A look at Wat Tongkhankham.

Stall at Tongkhankham market selling the prasat pheung which were decorated with chrysanthemum real flowers.

During the recent temple festivals they were made of wax flowers and the base is from the banana trunk.

The design resembles that of a small palace.

Bank notes will be fixed onto the white thin sticks and after the ceremony will be donated by devotees to the temple.

 Both Thai and Lao Buddhist culture are very similar.

  Behind Tongkhankham market was a mainland Chinese owned Hua Long Hotel.

Quite a clean hotel and family owned and the room rates was 500,000 kips (about 110 renminbi acceptable payment).

  A short distance from the hotel is Wat Tongkhankham.

The main entrance has an arch with statue of Buddha on top.
Laos National flag was in the centre flanked by two Buddhist flags.

Seated on the higher ground was the statue of Buddha shielded by a muiltiheaded serpent or Mucilinda,the naga king of a nearby lake that protected the Buddha from the torrential thunderstorm while Buddha was meditating under a tree.

Buddha attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree.

Silently he vowed, "Even if my flesh and blood were to dry up, leaving only skin and bones, I will not leave this place until I find a way to end all sorrow."

 He sat there for forty nine days. He was determined to discover the source of all pain and suffering in the world.

Mara, the evil one, tried to scare him into giving up his quest.
 For instance, he hoped to lure Siddhartha into having selfish thoughts by sending visions of his very beautiful daughters.

But the Buddha's goodness protected him from such attacks.






Buddha's disciples, Sariputta, Maudgalyayana, Mahakasyapa, Ananda and Anuruddha are believed to have been the five closest to him.

This one is a bit related to Hinduism,most of the ladies seemed to have focus on a baby standing on a lotus.

She must be Lakshmi the Goddess of wealth and prosperity.
Lakshmi is the household goddess of most Hindu families, and a favorite of women.
She is being depicted as a beautiful woman of golden complexion, with four hands, sitting or standing on a full-bloomed lotus and holding a lotus bud, which stands for beauty, purity and fertility.
Her four hands represent the four ends of human life: dharma or righteousness, "kama" or desires, "artha" or wealth, and "moksha" or liberation from the cycle of birth and death.

 




Before dying, the Buddha gave his last sermon.
This last sermon had eight main points(8 fold noble path):
1) The more desires one has, the more they will suffer.
2) Be content with our state of being.
3) When the self and the external world become one, eternal serenity is enjoyed.
4) Without any interruption, practice meditation.
5) Do not forget what the Buddha taught.
 6) Everything is constantly changing, including ourselves.
7) Nonattachment is the essential wisdom.
8) When we reach enlightenment we and the world become one, and there is no duality.

  At the age of 29, Siddhartha began the homeless life of a monk.
From Kapilavatthu, he walked south to the city of Rajagaha, the capital of the Magadha country.
The king of this country was named Bimbisara.

This art has stories part of the Ramayana epics.

 Looked like the people celebrating harvest time.

 
The inside view of the main temple hall.

 
A small Buddha Park sculptures being part of the landscape.

Sculptures of devotees kneeling holding silver bowl with gifts.
You'll noticed that there were many smaller shrines near the temple's wall perimeter which has the names of those who had died.
I presume their ashes must have been kept in the urn inside these shrines.







Two years ago I was here and this new site was still under construction.
Today the whole temple has been completed solely built by the monks themselves.


















Soukrathsamy Center of English.

Laotian national and ethnic costumes

Talat Sao Mall II new annexed building beside the present one was officially opened on the 11.11.11.

 This is a modern shopping complex in Vientiane having frontage facing Lane Xang Avenue.

 Fully airconditioned with escalators and lifts covering a eight level building.
A basement for car park was also available.

The owner is Singaporean Dr Lawrence Leow,Chairman and CEO of the Crescendas Group.

 In fact the current old building was quite congested and is a very popular shopping area to the locals and tourists.

 They called it the morning market and opening hours are from 07:00 till 16:00 hours.

The tenure of this mall is till year 2049 after which the whole building ownership will revert back to the government.

Meanwhile a huge five storey European architecture megamall with construction started on July 2011 and scheduled to be completed in 2013 will transform the city into a more lively and bustling place.

