11/12: Discovering Vientiane, Laos

Since we had chosen to stay at a guesthouse in the center of Vientiane, it only took us a couple of minutes to walk to the Lao National Museum, our first stop of the day. We passed the beautiful Lao National Cultural Hall and thought the museum would be equally as impressive.

Above and below: Lao National Cultural Hall 

Photos from the Lao National Museum:

Sadly that was not the case at all. The former French governor’s residence was built in 1925. After independence was declared from here in 1945, it was used as a government building until it became the Lao National Museum in early 2000.

7th C. Makara Headed Water Chute made from sandstone.

We saw some remains of a Buddhist cave and learned that caves have always been sacred spaces in Buddhism. Many Buddhist caves only date back to the 1970's when people put their Buddhas in caves to protect them from being bombed during the Vietnam War.

20th C. Blue Hmong tribal skirt made from hemp, indigo-dyed batik, applique and embroidery. More details below for those of you who might want more information.

20th C. grass, wood, rattan and bamboo baskets. Basketry is usually men's work in Laos and is done in the rainy season once the rice was harvested. It is a valuable skill as many household necessities and furnishings are made using basketry. The flared cylindrical baskets are used for carrying food in certain parts of Laos. The 20th C. lidded baskets made from grass, wood, rattan, leaves and bamboo are used to keep household products and clothes safe by ethnic groups in the far south of Laos who specialize in hunting, trapping and collecting precious metals.

Akka tribal women's clothing.

Peacock Houda: Used when mounted on elephants as a traditional means of transportation in Laos during the 17th C. The houda is sometimes used for special ceremonies in Vientiane today.

Elephant tusks. Try and make sense of the caption below.

I was very curious when I saw this locked cabinet.

'These 14th-17th C. gold and silver Buddhas were unearthed during excavation at Vientiane's Polytechnic College in 1996. While they were on display that same year, these invaluable objects were stolen from the Lao Museum. Due to adequate reactions from the Lao and Thai authorities, the hoard was recovered and the venerable objects were returned to the museum and since kept in this security showcase.'

Just a little tough getting these photos through the bars!

We also saw some very rudimentary displays about the history of Lao’s struggle for independence.

'A Savage (sic) operation made by the French to Seize Thakhek on 21st March, 1946.'

'Pathet Lao people (i.e. the communists) being captured and tortured by the French colonialists.'

Missing display plus have never seen dry wall used for displays before in a national museum.

'Leading all Lao people fighting for success in liberation (sic) nation for peace, democracy, unity and independence.'

Lao's National Song.

 Rather strange seeing photos, etc from the Ministries of Education & Sport, Labor and Social Welfare, Health, Telecommunications, etc.

Left the museum at 9:40 since we had had an early start and walked toward more of the city’s sights. 

Very odd seeing the American ice cream chain, Swensen's, in downtown Vientiane. We have traveled in many parts of the world and this was the first time I recall seeing a Swensen's anywhere outside the US. We really could have done with a Mc Donald's fix at this point though instead of Swensen's!

Looked off to our left and saw a tower-like structure, That Dam, located in the center of a roundabout; wandered over to and around it and noticed the religious offering left there.

 On Vientiane’s main street, we walked past the magnificent Presidential Palace just a 10 minute stroll away from the museum. What a startling contrast seeing the money that had been poured into the president’s home compared to the national repository of culture. We could only peer through the gates of the former royal palace as it was closed to the public.

Kittycorner to the Palace is Wat Si Saket, (below) built in 1818, the oldest Buddhist monastery in Vientiane and the most valuable in terms of its art history. Its inner walls were painted with scenes from the life of the future Buddha dating back 5 different periods from approximately 1820-1960. Unfortunately though, the walls’ plaster and paintings have been seriously damaged due to rising moisture levels and salt deposits.

Photos from Wat Sisaket:

The interior walls were filled with small niches containing more than 2,000 miniature silver and ceramic Buddha images dating from the 16^th to the 19^th centuries.

Wat Sisaket was huge - it just kept going on and on and on with one more beautiful building after another.

There was a lovely cemetery on the side of the wat with massive headstones.

Saw this couple in ceremonial Lao attire as we left the wat.

Passed next the block long wall of the French Embassy – a very imposing presence still in their former colony.

Some sort of snack for sale on a street corner.

 Diagonally opposite the Embassy was the Catholic Cathedral.

Students’ motorcycles in the school parking lot!

All the major streets in downtown Vientiane have both Lao and French names.

Above and below: There are always offerings for sale outside wats; wonderful thinking how generous the Buddhist faithful are when they visit their temples.

Next passed a stunning wat that was still under construction – it was so new that no sign indicating its name had yet been put up. I guess Steven and I have become somewhat jaded by our traveling as it’s difficult seeing one stupendous wat after another in these desperately poor nations and wonder why some of the monies spent on the wats could not be better spent on improving the lot of the common people. Sorry for my rant!

Above and below: More temple offerings for sale.

Walked on to Wat Si Muang, the most active temple in the capital because it houses the village pillar, the city’s protective deity. The legend goes that at the temple’s dedication, a virgin was sacrificed at the bottom of a posthole before the pillar was dropped in, as a harbinger of good luck to the capital’s citizens.

Photos of Wat Si Muang:

Noticed sadly that just seconds after the faithful left their offerings, they were removed by wat staff.

