2025年5月8日星期四
2023年11月5日星期日
2023年9月17日星期日
2019年11月21日星期四
World Heritage Certificate for Plain of Jars
Laos Receives World Heritage Certificate for Plain of Jars
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee presented Laos with a certificate recognizing the World Heritage List designation of the Plain of Jars on Monday.
The Plain of Jars, situated on a plateau in Xieng Khuang Province, is named for the more than 2,100 tubular megalithic stone jars that are thought to have been used in the Iron Age for funeral practices.
Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara, with a special envoy of the Lao government, was presented with the award at the Forum of Ministers of Culture during the 40th session of the UNESCO General Conference held at the headquarters of UNESCO in Paris, France.
“We highly appreciate the role of UNESCO in fostering cultural diversity so that we can conserve and develop our own diverse and unique national culture and learn closely and constructively from each other,” said Prof. Dr. Bonsengkham Vondara when speaking at the certificate ceremony.
“In addition, our government is making a great effort to our heritage through tourism. By maintaining and opening up our cultural and historical sites, our aim is to grow and encourage cultural tourism, natural eco-tourism, and historical tourism.”
The Plain of Jars, formally called the Megalithic Jar Sites, was officially inscribed on the World Heritage List at a World Heritage Committee meeting held in Baku, Azerbaijan on July 10 this year, after submission in 2018.
Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara receives the Plain of Jars World Heritage Certificate in Paris, France.
The Plain of Jars is the third World Heritage Site in Laos. Luang Prabang, the former capital of Laos’s Lanexang Kingdom, was declared a World Heritage City in 1995, followed in 2001 by the site of Vat Phou in Champasack.
Xieng Khuang is situated 435 km north of Vientiane and is accessible by road or by air.
~Laotian Times~
The UNESCO World Heritage Committee presented Laos with a certificate recognizing the World Heritage List designation of the Plain of Jars on Monday.
The Plain of Jars, situated on a plateau in Xieng Khuang Province, is named for the more than 2,100 tubular megalithic stone jars that are thought to have been used in the Iron Age for funeral practices.
Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara, with a special envoy of the Lao government, was presented with the award at the Forum of Ministers of Culture during the 40th session of the UNESCO General Conference held at the headquarters of UNESCO in Paris, France.
“We highly appreciate the role of UNESCO in fostering cultural diversity so that we can conserve and develop our own diverse and unique national culture and learn closely and constructively from each other,” said Prof. Dr. Bonsengkham Vondara when speaking at the certificate ceremony.
“In addition, our government is making a great effort to our heritage through tourism. By maintaining and opening up our cultural and historical sites, our aim is to grow and encourage cultural tourism, natural eco-tourism, and historical tourism.”
The Plain of Jars, formally called the Megalithic Jar Sites, was officially inscribed on the World Heritage List at a World Heritage Committee meeting held in Baku, Azerbaijan on July 10 this year, after submission in 2018.
Prof. Dr. Bosengkham Vongdara receives the Plain of Jars World Heritage Certificate in Paris, France.
The Plain of Jars is the third World Heritage Site in Laos. Luang Prabang, the former capital of Laos’s Lanexang Kingdom, was declared a World Heritage City in 1995, followed in 2001 by the site of Vat Phou in Champasack.
Xieng Khuang is situated 435 km north of Vientiane and is accessible by road or by air.
~Laotian Times~
2019年4月10日星期三
2019年2月17日星期日
Sayabouly Elephant Festival
THE ELEPHANT FESTIVAL
Venue: Sayabouly Province
Duration: 20-27 February
As living icon with important symbolic connotations and historical association in Laos the elephants an animal dear to the heart of the Lao people.
The Elephant Festival is celebrated specifically in Xayabouly Province and is held to demonstrate culture and traditional ties between Lao communities and elephants, as well as drawing attention to the endangered status of this charismatic species.
The Elephant Festival is a free, all-ages event with activities including a majestic elephant procession with up to 100 elephants, a traditional elephant Baci ceremony, fruit and flower offerings, monks’ blessing, mahout and elephant show. In addition, there are live performance from Lao and foreign artist, a night market and outdoor elephant museum.
Visitors will have the opportunity to see documentary film on a large outdoor screen and enjoy live performance on the main stage or go for an elephant drive in the neighbouring forest.
Useful Link: http://festival.elefantasia.org
Venue: Sayabouly Province
Duration: 20-27 February
As living icon with important symbolic connotations and historical association in Laos the elephants an animal dear to the heart of the Lao people.
The Elephant Festival is celebrated specifically in Xayabouly Province and is held to demonstrate culture and traditional ties between Lao communities and elephants, as well as drawing attention to the endangered status of this charismatic species.
The Elephant Festival is a free, all-ages event with activities including a majestic elephant procession with up to 100 elephants, a traditional elephant Baci ceremony, fruit and flower offerings, monks’ blessing, mahout and elephant show. In addition, there are live performance from Lao and foreign artist, a night market and outdoor elephant museum.
Visitors will have the opportunity to see documentary film on a large outdoor screen and enjoy live performance on the main stage or go for an elephant drive in the neighbouring forest.
Useful Link: http://festival.elefantasia.org
2018年4月13日星期五
2017年4月13日星期四
2016年5月28日星期六
Tourist hordes put strain on Luang Prabang’s heritage
Tourist hordes put strain on Luang Prabang’s heritage
The enthusiasm of tourists for Luang Prabang’s heady charms has brought prosperity to the Lao town, but is the visitor influx damaging its cultural treasures?
The monks emerge shortly after six in the morning, smudges of flame in the predawn gloom. Alms bowls in hand, they walk silently through the town past Western-style cafés and restaurants. They pass boutique hotels with frangipani trees and soft white curtains covering the windows. Eventually, they turn onto Sisavangvong Road, Luang Prabang’s main drag, where a throng of tourists eagerly awaits.
Quick snap: tourists rush to take photographs of monks collecting alms in Luang Prabang. Photo: AP/David Longstreath
As the monks begin taking offerings from a line of Buddhist devotees, cameras are primed and the pack converges. One European man lights up the pavement with a huge flash on a tripod, filming monks as they step off a curb. Another walks up and down the line with a huge camera, pointing its black snout into the stream of saffron-clad novices and firing off machine-gun shutter-bursts.
