 hours day one, an overnight stop in a village called Pakbeng and then another 10-12 hours day two when we arrive at our destination Luang Prabang. Lan tries his hardest to get us to switch to the fast boat - a speedboat that (allegedly) takes 6 hours direct to Luang Prabang for a price. The downside is you have to wear a helmet, hold on for dear life and get drenched. I also read later that there have been a high number of serious speedboat accidents here - some fatal. In the end, the slow boat is not as slow as they’d have us believe - more like 7 hours a day!
Along the banks of the Mekong - there’s virgin forest and occasional villages. From our vantage point we observe animals feeding in the river, locals travelling
in primitive canoes, children run down to greet the boat as we drop off supplies. We see several buffalos and an elephant in the wild, a dead body floats past (possibly someone who tried to cross the Mekong in strong currents during monsoon or came a cropper in a speedboat) and we see a spectacular sunset. On board we chat with other travellers sitting with our legs dangling over the side, play some hard fought games of uno and sample some of the local beer. It’s not hard to see why Beer Lao is reputedly the best beer in SE Asia.
Our overnight stop in Pakbeng is interesting, if not slightly disturbing. Trev, Jen, Gavin (a Scottish guy we met on the boat) and I are tipped off by a Thai guy on the boat about a good guesthouse in the village. The village comprises one road with mostly untreated timber buildings both sides. The accommodation is two storeyed with a sizeable outdoor balcony, rustic, clean and well equipped with mozzie nets. We’ve already been warned the power goes out at 10pm - so we decide not to wander far. A drink with Douglas, the resident Chilean hippy who
The infamous slow boat
A basic wooden construction, with roof, hard skinny timber benches, toilet up the back and limited floor space up the front. by the looks of things has been stoned since he got there, offers a dinner recommendation. We sit down to dinner and are offered all kinds of illegal substances - from hash, to opium, to coke. This place has a seedy element and I don’t like it. Back at the guesthouse the power goes out, a dodgy guy out in the hallway offers Trev coke and an American guy, convinced he’s the next Jack Johnston, strums his guitar and winks at the ladies (unfortunately only me).
After two days on the boat, cabin fever sets in and everyone’s more than relieved to arrive at Luang Prabang - especially when Jack Johnson has been strumming his guitar and winking relentlessly. The first things you notice are the proliferation of monks and temples. The people here are gentle and smiling, with a brilliant sense of humour. They are also so laid back it’s ridiculous. It’s not unusual to enter businesses and shops and find people asleep - head on the counter or curled up on the floor in the foetal position. Laos also has the most laid-back tuk tuk drivers in the world - you almost feel guilty here driving a
Typical Mekong Village
Along the banks of the Mekong there’s virgin forest and occasional villages. hard bargain. The story that best illustrates the slow pace here is the story of a westerner who came into Laos to show a farming business how they could double their output and earn more cash. So the Lao farmer chose to do half the work, with the same level of output and profit he’d been making previously! Laos men are also far more attractive than their SE Asian counterparts. Often taller, quite striking looking, but it seems already corrupted by the west -they can often be spotted preening themselves in shop windows and bar mirrors! The women here seem to run the show and fortunately the sex trade is notably absent, owing to a law which makes it illegal for Western men to have sex with Laos women, unless they are married. There’s also a curfew for tourists - everyone back to their hotels by midnight - which is generally reflected in bar closing hours - with the exception of the local bowling alley that kicks on til 3am!
The UNESCO world heritage city - Luang Prabang is stunning. It’s French architecture, cobbled streets and beautiful shops and restaurants are beginning to draw tourists from further a field.
Monks @ Wat Xieng Thong, Luang Prabang
The first things you notice are the proliferation of monks and temples. However, it’s not yet completely overrun by tourists - the town is peaceful and children still play in the streets, monks stroll to the temples and locals cycle past holding umbrellas. In fact, the locals (including the monks) seem to conduct most outdoor activities clutching an umbrella! For a poor country, there are relatively few beggars in Luang Prabang and the children, although never overweight, appear active, healthy and well fed. There are only a few ATMs in town and there’s no sign of Maccas or other fast food outlets either. Perhaps the worst sign of tourism here are the two Aussie bogans from my guesthouse who greet backpackers off the slow boat in exchange for free beer. Sadly and unusually, the first Aussies I’ve encountered for several weeks!
