After the North, we flew to Vientiane, the new capital of Laos. We arrived relatively late and so there was no time to do anything, except have a few beers while watching the sunset over the Mekhong river. And not much of a sunset, again because of the smoke and ash in the air. After I took this picture, the sun disappeared behind a black veil, as if behind a mountain, but I know there are no mountains there…
We visited what is thought to be the oldest remaining temple in Vientiane the next morning. The layout Wat Si Saket is not quite the same as what we generally saw further North, which was more similar to Thai temples. Here there is a central hall surrounded by a square ‘cloister-type’ building. In this temple, both the main hall, on the right of the picture, and the “cloisters” on the left of the picture are full of Buddha statues.
The Buddhas here all look identical, but they are not. The face, the hair, the hands and sometimes the clothing are slightly different for each statue. See if you can spot the differences.
There are also Buddha statues in each of the small niches on the wall … thousands of them. The main hall is beautifully decorated
The shutters on the windows are designed to inspire
Across the street was the presidential palace, not where he sleeps, but where he works. It is mostly bureaucrats who work there, we were told. Next to the palace, is another, newer temple called Haw Pha Keao, and in the more traditional layout, with several buildings in a large open area. It was commissioned by the king specifically to house the Emerald Buddha now housed in the temple of the Royal Palace in Bangkok!
The main building at this temple is still obscured by the smoke which continues to blanket the area. Fortunately, close-ups of statues and the doors are not as affected.
At the third temple complex for the day is called Wat Si Muang. It is the temple that houses the “Pillar of the City” and as such is highly revered. Here we had a treat – we would participate in a traditional blessing ceremony. Inside the complex, we saw what must have been a blessing ceremony for a new car – I guess you can hold this for anything you wish. Some preparation is necessary. For each of us, candles were measured to go around the head plus the length of the forearm. All the candles were folded and twisted together to burn as one.
At the end of the blessing, the monk gave each of us a braided bracelet that we were supposed to keep three days for the blessing to work. That is also as long as my knees hurt after kneeling in front of the monk for 30 minutes before and during the ceremony!
We went on the the most famous stupa in Laos, the National Stupa – also called Pha Tat Luang. It is shown on most coins and banknotes and has a very distinctive shape. You access the stupa going through a massive square where there is a military parade on independence day. You then go through a massive gate, through which you can glimpse at the golden coloured stupa.
In front of the stupa sits the statue of the king who commissioned it, King Setthathirat, after he moved his capital to Vientiane from Luang Prabang in the 16th century – the capital moved back and forth several more times before finally settling in Vientiane.
They recently built a new meeting place for the top members of the clergy, not sure if the term ‘top monks’ is appropriate. As one member of our group pointed out, it is quite a building for people who make a vow of poverty and refuse luxuries, but than this is nothing compared to what the Western religions have done for their leaders in the past …
The layout is similar to Wat Si Saket – the stupa in the middle with a square of buildings around it. The stupa is not by itself an impressive monument – sorry Laos – but what is impressive is the reverence with which the local people seem to hold it. I would guess that this person had donated money to the monk, or monastery in order to hold this ceremony. I saw them circling the stupa several times while chanting.
There is room for many more people to do this …
Outside of the stupa complex, there is a thriving market in souvenirs and other items.
The final stop in Vientiane is commonly referred to as the “Vertical Runway”, this because it was built out of the concrete donated to Laos to build a new runway at the Vientiane International Airport. This is their version of the Arche de Triomphe of Paris! It is called the Patuxai – which with only a small change in the last letter could be “Pas Toucher” in french, which means Do Not Touch! Is this a real play on words? Are they trying to tell the French something?
It has become more of a meeting place for locals, around the fountain or under the canopy where it is somewhat cooler than outside. The inside of the arch is richly decorated.
In the afternoon, we headed outside of town,to the Buddha Park known as Xieng Khuan.
It is an eclectic, if not eccentric place, created in 1958 by one man Luang Pu (venerable grandfather) Bunleua Sulilat. There are indeed Buddha statues in all shapes and forms as well as other creatures which make you wonder …
I did mention eccentric? Would you live in a house where this is the front door?
The classic lying Buddha, but a more modern style, and made of concrete.
Kids enjoyed playing on the figures – who can blame them.
Suddenly, we heard music, getting louder and louder. Is was a band on the back of a pick-up truck. With those speakers, you can imagine that we heard them a long way off. They were very friendly though, especially the bamboo-sax player.
Very friendly indeed
The band was only a prelude to a ceremony organised by a nearby village. The guests of honour also arrived on the back of pick-up trucks
A young boy sitting on an elephant
and a young girl sitting on a horse
She seemed to be very impressed by the whole affair. The head monk gets to sit in the passenger seat of the truck – no fancy mount for him.
There was a brief ceremony under a tree in the park, with four monks attending
Everybody listened with rapt attention when the head monk spoke
Well almost every one – some were more fascinated by the foreigners taking pictures
Well at least the main participants are doing their best
After the ceremony is completed, it is time to dance and celebrate
I am sure there will be a lot more of that once they all get back to the village. I was not able to find out what this was all about, but it certainly made for a much more interesting visit.
Our time in Vientiane is up – off to the South next and the Bolaven Plateau, one of the first National Park in Laos. But you will have to wait a while longer, as I am still editing those photos.
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