For centuries, Luang Prabang’s monks have filed through these streets at dawn to collect alms from the local community. In more recent times, however, the morning ritual known as tak bat has ceded ground to another, noisier ritual – one of shutters and flashes and frenzied jostling for position along the crowded streets.
Each morning, tourism operators set up signs and tables, hawking coffee and overpriced sticky rice for tourists to ‘donate’ during the procession. Signs in six languages ask visitors to “respect the alms giving” and keep their distance from the monks, many of whom are novices, but these are routinely ignored.
For many, the tourist circus surrounding the tak bat encapsulates the negative side of a boom in visitors that has transformed the character of this Unesco-listed former royal capital. “It’s like a monkey troupe, it’s like a Disneyland,” says one prominent Laotian involved in cultural preservation efforts, who requested anonymity due to recent controversies over mass tourism and heritage issues. “We have [taken] action, we have made brochures, but I think it’s not enough.”
Luang Prabang’s old town, a temple-filled peninsula embraced by the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers, was once the capital of the Lan Xang kingdom, the fabled “Land of a Million Elephants”, and has remained the spiritual and religious centre of Laos in the centuries since.
Since being listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1995, the town has gone from an impoverished settlement with a stuttering electricity supply to one of Southeast Asia’s prized boutique travel destinations. In 2015, this town of 50,000 attracted more than 445,000 international visitors, according to provincial tourism authorities, an increase of more than 10% on the previous year.
That figure may soon rise further following the opening up of new international air routes to the city. In March, the cut-price carrier AirAsia commenced regular flights from Bangkok, and HK Express has announced that it will add a flight from Hong Kong. Two additional airlines are awaiting approval for direct flights, according to recent media reports.
Now, two decades on from Luang Prabang’s Unesco listing, a milestone the city marked with a lavish street parade in December, many wonder whether it can maintain its traditions under the intensifying pressures of mass tourism.
As early as 2004, Unesco noted in a report that tourism development had already put a “critical stress” on the town’s environmental and cultural resources. Without proper management, it warned, Luang Prabang could well become “another tourist town where soft-drink billboards dominate the landscape, where the sound of tour buses drowns out the soft temple prayers and where the town’s residents are reduced to the roles of bit-players in a cultural theme park.”
Steely eye: a tourist shops for souvenirs made of scrap metal from fragments of bombs and war material. Photo: EPA/Barbara Walton
This dystopian vision has yet to come to pass, but there’s no denying the transformative effects of the tourist dollar. Gabriel Kuperman, the founder and director of the Luang Prabang Film Festival, now into its seventh year, says one effect of the boom has been families selling their houses in the old town to be converted into guesthouses and hotels.
“On one hand, it’s a positive thing that those families benefitted from a major injection of funds into their households,” says Kuperman. “On the other hand, now that there are fewer and fewer Lao families living in the heart of Luang Prabang, a certain amount of charm has been lost.”
Indeed, pockets of Luang Prabang are akin to portals into a sort of transnational Asian tourist space – a generic zone of souvenir shops, cheap travellers’ cafés, and the sort of gimmicky exotica encapsulated by the sight, on one recent evening, of an orchestra entertaining a crowd of foreigners with a rendition of “Auld Lang Syne” played on traditional Lao instruments. “There’s a point where it sort of kills the local life,” says Andrea Vinsonneau, the director of EXO Travel in Laos.
Locals express satisfaction at the influx of cash that tourism has brought, but also worry that the character of the city and its people have changed. “Some is good, some is bad,” says Chanthanom Soulatda, the owner of Villa Ban Lakkam, a guesthouse on the banks of the Nam Khan river. “Luang Prabang people are very calm, but now they run to make business,” the 71-year-old adds, standing on the street outside the guesthouse, which stands on the site of her childhood home. “Before they walked slowly, but now they run.”
Despite the accretions of global tourist culture, Luang Prabang has generally adhered to Unesco’s regulations, which include bans on demolitions within the heritage zone and the use of pane glass on buildings. The town remains low-slung and quiet, characterised by a delicate blend of Lao urban architecture and French colonial forms.
The difficulty, says Montira Horayangura Unakul, a national programme officer at Unesco in Bangkok, is that Luang Prabang’s most valuable heritage extends beyond the physical buildings to include “intangible” cultural practices and traditions – like the tak bat ceremony – which are not officially listed by Unesco. “The living aspects of the site are the really indispensable part of what makes Luang Prabang so distinctive,” she says.
This explains local anger at the touristification of the alms-giving ceremony – the central part of a living Buddhist culture. Phonesavan Bilavarn, 70, a retired English teacher whose childhood home still stands just off Sisavangvong Road, is livid: “They use the flash,” she says, miming the ‘chk, chk, chk’ of the shutterbugs, “and very close to the monks.”
Of course, some argue that Unesco is itself to blame for the changes that happen to World Heritage Sites such as Luang Prabang. The Italian writer Marco d’Eramo has argued that whenever a city is listed by Unesco, it “dies out, becoming the stuff of taxidermy, a mausoleum with dormitory suburbs attached”. Has World Heritage status saved Luang Prabang, only to rob it of its soul?
Rik Ponne, a former Unesco staffer and advisor to the Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, says that such views oversimplify the complex challenge of balancing economic growth with cultural preservation. Taking a fundamentalist view on heritage issues, he argues, runs the risk of romanticising the poverty that allowed Luang Prabang to remain so “untouched” for so many decades.
The devoted: a young boy places sticky rice into a monk’s bowl. Photo: EPA/Barbara Walton
On the whole, Unakul says that in response to past criticisms from the World Heritage Committee, the Lao authorities have been “very proactive” in taking action to address its concerns and extending the development buffer zone around the old town. One of the current strategies for handling rising visitor numbers is to draw visitors away from the old town by promoting attractions further afield. “It’s definitely an issue that’s on a lot of people’s minds, and an issue that’s getting attention,” she says.
Vinsonneau, who has been living and working in Luang Prabang since 2000, says tourism operators also have a duty to educate their clients. EXO Travel provides each of its visitors with a handbook instructing them how to dress appropriately, how to interact with monks and how to behave during cultural events.