It's the Regal Megamall City to be located in Sikhai Village,Vientiane.There will be nearly 1000 outlets ranging from hypermarkets,boutique,children playground,restaurants to entertainment outlets.Parking bays will be on the highest level.

 The price will be from 23.2 million Lao Kips per square metres.

Interested investors may contact the office at km7 Road,No:13 North,Na-Hae Village,Sikhottabong District,Vientiane Lao PDR or fax:021 620 638. Available 70,000 square metres of retail floor.  
'The early bird catches the worm'







Textile weaving is traditionally women’s work. Men help with the planting of the mulberry, cotton, and hemp, and with the construction of the looms and spinning wheels, but the work of processing and preparing the yarn, dyeing, designing patterns, and weaving is done almost exclusively by women and girls.

So important are women’s weaving skills in Lao culture that traditional Lao songs, poetry, proverbs, and legends are full of references to them.
Even in the 21st century, a girl’s marriageability in some rural Tai-Lao communities still depends on her weaving skills.

 A Tai-Deang bride must prepare a trousseau of her own handwoven silk products: intricately woven and embroidered sinh (skirts), sarongs, silk cushions, silk blankets, cradle cloths, mosquito nets, bed covers, and door curtains.

 During the wedding ceremony, the products are publicly displayed and distributed to her husband, in-laws, and relatives.






The Tai-Dam and Tai Phoun weavers of Xieng Khoung in northern Laos are expert silkworm raisers, silk producers, and users of natural dyes.

 Since 2005, when Saoban began working with the Tai Dam weavers of Xieng Khoung villages, the Tai-Dam weavers have supplied Saoban with high-quality natural-dyed raw silk used mostly for men’s and women’s clothing.

The Xieng Khoung silks are also popular with Saoban’s Italian buyer who sells custom-made silk clothing and bags under its private label.





The Phuthai weavers of Song Khone District of Savannakhet Province are traditionally cotton producers and cotton weavers.

They grow the native variety of short-fiber cotton and weave the cotton to produce the rough indigo-dyed checkered cloth used as loincloths and sarongs for men, and as headscarves and household linens.

This rough-textured yet comfortable cloth was originally considered a cheap material for poor farming families, but in early 2000 Japanese development workers determined that it had broader potential.
With Japanese assistance, some Phuthai weavers started a business creating and selling natural cotton products under the Laha brand.








The older Tai-Phuan and Tai Deang ethnic groups of Bolikhan District were war refugees from northern Laos; recent settlers had migrated from land-scarce villages in the north to the newly opened lands of Bolikhan District.

Many have established rice farms; silk production provides supple- mental income for women.

The Bolikhan weavers specialize in producing sinh, tinh sinh (skirt borders), tablecloths, and scarves .




 A look at the ceremonial dresses.
Lao women wear the silk skirts,blouses and scarves.
Whereas the menfolks wore the sarong,big large pants or the peasant pants.

 Costumes of the men rural folks.
Men and women don’t have to wear the traditional Lao costume when they dance the 'lamvong' together at a general party, but women who attend a formal occasion such as a wedding have to wear the traditional “sinh mai” dress.


























 Wooden weaving handloom equipment.
Silk was introduced to Laos when the Tai-Lao peoples migrated from their ancestral lands in Southern China into present-day Laos, bringing with them the knowledge of silk cultivation, dyeing, and weaving on upright wooden looms.

In Laos they encountered the indigenous Mon-Khmer people, who used back-strap or body-tension looms to weave other types of fabric, mainly from raw cotton and hemp.

This cultural contact and has given Lao textiles the diversity and intricacy of designs that make them stand out today.





Silk yarn in multiple color range.
Natural silk is produced by silkworms that spin fine filaments into cocoons.
It takes 24 days for a silkworm to mature from egg to cocoon.
To extract the silk the cocoons are plunged into pots of boiling water to soften the silk.
Lao silk cultivation,dyeing and weaving is still very popular in central and northern Laos and the ethnic groups like the Tai Dam,Tai Daeng,Tai Moei,and Tai Phuan ethnic groups are keeping the tradition alive.
 



Saoban (village) weavers are mostly rural girls and women.

A wholesale shop with very well stocked silk weaving equipments,silk yarn,embroidery threads and anything concerning weaving.

Business was thriving in this shop which seemed to be the main supplier in town.

Look at the handloom gadgets stocks,this implied that the cottage industry is very widespread over here in Laos.

