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Travelers Digest 2007 Review of Laos
By Michael Smith - May 28th 2007

After flying from Phenom Phen to Vientiane, Laos on the 15th of Feb we began our tour of the mysterious and foreboding country of Laos. I had heard so many conflicting stories I really had little clue to what we would discover in this poor, but historically and geographically stunning country. The 2 1/2 hour flt was uneventful and we quickly cleared customs and meandered outside the airport exit. The view around the airport was vague of any real eye catching attractions and after a few minutes we hailed a cab and headed into the heart of this capital of Laos. The drive opened nothing of interest and we continued driving around stopping at several hotels looking for a decent and fairly priced place to stay. Over charging foreigners is a common practice around the globe and more so in most 3rd world countries.

After a few stops we found a quaint, unattractive hotel just off one of the 2 main streets. It was definitely an eye-sore, but was cheap.. The room was really small with 2 stiff beds and had no air-con, but at least had a toilet room. Paying our $8.00 US we piled our bags in the room, which left little space for us and headed out to grab some chow and check out the city. Walking for a few hours I concluded that the city was like the hotel...offering the barest of amenities. The one area attraction, the Plain of Jars, (pic on rt.) was what we had really wanted to visit, but was a short plane ride away and the once a week flight was 5 days away. There was no way we were going to spend 5 days in this city. We had read quite a lot about the mysterious site, but sadly it was not to be on this trip.

The city itself consisted mostly of eye-sore dusty roads, abundant poverty, listless people, as well as beggars, and untidy shops. Luckily it was almost dark which hid many of the city's negativities and getting very hungry, but not seeing any decent place to eat we followed a small crowd of locals down to the river. Being the right time of the day, we quickly concluded that they were heading out for dinner. After a brief, but swift walk, we arrived at the river and grabbed a small plastic table at an open walled riverside cafe. This was obviously the locals daily highlight as they quickly piled into the numerous riverside eateries to dine and enjoy the setting of the piercing sun with some cool beverages and lots of endless chatting. Pointing to some barely legible listings on their menu we ordered. Luckily they brought our drinks first, so with a glass of coke we watched the fiery sun set into the surround mountains. Looking around I noticed that most of the available food was pre-prepared and laid out on small tables. There was a wide variety of barely cooked meat, vegetables and fish. Dakota is a vegetarian, so the search for appropriate dining was, as is always, a chore. Eventually we settled on piece of fish for me and rice and noodles for Dakota. Before chowing down I grabbed my small pocket Pentax and shot a few pictures of the now serene setting of this ancient city that was torn between modernization and clinging to some of it's past few remnants of an Asian culture. After a moment or two the food was served and we settled in to enjoy our real first food of the day.

The city may have been nothing more than a dilapidated dust bowl, but the evening highlight was definitely portrayed along the wide Mekong river, which flowed from China and brought life to Myramar, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. In making our plans we knew that time was short and accepted that two days here would definitely be more than enough. After a crapped and restless night of sweating and swatting mosquitoes in the cheap hotel we booked a flt for the second morning to real Laos attraction, the small mountain town of La Prabang, a city encircled by the Mekong River. The region was embedded in deep forests, and with it's ancient caves, waterfalls, charming and antiquated villages....it would surely be the highlight of this adventure.

We left Vientiane on the 17th of Feb, 2007 and boarded the 45 minute flt. Upon landing in La Prabang we piled our bags into a local motor-cycle taxi and blazed down the dusty roads into the city. Believe me when riding in the back of a 4 seater Tuk-Tuk on a gravel road doing 60 miles an hour with no shock absorbers...your main thought is to just hang on to yourself and your bags. Arriving into the center of the town we quickly acknowledged that the stunning and archaic town of the past would be the perfect  place to spend a few weeks. The narrow lanes running along the Mekong River were embellished with cafes, quaint shops, walkway vendors, boutiques and small guest houses and bustled with hundred's of locals and tourists. The view of the kilometer wide Mekong river was even more impressing that it had been in Vientiane and was mesmerizing as it slowly crept it's way south to the Mekong Delta in the south of Cambodia. The water was dulled with the tons of saturated red mud from the mountains, but all in all it was impressive. La Prabang was and is the main tourist attraction of the country and finding an appropriate hotel would most likely take some time. As it turned out just finding any hotel or guest house would be a big challenge. The city was crawling with foreigners from every region of the planet and the multitude of languages echoing in the streets was mind boggling. Somewhat a Disneyland of vocabularies, attires and abound with definite culture deprived attitudes from lots of English, French and German tourist. I must admit that I totally dislike people venturing the world with their stiff upper lipped machismo. As I always say...when in Rome...do as the Romans...but obviously most people have never heard the phrase.