But she says that despite all the negative effects of mass tourism, the death of Luang Prabang’s soul has been greatly exaggerated, at least when compared with some of the other tourist hotspots of Southeast Asia.
“There’s still an incredible ambience,” Vinsonneau says of the town. “It’s good to remind people it could be much worse than this. It could be better, but it could be much worse.”
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
The enthusiasm of tourists for Luang Prabang’s heady charms has brought prosperity to the Lao town, but is the visitor influx damaging its cultural treasures?
The monks emerge shortly after six in the morning, smudges of flame in the predawn gloom. Alms bowls in hand, they walk silently through the town past Western-style cafés and restaurants. They pass boutique hotels with frangipani trees and soft white curtains covering the windows. Eventually, they turn onto Sisavangvong Road, Luang Prabang’s main drag, where a throng of tourists eagerly awaits.
Quick snap: tourists rush to take photographs of monks collecting alms in Luang Prabang. Photo: AP/David Longstreath
As the monks begin taking offerings from a line of Buddhist devotees, cameras are primed and the pack converges. One European man lights up the pavement with a huge flash on a tripod, filming monks as they step off a curb. Another walks up and down the line with a huge camera, pointing its black snout into the stream of saffron-clad novices and firing off machine-gun shutter-bursts.
For centuries, Luang Prabang’s monks have filed through these streets at dawn to collect alms from the local community. In more recent times, however, the morning ritual known as tak bat has ceded ground to another, noisier ritual – one of shutters and flashes and frenzied jostling for position along the crowded streets.
Each morning, tourism operators set up signs and tables, hawking coffee and overpriced sticky rice for tourists to ‘donate’ during the procession. Signs in six languages ask visitors to “respect the alms giving” and keep their distance from the monks, many of whom are novices, but these are routinely ignored.
For many, the tourist circus surrounding the tak bat encapsulates the negative side of a boom in visitors that has transformed the character of this Unesco-listed former royal capital. “It’s like a monkey troupe, it’s like a Disneyland,” says one prominent Laotian involved in cultural preservation efforts, who requested anonymity due to recent controversies over mass tourism and heritage issues. “We have [taken] action, we have made brochures, but I think it’s not enough.”
Luang Prabang’s old town, a temple-filled peninsula embraced by the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers, was once the capital of the Lan Xang kingdom, the fabled “Land of a Million Elephants”, and has remained the spiritual and religious centre of Laos in the centuries since.
Since being listed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 1995, the town has gone from an impoverished settlement with a stuttering electricity supply to one of Southeast Asia’s prized boutique travel destinations. In 2015, this town of 50,000 attracted more than 445,000 international visitors, according to provincial tourism authorities, an increase of more than 10% on the previous year.
That figure may soon rise further following the opening up of new international air routes to the city. In March, the cut-price carrier AirAsia commenced regular flights from Bangkok, and HK Express has announced that it will add a flight from Hong Kong. Two additional airlines are awaiting approval for direct flights, according to recent media reports.
Now, two decades on from Luang Prabang’s Unesco listing, a milestone the city marked with a lavish street parade in December, many wonder whether it can maintain its traditions under the intensifying pressures of mass tourism.
As early as 2004, Unesco noted in a report that tourism development had already put a “critical stress” on the town’s environmental and cultural resources. Without proper management, it warned, Luang Prabang could well become “another tourist town where soft-drink billboards dominate the landscape, where the sound of tour buses drowns out the soft temple prayers and where the town’s residents are reduced to the roles of bit-players in a cultural theme park.”
Steely eye: a tourist shops for souvenirs made of scrap metal from fragments of bombs and war material. Photo: EPA/Barbara Walton
This dystopian vision has yet to come to pass, but there’s no denying the transformative effects of the tourist dollar. Gabriel Kuperman, the founder and director of the Luang Prabang Film Festival, now into its seventh year, says one effect of the boom has been families selling their houses in the old town to be converted into guesthouses and hotels.
“On one hand, it’s a positive thing that those families benefitted from a major injection of funds into their households,” says Kuperman. “On the other hand, now that there are fewer and fewer Lao families living in the heart of Luang Prabang, a certain amount of charm has been lost.”
Indeed, pockets of Luang Prabang are akin to portals into a sort of transnational Asian tourist space – a generic zone of souvenir shops, cheap travellers’ cafés, and the sort of gimmicky exotica encapsulated by the sight, on one recent evening, of an orchestra entertaining a crowd of foreigners with a rendition of “Auld Lang Syne” played on traditional Lao instruments. “There’s a point where it sort of kills the local life,” says Andrea Vinsonneau, the director of EXO Travel in Laos.
Locals express satisfaction at the influx of cash that tourism has brought, but also worry that the character of the city and its people have changed. “Some is good, some is bad,” says Chanthanom Soulatda, the owner of Villa Ban Lakkam, a guesthouse on the banks of the Nam Khan river. “Luang Prabang people are very calm, but now they run to make business,” the 71-year-old adds, standing on the street outside the guesthouse, which stands on the site of her childhood home. “Before they walked slowly, but now they run.”
Despite the accretions of global tourist culture, Luang Prabang has generally adhered to Unesco’s regulations, which include bans on demolitions within the heritage zone and the use of pane glass on buildings. The town remains low-slung and quiet, characterised by a delicate blend of Lao urban architecture and French colonial forms.
The difficulty, says Montira Horayangura Unakul, a national programme officer at Unesco in Bangkok, is that Luang Prabang’s most valuable heritage extends beyond the physical buildings to include “intangible” cultural practices and traditions – like the tak bat ceremony – which are not officially listed by Unesco. “The living aspects of the site are the really indispensable part of what makes Luang Prabang so distinctive,” she says.
This explains local anger at the touristification of the alms-giving ceremony – the central part of a living Buddhist culture. Phonesavan Bilavarn, 70, a retired English teacher whose childhood home still stands just off Sisavangvong Road, is livid: “They use the flash,” she says, miming the ‘chk, chk, chk’ of the shutterbugs, “and very close to the monks.”
