Lazy Hazy Laos

I woke this morning to the sound of two roosters crowing. The bus had stopped, and these birds either had had enough of being cooped up for 10 hours), or they were well aware that the sun was rising. They were on the seat behind me, next to whom I presume was their owner. Welcome to Laos.

Arrived in Vientiane, Laos' capital, a few days ago. A few people ventured out from our plane, and the immigration official smiled as he gestured me through (all I have ever received from immigration officials is a dour-looking glance - so this is a first). The place had a surreal calm to it, and you could feel it right from the airport. No haggling, no chaotic scramble, no seedy opportunism that is usually a given with transportation hubs the world over. Our taxi driver was a tad shy, but friendly and all smiles. Gentle. I immediately took a liking to the place. Add to that the deep hue red of a Mekong sunset, as our taxi drove slowly along the riverside to our guesthouse.

Vientiane is by far the smallest and most relaxed capital city that I've been to. A city of perhaps half a million, there are no buildings higher than a few stories (the exception being a large highrise built for an ASEAN conference in 2004, somehow flouting the state rules). There is a great french feel to the city, and despite my initial sense, there is more french spoken here than in Cambodia (I'm sure the french tourists are happy!). It is praised for its french food and BeerLao is the national pride ( and has the greatest motto ever - "the beer of the wholehearted people"). Crumbling old colonial buildings with arched verandas are mixed with more recent soviet concrete behemoths. The hammer and sickle fly prominantly on all government buildings, alongside the Lao national flag. I found a little french cafe that served beautiful flaky croissants and strong espresso (they grow beans here in Laos as well).

(A small observation: The corruption level here is less apparent than Cambodia - you can generally tell by the vehicles people drive. Fewer luxury vehicles than Cambodia but some even more oppulent (I saw two Audi R8s driving side by side in downtown - absurd). Great old cars dominate the roads, alongside the usual tuk tuks and motos - toyota, morris, opel, all from the 1960s. Plenty of vw beetles! And if you're into aged 40 year old military trucks, dented, green and powered by groaning diesel engines, this is the place to be.)

You can sense the change here too. Laos is opening up, and welcoming foreigners, after decades of (more or less) shutting its borders to the outside world. Through some of the discussions had (over BeerLao of course!), it is apparent that the government is seeking a different approach than Cambodia's free-for-all business model. I suspect that they are looking at the economic success of China, which still maintains a single party system in a market economy (a head scratcher for many political scientists). They are presumably reluctant to allow too much de-regulation too soon. They are hoping to open a stock exchange system here, but I don't think you're going to see a blossoming democratic system at any point too. Laos is a communist country, and they are well aware of what happens when too much change happens too quickly - they see Russia and baron capitalism.

Jared and I have made our way up to Phonsavan, in the centre of Laos - an overnight busride from Vientiane. There are virtually no tourists in this town, and it is clear that we are definately off the backpacker route (always a plus!)

It is known for the plains of jars, massive ancient stone jars that litter parts of the countryside. Archeologists speculate that they were used for burial purposes but the historical evidence is slim. Alongside these jars are scores of trenches and massive bomb craters. We walked up to the top of a hill today and you can see that among the rice fields there are deep suppressions, evidence of bomb craters.

Indeed, the presence of war here is everywhere. Laos is one of the most bombed countries on earth. For those that may not know, the US conducted a secret proxy war in Laos for close to a decade, in an attempt to destroy the Ho Chi Minh trail, which partially travelled through Laos. It was repeatedly invaded by Vietnam. The CIA funded the Hmong people (a minority in Laos) in an attempt to overthrow the Pathet Lao, funded by North Vietnam (the Pathet Lao eventually reigned supreme). As a result, the countryside is absolutely littered in spent ordinance, as well as UXO (unexploded ordinance). It is not safe to travel off a path here. Cluster bombs and mines are still responsible for many deaths each year. There are active campaigns to rid the countryside of UXOs but progress is slow.

Here for a few days and then we continue our politico-historical adventure northeastward - to the secret Pathet Lao headquarters deep in the caves of Vieng Xai. I shall post some pics of the Phonsavan region as soon as technically possible. But now it's time to sample some local cuisine...