Plain of Jars

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After 4 days I left Luang Prabang and took a bus to Phonsavan. Its a good 8 hours to the east and is the site of "The Plain of Jars." I have heard good and bad things about this attraction but since I have over three weeks still in the country and was going to do a whole tour of the north it seemed like a fitting stopover. As usual on the bus I met some fellow travellers and we stuck together on our Phonsavan adventure.

Many guesthouses will have a van or hire a tuk-tuk to pick up passengers when they get off the bus. Since having people stay at their establisment is a good portion of their livelyhood, their days activities seem to funcion around when buses get in from different cities. The one thing that really annoys me is being completeley overwhelmed the mintue yuou stop off a train or bus. 10 people wil approach you, all offering the same thing, and competition is pretty severe. I also do not like rejecting people so you kind of feel bad whe you take one person up on their offer when the very person to their side is offering an identical package. I also find this feeling with food venders so I try to buy a few items from differnt people to share the wealth. I still get what I want, they now have means. When did I become so damn caring?

Anyway this chap that we decided to go with was a slick one I tell you. After agreeing to take his room it was now time to eat because we had been travelling all day. He also knew that the only reason why we were even in this city was due to the jars themselves, otherwise Phonsavan is almost appealing as the country of Chad, you get my point... Well when you walk around you can see things, and one place you can count on running into is a travel agency. You will then get a pretty good feel for the going prices of the tours in the area. Before we could leave the guesthouse this guy had already sat us down and threw us his sales pitch. It started off at $15 for the three jar sites, trasportation, noodle soup lunch, a backyard lao-lao distillary, and an old Russian tank. Interpretation: your STANDARD "Plain of Jars" tour that EVERYBODY is offering. Immediatley that sounded absurd, the price being way too high and noticing we were not going to go for it, he dropped down the price to $10 because we were nice enough to stay at his guesthouse, he wanted to give us a break. We still weren't ready to sign, we really wanted to eat and told him we would get back to him in an hour or so. He told us by then there might not be a chance that we can do it becuase there were already three people signed up and the bus can't fit much more. We called his bluff and took our chances anyway.

Phonsavan is pretty much a one street town, and the main road is either dirt, or so under-maintained that the asphalt has eventually turned into dirt. We ate at the central market, my absolute favorite thing to do anytime I am travelling becuase its cheap and fun. Its fun because you don't know how to order anything so you just end up pointing. Locals always get a kick out of it and I provide this entertaining service free of charge. After lunch we checked out a few tour agencies, came back to our hotel, made our counter offer which he readily accepted. Actual price of the tour that we paid, $6. There you go ladies and gentlemen, give them hell. I didn't feel too bad about this because he took us for a ride, and when all said and done he ended up lying to us. There were not three other people that had already bought a ticket. I take no prisioners when somebody lies to me. Honesty is the best policy, and its a good way to piss somebody off who is acutally doing you a favor by fronting the money you eventually use to live on.

One of the most impressive things wasn't the jars themselves but the scenery. Up until this point the landscape had been all mountaneous, covered by lush vegetation. We were now in an elevated plain, the only patch of flat land in the north of the country, which makes farming a lot easier. There is only one drawback to farming in the north, and that is the good probability that you will end up killing yourself. I know I know, farming is hard work (or at least I have been told), but its not the exhaustion or gruling labor you have to worry about, its the unexploded ordinace (UXO) that littered all over the countryside. Many peple are unaware of the CIA's actions in Laos during the time of the Vietnam War. Vietnam was the public front, Laos was the secret front. When all said and done 2.2 million tonnes of ordinace was dropped in the country, many of the UXO still waiting to be found, tragically...accidentally. Developement is greatly hindered because nobody can use the land. I expected to see some deformaties like you see in Cambodia (due to all the landmines) but they are virtually inexistant. It makes sense when you think about it because landmines are designed to immobilize, bombs are meant to blow to smitherines. IE. you tap a bomb with the end of your shovel and its lights out.

The US has very little presence currently in the country, be it economic or governmental influences. Sometimes I feel embarrassed when people ask where I am from because I am very aware of our world image, what we have done to these people, and our history or imperalism and violence. I have adopted of using the response "California" because at least it brings upon a prositive cultural image than the daily life behind close doors in Washington, DC. I do not know to what extent the US has done to help clean up the rubbish but I don't believe it is very much, and if it is a lot, they are using other organizations to do their dirty work. If I was giving money or leading the cleanup I would make sure it was made public to help make amends with atrocities I have commited in the past. The only non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that are taking part in the clean-up are the British run Mine Advisory Group (MAG), the UN and UXO Laos. It makes me very disguasted and angry. I am just so greatful the people do not judge me and actually approach you with open arms. I have a great fondness for the Lao people. They are very friendly and laid-back. Nobody seems to bother you or ask questions about the past. I can't believe they have been this forgiving.

The bombings have brought and interesting use for all the scraps that were left behind, however. Shops and guesthouses have used these scraps as decore for their businesses. The place that I ended up staying at had enough war relics that if they were new, could be used to supply a small militia. It is kind of cool to see actually, as sick as that sounds. But it has also brought another downside in the scrap metal trade. Many people out of desparation to make a buck for their family end up killing themselves while trying to salvage the litter. For some people their only source of income is collecting the UXO and selling the scraps to junk metal facilities.

So we now return to the Plain of Jars because afterall that is the title of this entry. The plains themselves are located in fields that have experienced heavy bombing as well and have been cleared of all ordinace. There is a very informative sign at the entrance to the sites that gives statistics of the operations and remind you to stay within the cleared areas. Nobody knows exactly where the jars came from. There are no major mountains where rocks could be quarried in the immediate vacinity. The isolation is kind of like Stonehenge in England. The theory for their existance so far is that I they were used to collect water or they were used to produce Lao-Lao, rice whiskey that everybody makes in their backyard, real 1920 prohibition style. The jars are a good attraction but it becomes a bit dull as the tour goes on. The last sight has the best scenery because you get to walk through rice paddies. Rice paddies have the such a lush, green color that is absolutely stunning. On the way back we stopped at a destroyed Russian tank that was left over from the years of the conflict.

Phonsavan doesn't have much else to offer but this tour. There is no power during the day hours so staying in town won't allow you to do much. The lights kick on starting around 7pm. It doesn't really bother me to much actually, it just makes me wonder how they keep their meet fresh during the day.

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Photos

When You Gotta Go
...you gotta go!

Lao-Lao
I wonder if this is pasteurized?

Comments

[John]

Ut för svaga kristna blod. = out for weak christian blood
4. Trollhammaren [Troll Hammer] [Music: Tundra/Trollhorn, Lyrics: Wilska] Bland skuggor rider en odjur. Som en svarta träd. Griper hård på en mäktig hammar. Ut för svaga kristna blod. TROLLHAMMAREN! TROLLHAMMAREN! Trollhammaren sveper igen! Hugga ned, broder igen! Hör det sista ropet - Trollhammaren är här! TROLLHAMMAREN! Han är inte en människa. Inte bräcklig och svag som dig. Du ska vara maktlös. Inga ögon ser din änd. TROLLHAMMAREN! TROLLHAMMAREN! Sedan mörkret övertog. Räds den frostens kalla fingrar. Som griper tag och förlever. Under kommande vinternatt. TROLLHAMMAREN! TROLLHAMMAREN! TROLLHAMMAREN!