Of course, some argue that Unesco is itself to blame for the changes that happen to World Heritage Sites such as Luang Prabang. The Italian writer Marco d’Eramo has argued that whenever a city is listed by Unesco, it “dies out, becoming the stuff of taxidermy, a mausoleum with dormitory suburbs attached”. Has World Heritage status saved Luang Prabang, only to rob it of its soul?
Rik Ponne, a former Unesco staffer and advisor to the Lao Ministry of Information, Culture and Tourism, says that such views oversimplify the complex challenge of balancing economic growth with cultural preservation. Taking a fundamentalist view on heritage issues, he argues, runs the risk of romanticising the poverty that allowed Luang Prabang to remain so “untouched” for so many decades.
The devoted: a young boy places sticky rice into a monk’s bowl. Photo: EPA/Barbara Walton
On the whole, Unakul says that in response to past criticisms from the World Heritage Committee, the Lao authorities have been “very proactive” in taking action to address its concerns and extending the development buffer zone around the old town. One of the current strategies for handling rising visitor numbers is to draw visitors away from the old town by promoting attractions further afield. “It’s definitely an issue that’s on a lot of people’s minds, and an issue that’s getting attention,” she says.
Vinsonneau, who has been living and working in Luang Prabang since 2000, says tourism operators also have a duty to educate their clients. EXO Travel provides each of its visitors with a handbook instructing them how to dress appropriately, how to interact with monks and how to behave during cultural events.
But she says that despite all the negative effects of mass tourism, the death of Luang Prabang’s soul has been greatly exaggerated, at least when compared with some of the other tourist hotspots of Southeast Asia.
“There’s still an incredible ambience,” Vinsonneau says of the town. “It’s good to remind people it could be much worse than this. It could be better, but it could be much worse.”
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
2016年5月13日星期五
Life in the slow lane - Luang Prabang
Life in the slow lane
How to spend 36 hours in Luang Prabang and still see everything without rushing
Amidst the breakneck pace of the surrounding region, Unesco-protected Luang Prabang is a haven for anyone wanting to escape a hectic lifestyle and discover the art of slow living. Dotted by faded villas and gilded temples, Luang Prabang, the ancient royal capital of the Lan Xang Kingdom, is the heart and soul of Laotian culture. The small town, where most locals are asleep by 11, is a fusion of traditional Lao architecture and the villas built by the European colonial authorities in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Sitting at the confluence of the Mekong and Khan rivers, Luang Prabang promises to wreck any tightly planned itinerary thanks to a way of life that allows residents and visitors to soak in the luxury of time.
FRIDAY
Dinner under the mango tree: 7pm
3 Nagas, a charming boutique hotel in the centre of Luang Prabang, is home to the award-winning "Best Lao Restaurant" in Luang Prabang. If there is no rain, dine outdoors under the huge mango tree and savour the beauty of the three restored historical houses. The restaurant serves one of the best Salad Pak Nam (watercress salad) in Luang Prabang. Another snack not to be missed while in Laos is river weed or kai with jaew bong, a sweet-and-spicy chilli paste made with chilli, galangal and water-buffalo skin.
Time to bargain: 9pm
Luang Prabang Night Market runs from 5 to 11. The street is closed off to vehicles from Sisavangvong Road to Settathilat Road in the town centre. The contrast between the sea of colourful knock-down stalls and the glittering backdrop of Haw Pha Bang and the Royal Palace Museum came as a shock to this visitor, who remembers a much more laid-back night stroll through a handful of vendors just 10 short years ago. The entire street is filled with vendors selling embroidered bags and purses, T-shirts, silk, cotton pants and shirts and paper lanterns. If walking and bargaining re-ignite your appetite, then head to the Night Food Market down the narrow lane at Settathilat Road where you'll find noodles, snacks, juice and the famous Beer Lao.
SATURDAY
Giving alms to monks: 6am
Giving sticky rice alms to hundreds of monks from more than 30 temples in Luang Prabang is a fascinating experience that shouldn't be missed, no matter what religion you may adhere to. Once the monks go back to their temples, the locals will take other dishes to eat with the rice to the temple so do not put any other comestibles than sticky rice in the bowl. Long sleeves worn with trousers or long skirts are recommended for all alms givers.
Coffee coffee coffee: 7am
Introduced by French colonialists in the early twentieth century, coffee has secured its place as the country's most famous drink and is also its largest agricultural export commodity. Pasaneyom Coffee Shop is one of the best places to enjoy an authentic Lao coffee, with a baguette (khao ji) or rice congee with youtiao (pah thong ko). If you prefer a more Western breakfast, check out Joma Bakery Cafe or Le Café Ban Vat Sene and enjoy your coffee while watching the world pass by.
Laotian whiskey and Pak Ou Cave: 9am
Ban Xang Hai or Whiskey Village, 29 km north of Luang Prabang, is a common stop on the boat ride to Pak Ou Cave and is just 30 minutes away by car. Laotian whiskey, or Lao Lao as it's known locally, is traditionally used in important blessing ceremonies and to greet visitors, so don't be surprised to be offered a shot of Laotian whiskey (or a jar with drinking straws to share!) as a welcome drink. Whiskeys bottled with snakes or scorpions, believed to have some medicinal benefits, are not for the faint-hearted. Taking a boat from Ban Xang Hai to Pak Ou Cave, a spot also known as Tham Ting, is a great way of recovering from the Laotian whiskey tasting. Tham Ting is a pair of centuries-old caves that are home to hundreds of small wooden Buddha images brought there by the boatmen for good luck.
Strolling or cycling, your choice: 1pm
With all the charm of a European town infused with the spirit of Asia, Luang Prabang is best discovered with a walk about town. A bicycle ride will speed up the travel time, giving more chances to visit attractions but less opportunity to enjoy the slow pace of the town.
> Places not to be missed are Wat Xiang Thong, Wat Wisunalat and the Royal Palace Museum.
Founded in 1560 by King Settathilat, Wat Xiang Thong, which sits alongside the river, is the finest example of Lao monastic architecture. The highlight is the Sim - the congregation hall - with its low, sweeping, three-tiered roof.
The original wood structure of Wat Wisunalat, alternatively known as Wat Visoun, was destroyed by the Black Flag invaders, but the That Makmo - the "watermelon stupa" - was rebuilt in the late 1920s.
