L is for love.... L is for Laos.

For a country that does not have a lot of money, it is rich in so many ways. 1/3 of Laos lives on less than 1.25$ a day. I'm not sure how anyone could not fall madly in love with this beautiful little country. Arriving at the airport my body was instantly relaxed. I had no idea what I had in store but I felt it couldn't be anymore shocking than India and that was all I needed to know.
The airplane landed on a small strip lined by palmtrees and lush green forests, the sky was blue and the day warm, mountains in all directions. 
Excitement!!! 
Country number 3, and I had arrived (and in one piece besides my multiple illnesses acquired on Indian soil). The night of my arrival I'd meet with an old highschool friend, Kristi, which also adds to the excitement. 

The town of Luang Prabang is an absolutely beautiful segway into a fabulous country. It has a very French feel with it's red brick sidewalks, hanging lanterns in each shop for when the sun goes down, and bicycles are common with a few motorcycles in between. The streets are spotless. While walking for dinner I passed locals hosing and sweeping away any dirt and garbage from the day. 

Coming from the bustling streets of India it almost seems like a ghost town. It's hard to even see enough people to fill the cars parked along the streets. The people we do meet are friendly with beautiful smiles always saying " sabaidee" (hello) as travellers pass their shops. No one asks you to come in, pushes you to buy, or takes your photo. Small Laos restaurants with delicious  noodle soup, with all the fixings, were our way to start the day. The best soup I've ever had in my life has been in Laos. 

The night market is beautiful and so well organized and crafted so artistically. Showings of garments bright in colour, all hand made, wood carvings, jewellery and paintings. One alley is full of fresh cooked fish, chicken, pork, and buffets of Asian noodle dishes and salads. Crepe vendors and bakeries every 100 meters. There were many restaurants and probably any type of cuisine a visitor could have wanted. The town sits on the Mekong River which offers scenic peaceful sites.


One afternoon we hired a tuktuk, with an American couple, to take us to the Khaung Si waterfall. What a treat to chat with some travellers about their journeys through Asia. We drove approximately one hour outside of town through bumpy country roads past dusty villages and locals working in their lush green fields. I'm always in awe of the incredible work ethic of people tending to their crops in the heat of the day, with usually only a small pointed hat to keep the sun off of them. Through the mountains and farmlands we went. Arriving at the waterfall the first stop is an Asian bear sanctuary. This area is filled with bears that have been rescued from poachers which would surely lead to death otherwise. They appear similar to our island Black bears but have what looks almost like a lions mane of black hair around their necks. Some have a patch of white on their chests. They lay on logs and hammocks, some climbing what looks like a child's jungle gym. What a nice surprise to see them so happy and well taken care of.

Continuing on to the waterfall we found the scenery breathtaking. The water bright aqua blue with a white clay floor and many layers. The water was very cold but as we'd made such a long trek we took a dip anyways. Very refreshing.

While in Luang Prabang we spent our mornings and evenings practicing yoga on the side of the Mekong River, with a wonderful instructor named Julie. This was held on a platform at a restaurant called 'Utopia'. We also ate meals here at this funky zen styled restaurant which was very appealing to backpackers. The "chairs" were loungers with comfy cushions for laying or lounging while eating, the restaurant lit by candles and had no walls. 

One morning, early before the sun was up we set out to take part in the offerings to the local monks. We sat on wicker mats with rice and bananas we'd purchases from local Lao women. Many tourists came to watch and stood in the streets taking pictures as probably 100 monks walked along the street side to collect their offerings on the way to the temple. This was very neat to be part of. After the monks offering had finished we set off to the temple on the hill.

We walked up many steps to the temple; Phousi Stupa, which we were the only people here. Monks stood opposite us at the Buddhas foot but did not come near. We spent some time at the temple writing names of loved ones and enjoying the solitude in this experience. I've never been one to follow any religions but wishing wellness, health or guidance for loved ones in such a sacred place brings forward many emotions.

From Luang Prabang we travelled to Vang Vieng by bus which took 7 long hours down the winding mountainous roads. The town was not as quant as Luang Prabang but once we'd settled on a favourite restaurant with delicious noodle soup to start each day, we were on our way to loving it. We spent our first day on the river, tubing along with many other backpackers. Three bars lined the rivers with outdoor activities such as basketball and beach volleyball as well as many tanning/lounging platforms. We've heard this used to be a much busier and more dangerous activity in Vang Vieng but we were pleasantly surprised with how quiet the town was (minus our neighbour roosters). A kayaking and caving tour was definitely a highlight for me while In Laos. The tour started early morning our second day, walking through local farmers fields to a small river where we started with inner-tubing through a long narrow cave very low to the river. We pulled ourselves along a rope with only small headlamps for lights. The caves dipped low to the waters surface and sometimes tunnelled higher than I could see with a head lamp. Some sharp and some smooth. At times the river was shallow to the point we could walk. From here a delicious lunch of barbecued shishkabobs, fried rice and fresh baguettes, was served. The tour continued on the river near by, reached via tuktuk, and we started our 8km river kayaking. As I've only ever ocean kayaked, the rapids made for some nerve racking excitement. 

