December 7th
We are spending a couple of days in the capital of Laos. Vientiane’s name stems from an incorrect French transliteration of “Wiang Jan”, meaning “City of Sandalwood. In 1563, King Setthathirat, the last great king of Lane Xang, moved his capital from Luang Prabang (which suffered from constant attacks by the Burmese) to Vientiane, bringing with him the Phra Kaew, the sacred Emerald Buddha, and building Wat Ho Phra Kaew to house it.
While there are several sites to visit there is no formal old city and the physical setting while on the Mekong River does not offer any particular benefit. A rather charmless town undergoing a lot of expansion, although it has a lively bar and restaurant scene……you can get some pretty good international cuisine at rather modest cost. As the guidebooks say the pace of life is generally slow and on weekends and holidays glacial….we tend to agree. Even tuk tuk drivers, usually quite aggressive tend to shy away once a shake of the hand by us indicated our non interest.
In any event our hotel is quite nice, excellent included breakfast and a good location from which to visit several wats and other areas of interest. The first day we mapped out a walking route which would take us by most of the key sites leaving the balance for the next day as these were a tuk tuk ride away.
It it is lightly overcast making it reasonable to walk ……on our way we pass the Presidential Palace but are waved off as we try to enter the grounds…
…as we look down the Ave Lane Xang (named for the unified Lao Kingdom which existed from 1354 to 1707). It is reminiscent of the Champs-Elysees, as you see the Pattuxai Victory Monument in the distance. The resemblance is not a coincidence as the French Annexation saw the rebuilding of the city from the turn of the 20th century.
Wat Si Saket built in 1818, is one of Vientiane’s more unique temples having managed to stand the test of time and war, still standing as it was built 200 years ago. Wat Si Saket is also unique for it’s Siamese style, rather than Lao, which gives it the appearance of a Thai temple (virtually the same in style as we have seen in Bangkok).
The temple is most famous for more than 6,800 seated silver, stone, bronze, and ceramic Buddhas and Buddha images nestled into the walls of its cloisters. Most are between 100-400 years old, and cut a striking and beautiful display in the temple.
Very close by is Wat Haw Phra Kaew which shares its name with the one that sits in the Grand Palace in Bangkok for a very good reason as it once was the home of the sacred jade Emerald Buddha after it was taken from the Siam Kingdom. Though it was reclaimed by the Siamese (Thai) in the late 1700s, Haw Phra Kaew is still revered for its history, beauty, and rich cultural significance. Furthermore, the Laotians still are deeply unhappy that it resides in Bangkok.
After this we trudged back towards the hotel getting a feel for the area …
….and then lunch at the Ban Vilaylac Restaurant, run by a very energetic woman who sold us on the Lao specialties of the day: papaya salad, dried in the sun beef and sticky rice pretty decent….
Some shopping and then some siesta time ….it is beastly hot and humid here. For supper we tried a bistro > the Tango Bar Pub Restaurant run by a French owner/manager >>> pretty good burgers and fries and of course wine for Annie and a large pastis for me…..a nice change from the asian fare even though we love it.
December 8th
Basically a replay of yesterday, although the weather was quite cloudy with the odd drop of rain….today was our motorized day as we zipped around with the aid of tuk tuks (always a debate as to price but really very simple….we did not squeeze them for the last KIP as this mode of transport is handy and cheap).
Pha That Luang is Laos’ most important cultural monument, both for its Buddhist significance, and as a symbol of its powerful ancient royal kingdoms. It’s image can be found on government logos and all currency notes.
The current temple was built in the 1500’s but a temple in some form has existed here since the 3rd century B.C. when monks sent out by the Indian King Ashoka built a shrine in the Vientiane area to reportedly consecrate a piece of Buddha’s breastbone. Remains of a 12th century Khmer temple have also been found at this spot, making it an important site in Laos’ cultural history.
Above a statue of King Setthathirath who is considered as one of the great leaders in Lao history. Throughout the 1560s until his death, he successfully defended his kingdom of Lan Xang against military campaigns of the Burmese conqueror Bayinnaung. Surrounding the complex were several other shrines including a Reclining Buddha ….
Wat Thatlaung Tai is adjacent to the Pha That Luang, much less well-known, but is a nice complex featuring this quite beautiful temple with a brightly painted ceiling….
The ladies in the above pic are selling birds which the buyer then releases as an offering to the deites, it’s a practise they are trying to stop but from what we could see it still seems mighty popular. From here we grabbed another tuk tuk to the Patuxai Victory Monument was built to commemorate the Lao people who fought and died in the battle for independence both against the French and in subsequent wars, and is modelled on France’s Arc de Triomphe with a Lao twist.
We sat around the fountain and people watched for a while as lots of locals come here and of course tourists from all over…
…this was a tired elder lady vendor as she rested for a bit before resuming her trade…
……and of course the groups of Chinese tourist ladies dressed up to the “nines” posing, posing and then posing some more….they even posed with Annie & I on a bench, haha, but I asked for some reciprocity and got them to pose for us….
Wat Ong Teu was built in the early 16th century by King Setthathirath, but destroyed when the Siamese razed the city in 1827-1828. It was then rebuilt in the 19th and 20th centuries and now holds an important position as the national centre of Buddhist studies.
Interestingly later when we were returning from dinner we cut through the grounds as the monks were chanting in a sort achepella…..it was neat to stand outside and listen for a few minutes in the softly falling rain….managed to get a shot of the buddha and monks praying inside….
Had a quick look at the night market but it was really focused on locals buying clothes, electronics etc. so no handicrafts or other tourist oriented stuff…..seems like a lost sales opportunity as it is very close to many of the hotels….although on the street there were lots of bbq stalls selling chicken etc, which looked quite good…
Well that is about it for Vientiane just a three night stay but more than adequate and I think we got a good feel for this city in transition. Tomorrow another transfer day as we leave the Land of a Million Elephants.