The Royal Palace Museum or Golden Hall was built in 1904, when the French ran the country. A blend of European and Lao designs, the museum was the home of Sisavangvong, the last king of Laos, until his death in 1959. Haw Pha Bang or Royal Palace Chapel, located at the northeast corner of the Royal Palace Museum, houses Prabang, a golden Buddhist statue after which the town is named.
Sunset at Phu Si: 5am
Wat Phu Si or Pra That Phu Si is opposite the Royal Palace Museum, on the hill in the heart of Luang Prabang. The walk up, 328 steps, isn't easy, but is supposed to signify a test of faith. The summit offers some wonderful city views.
SUNDAY
Morning market: 6am
Don't miss the morning market in a web of alleys off Sisavangvong Road. You will find fresh vegetables, fruits, river weeds, buffalo skin, huge river fish, live and dead chickens (still with their feathers), beehives and honey bees, barbecued paddy mouse, snakes, bats and other, not always recognisable, produce spread out on bamboo mats on the sidewalk for good prices.
Ock Pop Tok: 10AM
Choose your favourite silk or learn how to weave your own fabric at Ock Pop Tok Living Crafts Centre, a place where weavers, spinners and batik makers produce top-quality fabrics. A tour of the centre gives a superb insight into silk production and dye making. Lunch at the centre's river-view cafe or try a cup of the pleasant silk-worm droppings tea.
IF YOU GO
ThaiAirAsia operates a daily flight between Bangkok's Don Mueang and Luang Prabang.
~News courtesy of The Nation~
How to spend 36 hours in Luang Prabang and still see everything without rushing
Amidst the breakneck pace of the surrounding region, Unesco-protected Luang Prabang is a haven for anyone wanting to escape a hectic lifestyle and discover the art of slow living. Dotted by faded villas and gilded temples, Luang Prabang, the ancient royal capital of the Lan Xang Kingdom, is the heart and soul of Laotian culture. The small town, where most locals are asleep by 11, is a fusion of traditional Lao architecture and the villas built by the European colonial authorities in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Sitting at the confluence of the Mekong and Khan rivers, Luang Prabang promises to wreck any tightly planned itinerary thanks to a way of life that allows residents and visitors to soak in the luxury of time.
FRIDAY
Dinner under the mango tree: 7pm
3 Nagas, a charming boutique hotel in the centre of Luang Prabang, is home to the award-winning "Best Lao Restaurant" in Luang Prabang. If there is no rain, dine outdoors under the huge mango tree and savour the beauty of the three restored historical houses. The restaurant serves one of the best Salad Pak Nam (watercress salad) in Luang Prabang. Another snack not to be missed while in Laos is river weed or kai with jaew bong, a sweet-and-spicy chilli paste made with chilli, galangal and water-buffalo skin.
Time to bargain: 9pm
Luang Prabang Night Market runs from 5 to 11. The street is closed off to vehicles from Sisavangvong Road to Settathilat Road in the town centre. The contrast between the sea of colourful knock-down stalls and the glittering backdrop of Haw Pha Bang and the Royal Palace Museum came as a shock to this visitor, who remembers a much more laid-back night stroll through a handful of vendors just 10 short years ago. The entire street is filled with vendors selling embroidered bags and purses, T-shirts, silk, cotton pants and shirts and paper lanterns. If walking and bargaining re-ignite your appetite, then head to the Night Food Market down the narrow lane at Settathilat Road where you'll find noodles, snacks, juice and the famous Beer Lao.
SATURDAY
Giving alms to monks: 6am
Giving sticky rice alms to hundreds of monks from more than 30 temples in Luang Prabang is a fascinating experience that shouldn't be missed, no matter what religion you may adhere to. Once the monks go back to their temples, the locals will take other dishes to eat with the rice to the temple so do not put any other comestibles than sticky rice in the bowl. Long sleeves worn with trousers or long skirts are recommended for all alms givers.
Coffee coffee coffee: 7am
Introduced by French colonialists in the early twentieth century, coffee has secured its place as the country's most famous drink and is also its largest agricultural export commodity. Pasaneyom Coffee Shop is one of the best places to enjoy an authentic Lao coffee, with a baguette (khao ji) or rice congee with youtiao (pah thong ko). If you prefer a more Western breakfast, check out Joma Bakery Cafe or Le Café Ban Vat Sene and enjoy your coffee while watching the world pass by.
Laotian whiskey and Pak Ou Cave: 9am
Ban Xang Hai or Whiskey Village, 29 km north of Luang Prabang, is a common stop on the boat ride to Pak Ou Cave and is just 30 minutes away by car. Laotian whiskey, or Lao Lao as it's known locally, is traditionally used in important blessing ceremonies and to greet visitors, so don't be surprised to be offered a shot of Laotian whiskey (or a jar with drinking straws to share!) as a welcome drink. Whiskeys bottled with snakes or scorpions, believed to have some medicinal benefits, are not for the faint-hearted. Taking a boat from Ban Xang Hai to Pak Ou Cave, a spot also known as Tham Ting, is a great way of recovering from the Laotian whiskey tasting. Tham Ting is a pair of centuries-old caves that are home to hundreds of small wooden Buddha images brought there by the boatmen for good luck.
Strolling or cycling, your choice: 1pm
With all the charm of a European town infused with the spirit of Asia, Luang Prabang is best discovered with a walk about town. A bicycle ride will speed up the travel time, giving more chances to visit attractions but less opportunity to enjoy the slow pace of the town.
> Places not to be missed are Wat Xiang Thong, Wat Wisunalat and the Royal Palace Museum.
Founded in 1560 by King Settathilat, Wat Xiang Thong, which sits alongside the river, is the finest example of Lao monastic architecture. The highlight is the Sim - the congregation hall - with its low, sweeping, three-tiered roof.
The original wood structure of Wat Wisunalat, alternatively known as Wat Visoun, was destroyed by the Black Flag invaders, but the That Makmo - the "watermelon stupa" - was rebuilt in the late 1920s.
The Royal Palace Museum or Golden Hall was built in 1904, when the French ran the country. A blend of European and Lao designs, the museum was the home of Sisavangvong, the last king of Laos, until his death in 1959. Haw Pha Bang or Royal Palace Chapel, located at the northeast corner of the Royal Palace Museum, houses Prabang, a golden Buddhist statue after which the town is named.
