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Laos was under the control of Siam (Thailand) from the late 18th century until the late 19th century when it became part of French Indochina. The Franco-Siamese Treaty of 1907 defined the current Lao border with Thailand. In 1975, the Communist Pathet Lao took control of the government, ending a six-century-old monarchy. Initial closer ties to Vietnam and socialization were replaced with a gradual return to private enterprise, a liberalization of foreign investment laws, and the admission into ASEAN in 1997. To be updated

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By munkymark
December 13th 2005

little more

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang

Hello again, I know it might seem soon for another email, and it is, but i have some catching up to do. So, i thought i'd start with a little bit of Laos talk. Like, what's the difference between Laos and Thailand? Is it different? Is it the same? All the answers and more, coming right up. So, Laos is poor, one of the poorest countries in the world. When i first arrived to Thailand, i thought it was a bit rough and basic, but in comparison to Laos, it is quite far advanced. Paved roads in Laos? Not so many. [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 13th 2005

Journey south

Asia » Laos » South » Tha Khaek

Sunset Vang Vieng

Sunsets and the Mekong and Beerlao all seem to go together, whether I be in the north or the south. First picture of the place that sounded less savoury than other Lao delights, yet has its own beauty away from town roads as this first snap shows. Travelling south has meeting very friendly people, especially children who are very happy to call out whatever English they know, be it "hello" or "thank you" or ... "i love you!" ... so I use this opportunity for a little language lesson and take a photo or two. They are usually a little shy [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 12th 2005

Travelling with locals

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane

Local buses Took a local bus from Vang Vieng to Vientiane, then another on the road south to Paksan. That was an experience! The 7:00am bus to Vientiane was big and old and took a lot of passengers, bags of rice, the odd chicken and some bags of fish! Luggage (and caged birds, baskets and other freight went on the roof), the rest of us inside ... although on occasion, people do ride on the roof as well. The bus seemed pretty full as we left, but we managed to jam a few more in as we stopped to pick up [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 11th 2005

On the road again

Asia » Laos » West » Vang Vieng

Seeing a little of the countryside from road travel has been ... interesting! Took a bus from Luang Prabang to Vang Vieng ... for the valleys and dips and curves through thickly rainforested areas. Alas, the cloudcover was low and I saw not a lot of the desired terrain. However, there are many other things to see in Vang Vieng ... !?!?! Known for its rapids and the tubing experience, many a tourist seemed to be enjoying this activity. This meant hiring tractor tubes and floating on them down the river. The "tubers" seemed very happy ... perhaps it was the [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 10th 2005

Luang Prabang 2

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang

Slow boats on the Mekong

Meeting of the Mekong Have found another place to sit and reflect on the day, and yes once again it is beside the Mekong River very close to where it meets the Nam Khan River. The river itself is made of brown water, with a surface broken by currents and eddies and with breaks created by sandbars or small islands. Anyone familiar with the Burdekin will get the picture. Alongside this brown expanse are villages with clusters of huts (thatched roofs, seemingly rattan walls) and smoke rising from the clusters. Long boats are tethered at the river's sides, near neat rows [View Full Entry]

By munkymark
December 10th 2005

a bit of catchup

Asia » Laos » West » Vang Vieng

So, I read a quote recently that said something like "The hardest task to complete is the one that you have not yet begun", and that kind of pertains to this email. Through a combination of being lazy, and being in places without internet, i haven't written in too long and now find myself with the daunting task of catching up of the last two weeks. Crap, this is going to be long. Sorry. So, i ended off my last email in Pai. I spent a total of 6 days there, and the last few were spent enjoying the Laygatong festival [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 9th 2005

People

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane

Market seller & her wares

It's the people that you meet when you're walking down the street ... ... in you're neighbourhood! This was it for three days. The people ... comprise market stall owners, passers-by and some children (playing in the dirt street-side) a mother and baby! Some will smile for the camera. Some say no to photos ... Lasting images of Vientiane include ... * tuk tuks * bananas * french colonial influences * temples * busy streetscapes Farewell to the capital and on to the old capital Luang Prabang! [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 9th 2005

Luang Prabang

Asia » Laos » West » Luang Prabang

Temple from inside

Tourist town with charm Luang Prabang, the former capital of Laos, is one with many beautiful architectural and cultural features. The French influence not withstanding, there are many temples here and respect for religion and art. Temples line the main streets and are locations of gilded adoration (of Buddha) as well as being the hub of each neighbourhood. Around this hub, the religious and social activities of the associated area are centred. Much beautiful decoration is evident here as well. Monks are all male, dressed in saffron-coloured robes and are varied in age from pe [View Full Entry]

By Jessie and Stacy
December 9th 2005

jewel of the Mekong is right!

Asia » Laos

glad we made it to LAOS!

SURPRISE!! we made it over to Laos at the very last minute. we cut our time in the islands short due to poor weather, and we are SO glad we decided to spend some time in this developing country. throughout our travels we kept on hearing how crazy we were for not going to Laos... and it was everyone's FAVORITE country in south east asia by a long shot. so, we decided that we could not leave for india without seeing it for ourselves... from our last island (Koh Lanta), we took a boat for a few hours and made a [View Full Entry]

By MaryB
December 8th 2005

Markets'n'food'n'people

Asia » Laos » West » Vientiane

Morning markets 1

Life as I know it, Vientiane I am preoccupied with life and how it is lived in other places. So what follows are shots of shops! Yes a shopper to the core - 'cept that what I did here was window-shop. In fact, photo shoot is what I did - did not even cross the threshhold of most. First frames are from shops on the way to the cooking course ... "les commercants de la rue"! [View Full Entry]

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