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TRAVEL BLOG ENTRY
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“The two large, rusty, metal flower pots at the entrance were actually old bombshells.” |
During the Vietnam War, the US waged a secret bombing campaign in Laos to destroy Viet Cong supply routes and bases in the country. Over a period of nine years, over one million bombs were dropped into Laos giving it the dubious honour of the world's most bombed country. Our guidebook also mentions that Laos is one of South East Asia's poorest countries. Not the easiest country to spin for a tourist brochure. So we braced ourselves in Laos accordingly.
Our two day slowboat ride docked on the shores of Laos's second largest city, Luang Prabrang. We hurried up the shores of the Mekong to get our first real look at Luang Prabrang, eager to confirm or deny our preconceived notions.
What we found was a beautiful sleepy, river town built in an odd contrast of Buddhists temples and French colonial buildings (the UN shares our enthusiasm as they named it a World Heritage Site). After settling in, we took strolls through the town to explore the many cobblestone alleys only to end up at a French cafe or in some backyard of a colonial house surrounded by white picket fences. It was not the Laos we expected.
Don't get us wrong... there were subtle reminders of Laos's past. One day while entering a shop in the market area we noticed two peculiar flowerpots at the entrance. The two large, rusty, metal flower pots at the entrance were actually old bombshells. Daisies sprouted harmlessly from the top of the bomb where the detonator cap would have been (this was a pretty good sign the bomb was diffused - phew). This resourceful use of leftover ordinance was a reminder of Lao's unfortunate history.
The Lao currency, the Kip, also took a little getting used to since it is largely devalued and almost worthless. $1 Canadian dollar is about 8000 Kip. When we changed about $120 we received over $1,000,000 Kip (the largest denomination in Kip is the 50000 bill - about $6). Our jaws dropped as the money changer proceeded to hand us three inch thick wads and wads of Kip wrapped in elastic bands in exchange. It felt like we just got paid for something illegal like moving 20 kilos of pure Columbian across the border. We couldn't even count the money because there was so much of it that we just shrugged and assumed it was right.
War and money aside, we found Luang Prabrang's biggest charm was the large Buddhist presence in the town. The city is dotted with Buddhist temples and you can see monks walking through the streets anytime of the day. Where are all these monks walking to? We were told they go to the same places we do: to the doctors, to the internet cafes, to visit family. Something that would had never occured to us.
One of the most inspiring sights was the Buddhist ritual of morning alms. Jenn and I made a sacrifice and got up at 5 am to catch a glimpse of the town's monks receiving food from the local community (our sacrifice was minor considering that the monks do this every morning). In the morning fog, a procession of hundreds of oranged robed monks walked barefoot through the town getting their daily food from the locals in exchange for good karma. It was such a memorable, humbling and serene sight to witness we couldn't help but feel utter respect for the monks that passed us by.
We think Luang Prabrang was full of beautiful surprises and we're sure the rest of Laos would be much of the same. Sadly, Jenn got hit with a vicious stomach bug that forced an early retreat back to Bangkok. I guess the rest of Laos will have to wait until next time to surprise us again.
previous travel blog entry
j&c says:
Great pictures!