Sunset at Phu Si: 5am
Wat Phu Si or Pra That Phu Si is opposite the Royal Palace Museum, on the hill in the heart of Luang Prabang. The walk up, 328 steps, isn't easy, but is supposed to signify a test of faith. The summit offers some wonderful city views.
SUNDAY
Morning market: 6am
Don't miss the morning market in a web of alleys off Sisavangvong Road. You will find fresh vegetables, fruits, river weeds, buffalo skin, huge river fish, live and dead chickens (still with their feathers), beehives and honey bees, barbecued paddy mouse, snakes, bats and other, not always recognisable, produce spread out on bamboo mats on the sidewalk for good prices.
Ock Pop Tok: 10AM
Choose your favourite silk or learn how to weave your own fabric at Ock Pop Tok Living Crafts Centre, a place where weavers, spinners and batik makers produce top-quality fabrics. A tour of the centre gives a superb insight into silk production and dye making. Lunch at the centre's river-view cafe or try a cup of the pleasant silk-worm droppings tea.
IF YOU GO
ThaiAirAsia operates a daily flight between Bangkok's Don Mueang and Luang Prabang.
~News courtesy of The Nation~
2016年4月12日星期二
2016年4月9日星期六
Sand sculptures help mark Pi Mai Lao
Sand sculptures help mark Pi Mai Lao
Sand sculptures on Don Chan Beach near the Mekong River in Vientiane are nearing completion for annual Pi Mai Lao celebrations from April 13-16 with authorities expecting large crowds.
An elephant sand sculpture taking shape for Pi Mai Lao celebrations.
Contractor MsRatsadapornBusadee told Vientiane Times on Tuesday that the sand sculpting project commenced on March 8 and will be completed by this Sunday.
This year's theme is the AEC and Laos chairing Asean with artists from Laos and Thailand working together to create the sand sculptures on the Mekong River beach.
“This time there will be 15 sand sculptures focusing on the symbols of the 10 countries in Asean, especially the symbols of Laos such as the elephant and That Luangstupa,” MsRatsadaporn said.
“Last year almost 100,000 visitors saw the sand sculptures on Don Chan Beach and this time we expect even more visitors than last year,” she said.
Admission to the sand sculpture area is 10,000 kip per person with children aged under five free of charge.
During Pi Mai Lao celebrations the riverside area will host many activities such as beach football and volleyball, boxing, traditional fashion shows, concerts and stalls selling an enticing array of goods.
According to the Vientiane authority, there would be a special water pouring ceremony for older people and visitors in the area of Vat Chan up to the beach alongside Khounta village in Sikhottabong district.
This year marks the 450th anniversary of the building of Vat That Luang, which would be reflected in the festivities.
However, people from other provinces around the country will also be enjoying Pi Mai Lao, especially traditional activities such as pouring water over Buddha images.
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
Sand sculptures on Don Chan Beach near the Mekong River in Vientiane are nearing completion for annual Pi Mai Lao celebrations from April 13-16 with authorities expecting large crowds.
An elephant sand sculpture taking shape for Pi Mai Lao celebrations.
Contractor MsRatsadapornBusadee told Vientiane Times on Tuesday that the sand sculpting project commenced on March 8 and will be completed by this Sunday.
This year's theme is the AEC and Laos chairing Asean with artists from Laos and Thailand working together to create the sand sculptures on the Mekong River beach.
“This time there will be 15 sand sculptures focusing on the symbols of the 10 countries in Asean, especially the symbols of Laos such as the elephant and That Luangstupa,” MsRatsadaporn said.
“Last year almost 100,000 visitors saw the sand sculptures on Don Chan Beach and this time we expect even more visitors than last year,” she said.
Admission to the sand sculpture area is 10,000 kip per person with children aged under five free of charge.
During Pi Mai Lao celebrations the riverside area will host many activities such as beach football and volleyball, boxing, traditional fashion shows, concerts and stalls selling an enticing array of goods.
According to the Vientiane authority, there would be a special water pouring ceremony for older people and visitors in the area of Vat Chan up to the beach alongside Khounta village in Sikhottabong district.
This year marks the 450th anniversary of the building of Vat That Luang, which would be reflected in the festivities.
However, people from other provinces around the country will also be enjoying Pi Mai Lao, especially traditional activities such as pouring water over Buddha images.
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
2016年1月14日星期四
2015年6月22日星期一
Kongbouat Festival
Kongbouat Festival
Respectful senior monks and newly ordained monks step over silk sashes placed by merit makers for the monks to step on after they walk from a Naga boat, which is where people pour water over them to wash away any bad spirits. This is the central feature of the Kongbouat festival.
Merit makers at this festival including young and old men and women who sit in a long line from a point close to the Naga boat until the grounds of the sanctuary. Some middle-aged men lay on the ground for the monks to step over their backs, believing the monks will cure their backache.
A Baci ceremony for a newly ordained monk.
Merit makers take part in the ordination rituals at the temple and a large group of them invite respectful monks and newly ordained monks to step over their silk sashes, but it's unlikely that most of them know the meaning of this custom.
Venerable Keo, a senior monk at Sisavangvong temple in Xayaboury district, Xayaboury province, said merit makers offer sashes to respectful monks and newly ordained monks to step over as a sign of respect and to offer their congratulation to monks who are promoted to a new position and have contributed to Buddhist organisations.
This ritual is in evidence as part of merit making during the Konghote and Kongbouat festivals. When these festivals are observed either in a temple or in someone's home, the organisers and the monks will decorate a Naga boat while the pathway from the boat to the main worship hall will be adorned with leafy banana stems, sugar cane plants and flowers.
According to Venerable Keo, who is on the temple committee, the Konghote and Kongbouat festivals are held at an appropriate time of the year. This depends on the time that is convenient for those involved, as well as their financial circumstances. There is no limit to the number of festivals that may be held. A large number of people may hold nine Konghote festivals and one Kongbouat jointly. Some people will arrange two or one Konghote and Kongbouat festivals.