After a few disheartening attempts at finding a room we got lucky, even though the small well built, and quite comfortable, hotel was about 3 miles from the center of town...it was safe, quiet and modestly priced. It would do for our first night or two until we could find a room closer to the river. One good thing about this hotel was that it was within walking distance of an English speaking Dutch owned restaurant where the food was divine. It was also quite near an ancient Buddhist Temple, (see pic. on rt.) We retained the cell number of our first taxi driver from the airport and  with his aid, we explored the city and the surrounding country-side. We also soon discovered that most locals did speak at least some English. This was true for the locals in Cambodia and in Thailand, but not so true, as I soon discovered, for the people of Vietnam, where just ordering food could be a nightmare. If it wasn't on the menu and written in English...forget it! You just ordered and hoped for the best...squid and boiled fish eyes...yuck!

After just a day, I knew I would fall in love with this city, and it's gentle people, and eventually with the entirety of the amazing and phenomenally stunning country. I have circumvented this big old sphere many times and have enjoyed hundreds of cultures and amazingly beautiful landscapes, but this land seemed different...more relaxing, but at the same time...vigorously stimulating. It seemed frozen in time and space and the bitterness of modern living hadn't worked it's spell of misery on this simple land of sweet simple people...thank God!

On our 3rd morning we moved into a real nice alleyway hotel run by a large family of helpful and welcoming locals. The two separate buildings were all built of wood, which is not a good noise insulator, so the nights of loud televisions and music coming from the proprietors was the only set-back, as the room was comfortable and the location was only meters from the river and endless string of cafes. I retained the cell number of our original taxi driver and called him daily for trips around town and even for long drives to the mountains and out laying villages. On our 4th day after we climbed in the open back of his small truck for a 1 hour dusty drive along the mostly unpaved winding roads up to the isolated and quite charming village in the hills. Regardless of the direction we headed...each was an inspiring and somewhat sad experience, as the country, while stunningly beautiful, it's poverty bound people continued living as they have for centuries. But even so, their strength and pleasant demeanor never ceased to intrigue and amaze me.

Driving along the red dirt road to the small mountain village (above rt. pic.) nestled along the Mekong river was refreshing and provided many photo shooting opportunities, but did not compare to the village itself, even with its many vendors selling everything from home made whiskey with scorpions and cobras in the bottles, (left pic.) to old local and foreign coins. The shacks, dogs and children all flowed together in creating a scene from much more ancient times. I am constantly mesmerized at the wide variety of cultures and livelihoods around our world. From mega-cities to shameful shanty towns of utter poverty...all struggling to coexist side by side. Personally, I admire and respect these simple people living simple lives, as they seem to adhere to a realistic and much more humble treatment of nature, each other and especially visitors. Each person having an intricate role in the welfare of  the village is by far a better existence than in most regions of the planet where mayhem, chaos, egos and self fulfillment are the norm.

After having a snack and a cold drink at the river-side cafe (below pic.) we walked the 100 yards or so down to the water's edge and boarded a long boat for the trip across the river to the ancient Buddhists caves, Pak Ou. (below left) The motorized boat zipped along at a quick pace and crossing the river in only a few moments, we tied up at the crowded dock at the bottom of the cliff and headed up the long and arduous stairs to the caves entrance. The entrance fee was about 3 US and if I had known the extend of the climb, I would have saved 3 bucks and remained at the bottom. Hundreds and hundreds of short steep steps were necessary to reach the 2nd, higher, and smaller cave and by the time I reached it I was exhausted losing most interest in actually entering the shallow cave. Dakota, as usual zipped up the steps and was waiting patiently at the top. The lower, easier to reach, cave was the better of the two and as both were vaguely lit by candles taking a decent photo of the caves was nigh impossible. However the view of the adjoining mountains and the Mekong River were definitely worth the hike. The next day we would take a trip further up in the mountains and discover a truly peaceful and beautiful waterfall and several cold water deep blue ponds and swimming was a definite.