Laos owned something very exclusive and rare,the rural population with their expertise in handweaving skills that has been an ancestral tradition.
They are highly skilled knowledgeable artisans.
Laos remains one of the few places in the world where cottage weaving is an important part of everyday subsistence, a necessary and recognized skilled trade.
The cottage industry is predominantly female, with the silk processing skills traditionally handed down from mother to daughter for generations.
 In this way, the history of Lao women’s home spinning and weaving of silk goes back thousands of years. Even today, weaving is an important part of many rural Laotian women’s daily life.

Embroidery threads in smaller spool and cone form. Buying Lao silk handicrafts and garments will help villagers preserve their ancient tradition.Some of the proceeds also donated to schools in improving education and to further community and cultural de  velopment.

Tai-Kadai populations (approximately 66 percent of the population) came into Laos from what is now northern Vietnam, probably originating in southern China, during the last millennium and a half. Tai women brought with them the freestanding frame loom, silkworm cultivation and yarn preparation, and a three-part design for women's sarongs or wrap-around skirts (sinh).
 
The adoption of Theravada Buddhism by many Tai speakers had a major impact on textile production and meanings.

 Theravada Buddhist monks may neither weave nor cook. Thus women's work includes not only the preparation of cloth for secular and ritual purposes but also the provision of textiles to members outside the family.

 Tai women provide white cloth to monks, who cut, sew, and dye it for the robes (siiwon) they will wear.
Women's sinh display traditional designs abstracted from the natural and mythological worlds; men wear sarongs with blocked or checked patterns. 

The man's sarong is an elegant garment. Woven in plaid two-ply silk heavier than that used in a woman's skirt, or in cotton, it produces a shimmering color. 

The man's longer wraparound skirt (yao or hang), with its ends twisted together in front, pulled between the legs, and fixed into the waist band at the small of the back, is the product of many months of labor, with heavy plied silk forming both warp and weft. Utilitarian textiles, such as blankets and shawls, are usually without design, but can be checkered or have subdued patterns.

During the nineteenth century, European travelers recorded that everyday men's clothing was skimpy at best, and women were often bare breasted, wearing drab skirts. 

The biang(hom), made of two or more two-meter warp lengths sewn along the selvage, which could be draped around the shoulders to keep warm during chilly nights and mornings, was a major garment well known even in early colonial Cambodia and Saigon. In the early nineteenth century, large quantities of English textiles began appearing in Lao markets.  

 Lao highland groups (11 percent of the population) include the Hmong, Mien, Lahu, Akha, and Lisu, and their traditional dress is basically the same as in Thailand. 

During the war in Indochina in the 1960s and 1970s, the lives of many of these groups were disrupted.
 Many Hmong and Mien were resettled internally in camps at lower elevations, and others eventually fled the country as refugees to camps in Thailand and then to third countries.

 Ethnic dress was largely exchanged for lowland sarongs, partly due to the hotter climate and partly to disguise identity in a strange environment where their ethnicity might cause problems.

 Life in the camps brought more free time, commercial marketing of textiles, and exposure to new designs and styles. Hmong and Mien who fled as refugees to other countries such as the United States and France began ordering traditional clothing from refugee camps in Thailand or from relatives in Laos. 

These costume components ordered from abroad were executed in much finer stitches and with more elaboration of appliqué, silver, and other ornamentation than had previously occurred in Laos.

 

Vientiane city map.

Lao people would call Vientiane as Wiang Chan which is also the capital city of Laos located towards northeast of the Mekong River.

During the 16th century,Luang Prabang was the traditional capital.

 In 1778,Vientiane was under the control of the Siamese and in 1945 the Japanese had a brief occupation of the city.

 On the whole it was the French administrative capital between 1899 till 1953.

Wattay Domestic and International Airport(code: VTA,ICAO code:VLVT) is just less than 5km towards the west of the city off Thanon Luang Prabang.

Taxi coupon rate from airport to city is USD6 and minibus or tuk-tuk were also available near the vehicle parking lot.

The airport(lao:deun bin) is located in the Sikhottabong District which is one of the nine districts in Vientiane.

The other districts in Vientiane Prefecture province are:Chanthabuly, Hadxaifong, Mayparkngum, Naxaithong, Sisattanak, Xaysetha, Xaythany and Vientiane.