Venerable Keo said there are various reasons for holding the Kongbouat festival. Some people do it to ordain a son so that he can study Dharma in the temple and pay tribute to his parents, while others want to pay homage to their deceased parents and other relatives. Elderly people use the occasion as a merit-making ritual as they believe the offerings will support them in the next life.
People who arrange a Kongbouat festival are aged over 40. It is considered unacceptable for people under 40 to host the festival because it means they will receive their offerings early and will therefore have a short life.
The festivals last for two days. On the first day the offerings are prepared and on the second day there is an almsgiving ceremony in the early morning and laypeople take on the role of Nagas to protect the newly ordained monks. Merit makers and guests form a procession with the four Nagas and offerings and walk to the temple after the almsgiving ceremony.
On the first day, friends, relatives and other invited guests come to make merit with the festival organisers and give them money, flowers and milled sticky rice in a bowl. In return, the hosts invite the guests to have lunch and dinner and also give them a bag of snacks. Some guests place offerings in the monks' bags and bowls. On the evening of the first day, a group of musicians plays traditional music and sings folksongs to entertain the guests.
The second day of merit-making sees the giving of alms, the conversion of people into four Naga and the procession carrying offerings to the temple. When the procession reaches the temple, respectful monks, elderly people, merit makers and the musicians walk three times around the shrine to pay their respects to Lord Buddha.
As the troupe of musicians plays their instruments and sings, participants cheer them to spur them on and create a joyful atmosphere. The merit-makers carry their offerings, comprising a bed, mattress, robes, household utensils and markbeng (a pyramid made of banana leaves, gold paper, flowers, and silver and golden trees hung with kip notes).
After the merit-makers have processed three times around the shrine, the monks begin the religious rituals in the main worship hall to ordain new monks and novices and present offerings.
After the ceremony, the monks who are to be newly ordained, ordained as senior monks or elevated to a higher rank will have water poured over them inside the Naga boat. The merit-makers do this in order to wash away any bad spirits.
The newly ordained monks carry bags and alms bowls from the Naga boat to the main worship hall. Some monks throw sacred water over the participants while some merit-makers throw money mixed with candy, milled sticky rice and flowers.
Merit-makers then invite monks from other temples and the organisers of the Kongbouat festival to take part in a Baci ceremony for the newly ordained monk. The hosts of the festival offer a bowl containing pieces of silver and golden swords to the monk.
Venerable Keo said these items are considered to be a show of support for the monk. The monk is not allowed to sell them, but may give them to someone he holds dear.
There is no limit to the weight of the silver and golden swords given to the monk. The amount given depends on the festival organiser.
The Konghote and Kongbouat festivals are similar, but the Konghote doesn't involve the presentation of pieces of silver and golden swords.
Invited guests and all laypeople taking part in the merit-making, both at home and in the temple, will wear modest clothing. Women of course wear a sinh (long skirt) and blouse, while men wear trousers.
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
Respectful senior monks and newly ordained monks step over silk sashes placed by merit makers for the monks to step on after they walk from a Naga boat, which is where people pour water over them to wash away any bad spirits. This is the central feature of the Kongbouat festival.
Merit makers at this festival including young and old men and women who sit in a long line from a point close to the Naga boat until the grounds of the sanctuary. Some middle-aged men lay on the ground for the monks to step over their backs, believing the monks will cure their backache.
A Baci ceremony for a newly ordained monk.
Merit makers take part in the ordination rituals at the temple and a large group of them invite respectful monks and newly ordained monks to step over their silk sashes, but it's unlikely that most of them know the meaning of this custom.
Venerable Keo, a senior monk at Sisavangvong temple in Xayaboury district, Xayaboury province, said merit makers offer sashes to respectful monks and newly ordained monks to step over as a sign of respect and to offer their congratulation to monks who are promoted to a new position and have contributed to Buddhist organisations.
This ritual is in evidence as part of merit making during the Konghote and Kongbouat festivals. When these festivals are observed either in a temple or in someone's home, the organisers and the monks will decorate a Naga boat while the pathway from the boat to the main worship hall will be adorned with leafy banana stems, sugar cane plants and flowers.
According to Venerable Keo, who is on the temple committee, the Konghote and Kongbouat festivals are held at an appropriate time of the year. This depends on the time that is convenient for those involved, as well as their financial circumstances. There is no limit to the number of festivals that may be held. A large number of people may hold nine Konghote festivals and one Kongbouat jointly. Some people will arrange two or one Konghote and Kongbouat festivals.
Venerable Keo said there are various reasons for holding the Kongbouat festival. Some people do it to ordain a son so that he can study Dharma in the temple and pay tribute to his parents, while others want to pay homage to their deceased parents and other relatives. Elderly people use the occasion as a merit-making ritual as they believe the offerings will support them in the next life.
People who arrange a Kongbouat festival are aged over 40. It is considered unacceptable for people under 40 to host the festival because it means they will receive their offerings early and will therefore have a short life.
The festivals last for two days. On the first day the offerings are prepared and on the second day there is an almsgiving ceremony in the early morning and laypeople take on the role of Nagas to protect the newly ordained monks. Merit makers and guests form a procession with the four Nagas and offerings and walk to the temple after the almsgiving ceremony.
On the first day, friends, relatives and other invited guests come to make merit with the festival organisers and give them money, flowers and milled sticky rice in a bowl. In return, the hosts invite the guests to have lunch and dinner and also give them a bag of snacks. Some guests place offerings in the monks' bags and bowls. On the evening of the first day, a group of musicians plays traditional music and sings folksongs to entertain the guests.
The second day of merit-making sees the giving of alms, the conversion of people into four Naga and the procession carrying offerings to the temple. When the procession reaches the temple, respectful monks, elderly people, merit makers and the musicians walk three times around the shrine to pay their respects to Lord Buddha.
As the troupe of musicians plays their instruments and sings, participants cheer them to spur them on and create a joyful atmosphere. The merit-makers carry their offerings, comprising a bed, mattress, robes, household utensils and markbeng (a pyramid made of banana leaves, gold paper, flowers, and silver and golden trees hung with kip notes).
After the merit-makers have processed three times around the shrine, the monks begin the religious rituals in the main worship hall to ordain new monks and novices and present offerings.