Just like Way Sisaket, Wat Si Muang was very large and contained many, many structures.

Forgot to write down who this figure is - sorry!

Vientiane is not a pleasant city to walk around in 

so seeing these beautiful flowers was a sight for sore eyes.

A sign put up in front of a massive construction project. One can but dream.

Next walked over to COPE, the Cooperative Orthotic & Prosthetic Enterprise, the main source of artificial limbs, walking aids and wheelchairs in Laos. We spent well over an hour in the Visitors Center seeing the powerful and informative exhibits about prosthetics and UXO.

Photos from COPE:

A boat made from B52 fuel tanks dropped during the Vietnam War.

According to the caption, this 2008 sculpture was made from 5,000 g of UXO, including cluster bombs, in memory of those who were injured, died or lost loved ones to UXO.

The Visitors Center entranceway.

The following information is from COPE: There are many varieties of cluster bombs. All work in similar ways to scatter explosive submunitions over a wide area. In the case of the large casings suspended above, one case would contain enough 'bombies' to cover an area equivalent to 3 football fields.

Each case contained up to 680 individual cluster bombs, each with a killing radius of 30 meters. The fins on the outside caused the bomb to spin to arm the device. With impact, the explosion occurs. In test conditions, 30% of this type of bomb did not explode. That means out of the 260 million cluster bombs dropped, there could have been 80 million unexploded cluster bombs left after the bombing ended.

These 'bombies' as they are known locally were made using plaster of Paris by staff in the COPE Centre for Medical Rehabilitation.

A Vietnam-made Metal Detector that sells locally for 100,000 kip - about $13.

We read that if people are not aware that services are available, they still have to find ways to be able to move around. These homemade legs were collected from COPE patients over the last few years. Also hanging above are legs returned after wearing out. On average, a leg lasts for 2 years or 6-9 months for growing children.

Leg Mountain: This is just a fraction of the 1,300 mobility devices made every year at 5 centers around the country.

Katie: I thought of you right away when I read this after you told us about your own work as an occupational therapist.

Visiting COPE after having learned so much about UXO in Laos over the previous few days brought us full circle, I feel, as it left us with a sense of hope for those affected by UXO in Laos.

It had been a long and hot morning and early afternoon so we decided to take a tuk tuk (think of a motorcycle with a flat bed truck on the back that holds passengers) to our next sight, That Luang or the Great Sacred Stupa, located north of the city. We got there just before they reopened the doors at 1pm.

Photos of That Luang:

That Luang is of great spiritual significance for the Lao people who consider it the symbol of Lao independence and sovereignty ever since it was built in the mid 16^th C. As the guidebook says, ‘it is a strange and exotic structure combining the features of a Buddhist temple with the mundane requirements of a fortress.’ 

We walked around the courtyard so we could see That Luang from all angles.

It was amazing seeing yet another massive religious structure in Vientiane.

I saw people resting in one of the buildings at That Luang.

'Sticky rice' containers.

After spending an hour or wandering around the spectacular wat, we then got another tuk tuk back to the city center but made sure we had the driver stop first at Vientiane’s large traffic circle, at the center of which was the city’s own Arc de Triomphe, Patuxai or Victory Gate. It was completed in 1962 in memory of the Lao killed in wars before the Communist takeover of Laos. It is also known as the ‘vertical runway’ as the project was finished with cement paid for by the US government for a new airport.

Interesting analysis of the arch!

Military or propaganda billboards were rare in Vientiane so this one really caught my eye.

After viewing what we thought was the very impressive arch, the driver dropped us off at Talat Sao, reputedly the country’s best market, located very close to where we had started our day. I don’t know about its being the ‘best market’ but it sure was very different than other Asian markets we’ve seen – plenty of space between vendors and far fewer of them, each stall individually signposted, far wider aisles to walk between the stalls, absolutely no pressure to buy anything – altogether a peaceful and enjoyable experience! We loved seeing the beautiful textiles and the riot of colors. We couldn’t resist buying yet another table runner – we’ll have so many to choose from to put on the kitchen and dining room tables!

As we walked back to our hotel after visiting the market, we had another lovely view of Patuxai.

What a pretty mural.

Then we walked back to our hotel via Nam Phu, a water fountain circle. The only problem was that the fountain had been turned off!

We saw these Plumeria or Frangipani flower decorations everywhere in Laos as it's the country's national flower and symbolizes joy and sincerity in life.

Kathy and Al: Wouldn't it be great if we had a playground like this in Columbine Knolls South?!

Just before sunset, we walked along the dike on the Mekong River which separates Vientiane from Thailand. The major east west road to the left of where we walked is closed to cars every afternoon beginning about 4.

We walked toward this sculpture/monument as we were curious what it looked like up close.

What a treat seeing real plumeria after the chair look alikes earlier!

Nam Phu at night looked so much prettier than it had earlier especially with the water flowing!

We managed to find a lovely French inspired restaurant for dinner. It was the first time in ages this trip we had treated ourselves to a ‘real meal’ – i.e. with linen and not plastic tablecloths on the tables, pleasant surroundings, good service and, oh yes, good food too! What a delightful change from the step up from street food we’d been consuming for weeks on end.

 To put it mildly, we were both quite underwhelmed by Vientiane as a capital city after our day’s tour and wondered what we’d do tomorrow in the city. 

Posted on 11/22 from Mandalay, Myanmar.