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Five Diamonds
Lao Jewels in the Mekong Tiara
The bamboo curtain came crashing down with Russian glasnost (open
ness) and perestroika (restructuring), Vietnamese dui moi (renovation), Lao chintanakan mai (economic restructuring) and the miraculous resurrection of the Kingdom of Cambodia. It can't be Graham Green's Indochina anymore. That's incorrectly sentimental if not old hat, an attitude best cast aside for designer clothes by ASEAN.
The correct tourismspeak is "Mekong Region." Proving it, an estimated 2,000 travel buyers and sellers will gather in Pattaya on 15-16 April to attend the first-ever Mekong Tourism Forum. The Mekong region, actually a sub-region within Southeast Asia, is comprised of Cambodia, China (namely Yunnan province), Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam. Aggregate population? 200 million by the year 2000.
ADB (Asian Development Bank), a sponsor of the Mekong Tourism Forum, considers it vital to promote sub-regional cooperation among the six countries. So much so that the Mekong Tourism Forum is slated to become an annual event. The main objectives of the forum are twofold: first, sharing data within the sub-region as a singular visitor destination area; and second, exploring methodologies to market the sub-region.
Here in Laos (48 ethnic groups totaling 4.5 million, and women outnumber men), the general public initially got word of this fascinating development through "Mekong Region Yields 30 Tourism Jewels," a 4 January newspaper article written by Imtiaz Muqbil, executive editor of Travel Impact. I say "fascinating" because history has not been kind the Mekong region, not since the invention of gunpowder at any rate. Muqbil explained how TAT, PATA, ESCAP, ADB, WTO and UNESCO worked hand-in-glove for many, many months to prove the case for the Mekong Region.
She concluded: "The speed at which many of these projects have come together is quite remarkable by Indochina standards, given the fact that the first meeting only took place last April. But promotion of Indochina tourism is a relatively easy task, as it has tremendous marketing appeal as a new product for tour operators and many of the regional groupings are all keen to be associated with the region's development. The cooperative initiatives will be further facilitated by bilateral tourism agreements that many of the Indochina countries have with each other.
"Over the next few years, ADB has floated interest in developing infrastructure investment plans, including rehabilitation of infrastructure at existing destinations and identifying funding and time schedules in collaboration with the private sector. ADB also aims to help remove bottlenecks to tourism development in the sub-region, including availability of airline seats, and simplifying or eliminating visa requirements."
Very lucky Laos. Of the six, Laos is the only country with borders with the other five. Moreover, the longest stretch of the Mekong twists through Laos. And the majority of overland Mekong region routes bisect Laos in its northern, central and southern areas. Blessed by its geopolitical location--placing it in the heart of the Mekong region--Laos has plenty in store wherever tourists choose to traverse its unspoiled mountainous terrain.
Jewel 1: Luang Prabang
(Northern Laos)
Luang Prabang (10,000 households), the crown jewel of Laos and royal residence of the last king--Sisavang Vatthana--is plausibly the best-preserved traditional city in Southeast Asia. It is a sort of never-never land 397 kilometers and 18 hours by road from Vientiane. By boat, it is 60 hours up the Mekong from Vientiane but a mere 6-8 hours by speedboat from Bokeo, the Lao checkpoint on the border with Thailand. Or you can fly there in 50 minutes from Vientiane on 21 weekly flights (3 per day). It has to be seen to be believed. And you will always want to go back. Every Laotian wants to visit it before he dies.
Things to see: national museum (former royal palace, a proven "palace in paradise"), a picturesque affair built in 1904, is an architecture amalgam of orthodox Lao designs and French beaux arts construction. Wat Xieng Thong, one of 66 temples built before France dominated Laos, is considered the most classic of approximately 30 still standing. Other-world Pak Ou caves, 25 kilometers upriver by boat in the sheer face of a gigantic limestone cliff, is best seen in mornings. During afternoons, a drive to Ban Phanom, a weaving village, offers Lao fabric galore. Afterwards, visit the nearby tomb of Henri Mouhot, renown French explorer who "rediscovered" Angkor Wat. 30 minutes south of the former royal capital, visit remarkable Kuang Si falls, really a series of storybook cascades hidden in a forest.
Jewel 2: Xieng Khouang
(Upper Central Laos)
As a name, Xieng Khouang (provincial population, 200,000) is famous for pitched battles between royal and revolutionary Lao forces during the Second Indochina War. Before that, it was famous for the Plain of Jars. Today it is famous all of this plus hot springs, temple architecture, ethnic minorities and a splendid climate.
Things to see: ethereal Phu Bia, the country's highest mountain, nearly inaccessible, rises to a height of 2,819 meters. Provincial elevation averages 1,200 meters; thus it is eternally spring. Its principal historical treasure is the Plain of Jars. Warfare held the 2,000-year-old jars hostage for decades and few foreigners saw them again until 1989 when Lao tourism enjoyed a brief period of startling openness. From Vientiane, Chinese Y-12 turboprops ferry locals and outsiders alike to Phonsavan, Xieng Khouang's new capital. As well as avoiding bombs dispersed like salt and pepper during the war, local guides know the Plain of Jars remarkably well.