Sights along Thanon Luang Prbang Road:-Wat Tai Yai,Kok Po Market,Wat Tai Noy,Wat Oup Moung,Wat Khounta.

Nice seafood restaurants like Khungphung T2 is along Asiane Road which leads to the Northern(lao:neua) Bus(lao:lod may) Terminal(lao:khiu).

Nong Duang Food Garden near bus terminal has a very serene surrounding with greeneries and fish ponds.

Having seafood lunch on a floating hut beside the pond and enjoying your afternoon beer Lao will give you a romantic feeling of a village style experience. It's a family run business and their main specialty is fresh fishes from the pond.

Most of the restaurants along Asiane Road are popular hunt among the locals and can be quite packed at times.

Opposite Kok Poh Market and Savanah Restaurant is a road should be Rue Wattayai that leads to Xang Chieng Market (San Jiang Shopping Complex) which are the China products village.





Map showing the area beyond the airport area which is also the busiest bus route to the north of Laos.

 The trunk roads run parallel to the Mekong River.

 Ban Sikhay village to Ban Thongpong area is quite a populated suburb of Vientiane.

As noticed there were Sikhay market and Nongnieu market as well as a small bus terminal that covers the Sangthong District area.

Sangthong District(about 70km west of Vientiane) is one great place off the beaten path to see the beautiful countryside and see the lifestyle of the villagers.

There were 10 sub-districts namely Phonehong(capital), Thoulakhom, Keo-Oudom, Kasy, Vangvieng, Feuang, Xanakham, Mad, Hinhurp and Viengkha

Sangthong is one of the 47 poorest district in Laos.
Agriculture is the main activity of the district and the socio-economic status of the local residents were gradually improving with the good road infrastructure.

Before that it took two hours to reach but now less than an hour. Bamboo and banana tree handicrafts were produced by the ethnic minority groups in the district.

Perfect place for outdoor activities:Phou Khao Khouay National Protection Area and Tad Leuk Park suitable for camping but crowded.

Tad Xay and Pha Xay are two beautiful cascading waterfalls in the area. Tad Xet has panoramic view of the mountains.

 Getting there:local transport to small town of Thabok at km90.
Western part reached via Ban Napheng.

Wild pig jaws were one of the prohibited items to be exported including the elephant tusks.

Eurasian Wild Pig is found throughout Laos.
Pigs are very important food for the large wild cats - Tiger and Leopard.

As a managed species, they are also important for village subsistence but are illegally traded from the wild to supply meat for urban markets and restaurants.

This is having a negative effect on both large wild cats and subsistence villages.

Huge Asian elephant molar also on the list of export offence.

Nam Et-Phou Louey is the largest National Protected Area in North-east Laos PDR covering an area of about 6,000 square kilometre.

It covers 7 districts and three provinces (Houaphan, Luang Prabang and Xieng Khouang provinces).

The NPA is mostly hilly or mountainous and is the source of many rivers. It is named after its two main features, the Nam Et River and Phou Louey Mountain (“Forever Mountain”).

The area has primary forest rich in flora and fauna including many endangered wildlife. This is truly an evergreen virgin jungle and the Nam Et Phou Louey is a mountainous area being the source of many major rivers including Nam Nern, Nam Khan, Nam Et, Nam Seuang, and Nam Seng.

 In addition there are many tributaries, which contribute significantly to the livelihoods of local people. The main importance of rivers to villagers relate to transportation, fishing, household water supply and irrigation amongst others.

Laos used to be known as 'Land of Million Elephants' but mankind is slowly overtaking the rule of law of the jungle under the disguise of development.
The habitats of the wild elephant will be threatened through hunting for use in the ivory trade.

From the Northern Bus terminal,most 'songtheaws' will transport passengers via the police camp traffic light junction passing by Statue of King Fa Ngum monument beside a park and turn into Setthatirah Road which will be their specific stop for a fare of 10,000 kips.

Novotel Hotel,Mekong Hotel and Parkview Residence Apartment were easily recognised landmarks along the way.

Near the junction of Khoun Bulom and Setthatrirah Road is the Cindamay Guest House,behind a petrol station.

Room rates about 80,000 kips Tel:(856021) 262 125.

Chou Anou Road is the Chinatown area while across the junction is Tongkhankham Road where there is very big market with diversified variety of wet and dry sundy goods.