Our next morning we set out for a 14km trek to the Blue Lagoon. Most tourists rent bikes or take a tuktuk but starting early we thought we 'd escape the heat. We crossed the Mekong river and walked a red dirt road through smaller villages and small wooden huts that sat at the bottom of the mountains or sides of large farming fields. Small children and women weaving scarves as well as many dogs were on the properties scattered throughout the country side. In one creek sat a local man where he watched his water buffalo bathing in the waters. 

The blue lagoon was small and not as picturesque as we'd imagined but was a cool refreshing option for many travellers. We visited with friends from the day before and watched the braver few jump from higher limbs of the trees. Walking back to town was very hot, mid 30 degree, temperatures as it was early afternoon at this time. From Vang Vieng we took an afternoon bus with beautiful views which led us to the beautiful capital city Vientiane.

Vientiane had not had rave reviews in our research. Many recommendations said one day was enough, others only used it as a hub to fly to other tourist destinations. I found Vientiane to be a beautifully, artistic and quant city. There's much more than meets the eye. It was extremely quiet for a city and the people very friendly. We spent our evening strolling the night markets and our mornings at delicious cafés. Le Bennaton, recommended by fellow travellers, was definitely our most delicious meal in Vientiane. For less than 7$ we feasted on croissants, muffins, fruit salad, fresh vegetable salad/coleslaw, dill smoked salmon baguette and hands down the best ever, Luang Prabang sausage and bacon baguettes. We spent our evenings enjoying Laos cuisine on the riverside while seated on mats on the ground and enjoying the view of the Thailand lights.

The National Laos Museum is in an old building with creeky floor boards. Each area was designated to different time frames. There were many ancient artifacts from the Stone Age. In other areas there were photographs and antiques from the wars. It was a great, small, informative museum. From here we walked the city streets to reach the destination we'd most been waiting for, COPE. 

COPE, founded in 1997, is a non-profit organization that supplies prosthetics and rehabilitation for victims of UXOs. There exhibit is very interactive and informative from DVDs, documentaries, displays and interviews recorded of families of victims. This non-profit exhibit put so much history, and present, into perspective. 
Some facts that I didn't know and found essential were:

• Laos is the most heavily bombed country per capita.
•270 million is the amount of bombies dropped on Laos during the Vietnam War, 30% of which never detonated and remained in Laos post war. Leaving 25% of villages with UXO's still remaining in them.
• All 17 provinces in Laos are contaminated by UXOs.
• 580,000 is the number of bombing missions over Laos.
•More than 20,000 people have been killed or injured POST war by these UXOs, including:
- 13,500 lost a limb 
- 40% of this whole number are children
- To date, approximately 100 casualties in Laos per year are due to UXOs.

These incidences are not aggressive and most occur during daily activities. The majority occur while these people are searching for scrap metal/UXOs (to recycle for money) and tending to farming and crops.

"The most shocking statistic of all [is that] 98% of all recorded cluster bomb victims are civilians".

What a whirl wind and hugely educational experience I've had at COPE! 

Another great experience in Vientiane was eating at a restaurant called Makphet. The restaurant is founded through 'Friends-International' and works to educate street youth in Laos. The workers were all young women, who spoke no English, and worked very hard. They sell cookbooks and handmade goods which the proceeds run the educational programs held each afternoon which support the growth and skill of the former street youth. What a beautiful place and great cause. 

A final huge highlight of Laos, and Vientiane, was the amazing and bizarre, Buddha Park, also known as   Xieng Khuan. Luang Pu Bunleua Sulilat (a priest-shaman) initiated the park in 1958 with mixtures of Buddhism and Hinduism giving this park has a very unusual appearance. Over 200 stone statues stand tall and shadow each other, places around the area. As this park sits approximately 1 hour outside of the city, hiring a tuktuk seemed to be the best bet. About half way to the park, monk flagged down our tuktuk and hoped in. As we'd previously heard that monks could not talk to women, or even make eye contact, we certainly weren't going to be the first ones to say a word. A few minute in the young boy, 17, starts to make conversation to practice his English. There's in fact different types of monks and he'd not be reprimanded for having discussion with two females. He educated us on some ways of life as a monk, the dedication and years involved, the schooling, and lifestyle inside the temple. He continued to give us some assistance on arrival to buddha park as we didn't know what many of these statues meant. Buddha park is very surreal. If you've ever watched Across the Universe, or the new Alice In Wonderland, if you could imagine the animations merged, that's quite similar to the feel in the park. The statues were unlike anything I've ever seen.  Buddha park is perfect in it's own unusual way! 

While Laos can be considered less cultural than most places, and much less of a culture shock than most places, I thoroughly enjoyed the peace and solitude of this country. It has it's hidden gems and also so much beauty on the front lines. I can only speak to the north of Laos as I did not travel south of Vientiane, however I found the country to be somewhere I was longing to return before I'd even left. As a communist country and a landlocked country these two surely would leave the people in a vulnerable state at times, however to me the people appear strong, independent and happy which was such a beautiful way to experience Laos.

COPE:
www.copelaos.org

FRIENDS-INTERNATIONAL (Makphet):
http://friends-international.org