Wat Xieng Thong - is Luang Prabang’s most impressive and ornate temple - conveniently across the road from my guesthouse. Built in the 1500’s - it’s adorned with gold and impressive mosaics. Monks dressed in their orange regalia pray and go about their business within the temple compound. Then at dawn each morning, the town’s monks can be seen in a procession around town receiving alms (gifts of food) from
Monks, Laung Prabang
At dawn each morning, the town’s monks can be seen in a procession around town receiving alms (gifts of food) from the local people. Quite a humbling experience and something I felt especially privileged to observe. the local people. Quite a humbling experience and something I felt especially privileged to observe.
King of Bus promises air-conditioning, movies, refreshments and (most importantly) a toilet. The twelve hour bus from Luang Prabang to Vientiane, winds around precarious mountain roads that offer sheer cliff to one side and a drop to the other. Jungle brushes the bus on both sides, presumably one way along parts of this notorious route 13. I can’t tell, I have the aisle seat and a seat mate whose English muffin tops spill onto my seat as she keeps the blinds shut, flutters her mascara caked eyelashes at all the lads on the bus and reads her trashy chick lit. Route 13 the infamous highway from Luang Prabang to Vang Vien has a dicey past. Numerous people have been injured and killed in attacks by armed gangs along this stretch. As recently as 2003 these attacks continued and the bus stop in Vientiane was also bombed. They are not sure who is responsible for these attacks. My journey is uneventful.
From Vang Vien I get my own window seat. The bus flies past houses built from thatched palms and bamboo - most houses
King of Bus
King of Bus promises air-conditioning, movies, refreshments and (most importantly) a toilet. are raised off the ground to keep the mozzies out. From the time school gets out, you can hear the shrieks of children in healthy outdoor pursuits. Kids are jumping off bridges, swimming in muddy water, playing with pets, sticks, riding bikes, skipping and playing Palenque - a type of boule. Women can be seen caring for younger children, washing and lighting fires in their outdoor ‘kitchens’. Men sit around in groups - drinking beer Lao beside outdoor pool tables.
I get to Vientiane, Laos capital, in the evening. It seems I’ve arrived in the midst of a carnival - the beginning of the annual boat racing festival - quite a noisy affair for a Wednesday night! My guesthouse is opposite the river, close to all the action including stalls where you can try your hand at darts, dodgem cars and a variety of other rides - not to mention endless food options - from fairy floss to local cuisine. Unfortunately my famous ‘stomach of steel’ suffers a minor setback in Vientiane and sitting at a Mexican restaurant with my friend Steve (another traveller I met back at Spicy Thai in Chiang Mai), I have a sudden attack of
nausea and make it to the restaurant toilet just in time. Thankfully a one off and I came good after that.
Vientiane’s most famous tourist attractions are its Arc de Triomphe - Patuxai and Pha That Luang - a massive temple complex and I visit both. A Laos lady, Saveuy, who works in a Melbourne hospital with Mum, had provided some contact details of a friend of hers in Vientiane. I endeavour to track down the elusive Father Vilavongsy at the local Catholic Church - but evidently he’s in Thailand which is unfortunate. However, it seems I've arrived on the Bishop’s birthday - there’s food, beer, cask wine and a youth band is about to rehearse. “Do you like karaoke they ask?”. “Do I ever!”, I squeal a little too enthusiastically (as I recall my last encounter with Singstar!) and a songbook is thrown my way. It’s karaoke of the Christian variety - not quite my genre of expertise - but these kids are actually really good! I meet another friend of Saveuy - the friendly Beck - who welcomes me and shows me around the complex. It’s interesting to hear how communism suppressed both the Catholic and Buddhist
Monks - Luang Prabang
Often monks can be seen surfing the Internet! religions. Now the Catholic Church is once again operating and many Lao men join a temple to become a monk at some point in their life. I suspect that the monks themselves are often stuck between two worlds. Interaction with women is limited and monks are not even allowed to sit next to a woman on a bus. This is disappointing from my perspective, as I don’t get the same interesting conversation or invitations to pray with the monks as some of my male travelling companions. Often monks can be seen surfing the Internet and one monk (staring at me) asked a male friend what ‘Hollister’ (the brand name emblazoned tightly across my t-shirt) meant!
All too soon, my time in Laos was over. I’d missed some of the Northern Laos highlights, Vang Vien and the 4000 islands area - purely due to time constraints. I have so much to cover next time! But for now, I’m sticking with the Laos philosophy - ‘too much work is bad for your brain’!
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Stephen Paul
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
true dat
Too much work IS bad for the brain! Soo true, and something tells me they didnt even need cubicles to come up with that knowledge! I liked the blog more than the pictures on this one. More pictures next time please! :)