After the ceremony, the monks who are to be newly ordained, ordained as senior monks or elevated to a higher rank will have water poured over them inside the Naga boat. The merit-makers do this in order to wash away any bad spirits.
The newly ordained monks carry bags and alms bowls from the Naga boat to the main worship hall. Some monks throw sacred water over the participants while some merit-makers throw money mixed with candy, milled sticky rice and flowers.
Merit-makers then invite monks from other temples and the organisers of the Kongbouat festival to take part in a Baci ceremony for the newly ordained monk. The hosts of the festival offer a bowl containing pieces of silver and golden swords to the monk.
Venerable Keo said these items are considered to be a show of support for the monk. The monk is not allowed to sell them, but may give them to someone he holds dear.
There is no limit to the weight of the silver and golden swords given to the monk. The amount given depends on the festival organiser.
The Konghote and Kongbouat festivals are similar, but the Konghote doesn't involve the presentation of pieces of silver and golden swords.
Invited guests and all laypeople taking part in the merit-making, both at home and in the temple, will wear modest clothing. Women of course wear a sinh (long skirt) and blouse, while men wear trousers.
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
2015年5月3日星期日
Renovated museum receives crowning glory
Renovated museum receives crowning glory
President Choummaly Sayasone and his wife on Saturday led a ceremony that saw 17 golden gable finials placed atop the renovated Hor Pha Keo Museum in Vientiane.
The restoration of the museum, one of the capital's most visited landmarks, is fully on track since beginning in December, although further public donations are needed to continue the work.
President Choummaly Sayasone holds a rope while the finials are placed on the roof of the Hor Phra Keo Museum in Vientiane. --Photo Khamphanh
Speaking at the ceremony, which was attended by senior government officials, Vice Mayor of Vientiane Mr Saithong Keoduangdy said the restoration of the Hor Pha Keo Museum was important for Lao people because it sustained their fine traditions and culture.
“All Lao people are encouraged to contribute by making donations for the improvement of one of Vientiane's most important cultural sites,” he said.
The restoration of Hor Pha Keo is the third improvement project since the structure was first built in 1565 during the reign of King Setthathirath.
“The project is slated for completion by the end of this year,” Mr Saithong said.
The ceremony to place the ornamental gable finials in position began with a religious ceremony led by the President of the Lao Buddhist Fellowship, the Most Venerable Phong Samaleuk, and other senior monks from Vientiane temples.
This was followed by a parade of the gable finials around the museum three times, led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Sports Dr Phankham Viphavanh, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Prof. Dr Bosengkham Vongdara, Mayor of Vientiane Dr Sinlavong Khoutphaythoune, deputy ministers, the spouses of senior government officials, and invited Vientiane residents.
The gable finials were hoisted onto the rooftop by an electric winch.
So far, the restoration project has received more than 1.1 billion kip, US$15,793 and three kilogrammes of gold from public donations, according to the committee in charge of the project.
The committee estimates that more than 6.3 billion kip will be needed to purchase new materials to restore damaged sections of the museum.
More donations of materials and cash are being sought from members of the public both at home and overseas to ensure the museum is renovated to a high standard.
Hor Pha Keo is one of the oldest buildings in Vientiane and was used as a royal chapel during the time of the Lanexang Kingdom and also housed the precious Emerald Buddha (Pha Keo).
The building was destroyed when the Siamese (Thai) invaded Vientiane in 1779 and took the Emerald Buddha to Siam (Thailand), where it is housed in Wat Phra Kaew in Bangkok.
In 1826-29, the Siamese again invaded Vientiane and once more destroyed the temple after it had been rebuilt during the rule of King Anouvong in 1816.
Hor Pha Keo was again restored in 1936-42.
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
President Choummaly Sayasone and his wife on Saturday led a ceremony that saw 17 golden gable finials placed atop the renovated Hor Pha Keo Museum in Vientiane.
The restoration of the museum, one of the capital's most visited landmarks, is fully on track since beginning in December, although further public donations are needed to continue the work.
President Choummaly Sayasone holds a rope while the finials are placed on the roof of the Hor Phra Keo Museum in Vientiane. --Photo Khamphanh
Speaking at the ceremony, which was attended by senior government officials, Vice Mayor of Vientiane Mr Saithong Keoduangdy said the restoration of the Hor Pha Keo Museum was important for Lao people because it sustained their fine traditions and culture.
“All Lao people are encouraged to contribute by making donations for the improvement of one of Vientiane's most important cultural sites,” he said.
The restoration of Hor Pha Keo is the third improvement project since the structure was first built in 1565 during the reign of King Setthathirath.
“The project is slated for completion by the end of this year,” Mr Saithong said.
The ceremony to place the ornamental gable finials in position began with a religious ceremony led by the President of the Lao Buddhist Fellowship, the Most Venerable Phong Samaleuk, and other senior monks from Vientiane temples.
This was followed by a parade of the gable finials around the museum three times, led by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Education and Sports Dr Phankham Viphavanh, Minister of Information, Culture and Tourism Prof. Dr Bosengkham Vongdara, Mayor of Vientiane Dr Sinlavong Khoutphaythoune, deputy ministers, the spouses of senior government officials, and invited Vientiane residents.
The gable finials were hoisted onto the rooftop by an electric winch.
So far, the restoration project has received more than 1.1 billion kip, US$15,793 and three kilogrammes of gold from public donations, according to the committee in charge of the project.
The committee estimates that more than 6.3 billion kip will be needed to purchase new materials to restore damaged sections of the museum.
More donations of materials and cash are being sought from members of the public both at home and overseas to ensure the museum is renovated to a high standard.
Hor Pha Keo is one of the oldest buildings in Vientiane and was used as a royal chapel during the time of the Lanexang Kingdom and also housed the precious Emerald Buddha (Pha Keo).
The building was destroyed when the Siamese (Thai) invaded Vientiane in 1779 and took the Emerald Buddha to Siam (Thailand), where it is housed in Wat Phra Kaew in Bangkok.
In 1826-29, the Siamese again invaded Vientiane and once more destroyed the temple after it had been rebuilt during the rule of King Anouvong in 1816.
Hor Pha Keo was again restored in 1936-42.
~News courtesy of Vientiane Times~
2014年10月2日星期四
2014年4月15日星期二
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