Early the next morning I called the driver and we climbed in the back of his open sided truck and headed off on a bump, dusty and twisting ride through the city and several small villages lining the unfinished road. The sights and sounds on the hillsides and river passes were and are unforgettable, especially the visions of the children...poor, but not knowing it...as they laughed and played along the road and in the numerous creeks. Eventually reaching the small village near the waterfalls we climbed out and headed to one of the several small locally ran cafes and grabbed some seats near a table of Monks wearing the traditional bright colored orange robes. (upper pic.) The markets, vendors and cafes were aligned in a semi square around a large dirt parking area packed with Tuk-Tuks and taxis with their drivers laying in and around them...taking a breather from the hot sun amidst the trees and shaded vehicles. They would patiently await the return of their passengers...even hours!

Finishing off some rather good meat and vegetable soup and a couple of fairly cold cokes we started the hike to the top of the steep hill and the hidden waterfalls. Having heard about the pools, we were both wearing our swimming attire under our clothes...and laying in a cold mountain pool was going to be our reward for sweating our way to the top. After about a 20 minute walk we top the plateau and stood mesmerized for a few moments glaring at the surreal and quite unexpected sight of the roaring falls, the tree covered cliffs, and the wooden bridge over a clear blue pool. It was back to work as me and my Nikon climbed, squatted and made our way around, up and beyond the falls and pools in capturing this Mother natures hidden wonderland. Stunning and tranquil are the two best words that come to mind... and quite a few I probably couldn't spell. After what seemed like hours it was time to relax and stripping down to our suites we jumped in the water...was it cold...no...it was freezing...but I loved every shiver. Two hours in there was like a month in Iceland and the thrill of both were worth the chill. As the sun dropped its warming rays behind the mountain it was time to head back to our waiting driver and the 50 minute bone jarring ride to town and an early dinner.

The ride back was jut as amazing and the road was now lined with an endless flow of small children carrying even smaller children. Asking the driver to stop...we were instantly surrounded by these adorable lil kids with their smudged faces and tearful eyes...all holding out their hands...Believe me no one could resist digging in their pockets and I literally emptied mine and so did Dakota...but the more we gave...the more children appeared...was it magic...no...it was and is crippling poverty. Would I have adopted any? Every last one, but not to take them away...but to make sure they had a decent place to sleep and all the food their lil bellies could hold. Is there any reason on Earth that children should be so poor...not on your life!!! So when you are stuffing your face with junk food and turning up the volume on your Ipods and as you waste your youth playing violent video games...take a moment and realize...the world doesn't evolve the same for so many and wasting the lands resources is such a selfish lifestyle. The best thing we can do with our life...is to make someone else's better with compassion and generosity.

I was really thrilled to be traveling with Dakota again, but knew he couldn't stay with me for long. In that regard we continued our new adventurous challenge of exploring this mountainous region of northern Laos. We wandered the streets, alleyways and dusty roads in and out of the city for 7 days in total and on the 22nd of Feb. Dakota flew back to Hong Kong. I ended up staying in La Prabang for an additional 12 days... amazing experience with some of the world's most friendliest people and in the end I felt totally uneasy having to bid my new found friends farewell as I few away heading to yet another adventure in Vietnam.

And so my journey continued as I landed in the communist capital of Vietnam, Hanoi. Vietnam had always held a place in my mind and in my heart after learning so much about the US invasion and the long and bloodied struggle these sweet, but enduring people went through for close to 15 years. I was so anxious to learn everything I could and live among the people that my excitement was overwhelming. I really didn't expect to fall in love with this country, but after touring every village, city, beach and island from the far North to the southern border of Cambodia...that's exactly what happened. My wandering in Vietnam would end up bringing me a peace I haven't known for so many years and after 3 months I felt at last like I could call this stunningly welcoming country...home. Well at least for awhile, as the gypsy blood running through my veins would eventually push me onwards...as it always does! But that's another story.

The photos were shot in Feb. 07 and the review was written in it's entirety on May 22, 2007 by Michael Smith. This review is the sole property of Travelers Digest and may not be copied, posted, retained either mechanically or electronically, or used by anyone for any reason whatsoever without the written consent of Travelers Digest or Michael Smith.

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