  View of Tongkhankham Market in central Vientiane.
A systematic market divided into sections like groceries,vegetables,seafood products and wholesale stores whereas clothings,praying peripherals,sandals,handicrafts,general merchandise were in small shoplots.

 A few food stalls were also aligned in one corner. Most of the expatriates communities would come here to do their daily shopping.

This is Lane Xang Avenue in Chantabouly District with a good view of Patuxai Monument.

Photo taken at road junction with the Presidential Palace behind me.
Distance from Setthatirath Road is about 2km. Centrally located in the main artery of Vientiane surrounded by many financial institutions such as the ANZ Bank,Joint Development Bank,Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance,Lao-Viet Bank and Vietcom Bank.

Government agencies like Tourist Information Office,Judiciary Department Ministry of Justice,Forestry Department,Ministry of Education,Lao Telecom and General Post Office. Hotels in the vicinity include Lane Xang Pricess Hotel,Royal Dokmaideng,Khamkoun Hotel,Hotel Ekalath Metropole,Sengphachanh Hotel.





Area in circle is the heart of Vientiane showing the city's central bus terminal where this map is available for viewing.

Talat Salo Mall is just across the bus terminal. Moving on behind the bus terminal were many stalls selling garments and other general merchandise.

It is linked to the Khoun Din Market. You'll never notice this market as there won't be any sign unless you walk through a very narrow alley at the far end of the food stalls near where the washroom is at the bus terminal.

Patuxai Monument also known as a Victory Monument honouring the struggle for independence from France.

The arch has resemblance to that of Arc de Triomphem in Paris.
A beautiful park surrounded the monument and during the night the place looked glittering like a jewel and visitors would gather around the musical fountain.
This is one of the most popular tourist must see destinations in Vientiane.

The Patuxay Monument opening hours is from 08:00 till 17:00 hours.





The Black Stupa is located beside the American Embassy and no photography is allowed beside the embassy's road.

Only through Chantha Khoummane Road area can the photographs be taken.

Old legends says a seven headed dragon protected the people of Vientiane from Siamese invaders during the 1828 war and the dragon is believe to be hidden under the That Dam Stupa.

 This conical shape is also incorporated into the That Luang Stupa.

  Beyond Patuxay Monument is Kaysone Phomvihane Road where you have the Thai Consulate,World Bank,residence of late Prince Suphanouvong,Lao PDR Army Museum,transmission tower Phonkhenh,Lao-American College Campus.

 Along Singha Road which has the most government agencies will lead to the main icon of Laos,the Pha That Luang Stupa which is a gold covered large Buddhist Stupa and a focal point of the annual That Luang Festival in early November.




Wat Hong Kai Keo is a Vietnamese Buddhist Temple off New Hong Kai Keo Road which is about 15 minutes walk from Patuxay Monument.

 Most Vietnamese people stay around this area. A five level element pagoda with a Buddha statue on the apex. Bottom level represents earth,then comes to metal which in turn produces water,then wood and finally fire.









Had lunch at this vietnamese restaurant.
My hostel mate Cuong usual dining place and we brought along a Taiwanese traveller whom we met at the central bus terminal.






Mekong River area has a lot of restaurants and bars. Mahasot Hospital,Hotel Donechan Palace, Wat Phye,Wat That Kao, Wat Paxay,Cambodian,Indian,Poland,Korean,Myanmar and German Embassy all located near the river.

Night bazaar at the newly built Mekong Riverfront in Vientiane.
 Stalls selling souvenirs,silk products,handicrafts and garments were being set up during the night. Scene is quite similar to that in Luang Prabang.

Quite recently opened Korean Restaurant along Khoun Bulom Road which is opposite the front entrance of Chou Anouvong National Stadium.

 During the night along the open airspace infront of the restaurant were the night food bazaar and there were many stalls selling cheap Lao food.





Further south of the Mekong River along Thadeua Road you have the UNICEF,Muang Lao China Hotel,Wat Nak Yai,Vietnam Traditional Massage,Vientiane Bowling Centre,4km Restuarant,Mekong Restaurant,Europ Steak House,Anna Restaurant,Democratic Peoples Republic Korea,Russia and China Embassies.

I happened to stumble into one restaurant with a large jar with content looked like a primate as its has a toe similar to the human.

  A huge iguana is also kept in the jar.