Jewel 3: Vientiane
(Central Laos)
Once a sleepy provincial-like city on the Mekong largely populated by ethnic Chinese, Vietnamese and a very few Lao, Vientiane (municipality population, 528,100) is coming into its own as the administrative and cultural capital of the nation. It has been ignored and underrated by almost every passerby since its founding by Fa Ngum in the 14th century. The French made it the official capital during colonial times. Today, the modern heartbeat of Laos is best felt here.
Things to see: the heart and soul of contemporary Laos and ancient Buddhism, That Luang (great sacred stupa) with its medieval-looking encircling cloister, occupying the site of a Khmer temple dating from the 11th-13th centuries, was begun in 1566. With atypical features, Wat Si Sa Ket, the only temple not destroyed during Vientiane's destruction by the Siamese in 1828, dates from 1818 and was built by King Anouvong. Patuxai (victory arch), an Arc de Triomphe look-alike, commemorates native sons who died in pre-Revolutionary wars. Visit the Morning Market for purchasing everything imaginable under the sun. Inaugurated in 1994, inspect the Lao-Thai Friendship Bridge 18 kilometers down river from Vientiane. Day trips are easily arranged to rejuvenating Khou Khan Na, tranquil Nam Ngum lake, alpine Phou Khao Khouai, historic Pha Baat Phonsan, and reverberating Tad Leuk waterfall.
Jewel 4: Lak Xao & Borikhamxay
(Lower Central Laos)
Here is the great unknown. Borikhamxay province (population 163,800) shares a border so impenetrable with Vietnam that new species of animals are still discovered in its verdant bosom. Presently, Lak Xao (literally "kilometer 20") is a staging point for crossing into Vietnam through 1,969-meter-high Keo Neua Pass, one of the highest in the country. It lies on Route 8, a country trek that will become a major artery for inter-region trade between Thailand, Laos and Vietnamese Vinh, a strategically-located port on the South China Sea.
Things to see: this province is so unexplored that guidebooks pay scant attention to it. It's still-sleepy capital is Paksane, population 35,300, looking more like a few thousand. But south of Paksane on Route 13 South, as well as west near the Vietnamese border on Route 8, is extraordinary karst topography. Route 13 South has been completely rebuilt between Vientiane and Savannakhet, yet village life along it remains essentially unchanged. This is an excellent stretch of road from which to view Laos as it always has been.
Jewel 5: Champassak
(Southern Laos)
North, East, West and South (the genesis of the word "news"), Champassak (provincial population 500,000) offers rich treats in every direction. To the north, burgeoning Pakse (population 64,300), another crossing point linking Vietnam and Thailand, site of a second bridge to be built across the Mekong but wholly in Laos. To the east, the Bolovens Plateau. To the west, Wat Phu. To the south, Khong Island and Phrapheng Falls, Champassak's own Niagara.
Things to see: Founded in 1905 as a French administrative outpost, Pakse, with approximately 20 temples, is the jumping off point to the province's major attractions. Boun Ome's former 5-story palace is now a hotel: Champassak Palace Hotel. The Bolovens Plateau, elevation 1,000 meters and up, abounds with small-scale coffee, rubber and tea plantations. It is populated by Mon-Khmer groups including the Katu, once notorious for (now defunct) human sacrifices. Portions of Wat Phu--there are three levels--date from the 6th century; archaeologists say it rests on what was once a Champa Kingdom (pre-Khmer) sanctuary, perhaps the most important Champa site in all Indochina. The bulk of the visible temple complex is Angkor period, 9th to 13th centuries. The falls south of Khong island stretch for 13 kilometers. There is also an old rail bed on Khong, a rusting locomotive, and an impressive stone bridge connecting the island to Don Det. The rainy season hits hard here and can exceed 3,000 millimeters per annum. Better to visit the south in the dry and hot seasons.
On a worldwide basis, where did most tourists go last year? France was the preferred destination with 60.5 million visitors. Spain came in second with 45.1 arrivals. The US was third with 44.7 million. But combined arrivals in Vietnam and Thailand alone soared past the 6 million mark, approximately 1.5 million more people than the population of Laos. Overall, international tourist arrivals around the globe skyrocketed to 567 million people in 1995, a 3.8 percent increase over the previous year.
Quite naturally, such astrological numbers frighten fragile Laos in the heart of the Mekong region. With the lowest population density (19) per square kilometer in Southeast Asia, the tourist caravans of mass tourism are frowned upon in landlocked Laos. Like endangered species or King Tut's tomb, Laos can little afford much human wear and tear anytime of the year.
Professionals have long said mystical, mythical Laos has an absorption problem. Few civil servants. Few entrepreneurs. Little experience dealing with outsiders. An educated class so modest it could dance on the head of a pin and not crowd the angels. Taken all in all, Laos is not necessarily backward. It is timeless. Anthropologists have described its people as an exemplary model of "complete static calm."
Indeed, in a world rushing obtusely if not blindly into the 21st century, this--it's complete static calm--is the irrefutable charm of Laos. Concluding on a positive note and paraphrasing Perala Ratnam, former Indian ambassador to Laos, I think it's reasonable to say that imperturbable Laos won't walk backwards into the future.
For a breakdown of the 30 jewels of the Mekong Region on a county-by-country basis, see TAT's (Tourism Authority of Thailand) booklet titled "Subregional Tourism Jewels." TAT/Vientiane is located near the Joint Development Bank.