Luang Prabang, Laos

Wat Xieng Thong one of the popular attraction.

Luang Prabang, or Louangphrabang (Lao: ຫຼວງພຣະບາງ, literally: "Royal Buddha Image (in the Dispelling Fear mudra)," is the capital city of Luang Prabang Province in north central Laos. The city is located at the confluence of the Nam Khan and Mekong Rivers about 300 km north of Vientiane. The population of the city is about 50,000. Surely to be one of the most beautiful cities in the world, and in 1995 it was added to UNESCO's World Heritage list, recognised as the best preserved city in south-east Asia.

Set on a peninsula where the Mekong and the Khan rivers meet, and surrounded by misty green mountains, Luang Prabang was a kingdom from the fourteenth century until the Lao monarchy was dissolved in 1975. It is the only city in Laos where the ethnic Lao population outnumbers Vietnamese and Chinese.

View of Luang Prabang area.

The surrounding area of Luang Prabang.

The old city is rightly famous for its historic temples and monasteries (there are more than 30 of them) and for its splendid Royal Palace, which now serves as a fascinating museum. There are lovely old French-Indochinese colonial houses, and two-storey shop houses featuring both French and Lao architectural influences. Two parallel streets run the length of the peninsula and one runs all the way around it on the river’s edge. These are criss-crossed by many fascinating little lanes and back streets.

Walking in Luang Prabang is a joy — several of the streets are shaded with palms and flowering trees, sweeping, gilded temple roofs can be glimpsed every few yards, colourful prayer flags flutter in the breeze and temple gongs echo around the town. You can watch the sunset from the top of Phou Si Hill or enjoy a cool drink by the river’s edge. Explore the markets or visit one of the monasteries, such as Wat Xiang Thong, and soak up the serene and spiritual atmosphere that still pervades the town despite its influx of visitors.

Many temples with beautiful decoration like this.

The Plain of Jars, Laos

The Plain of Jars is a large, rolling plateau in the north-east Laos, named after the mysterious groupings of stone jars to be found there in over a dozen sites. Others lie strewn across the plain and the surrounding hills. At Thong Hai Hin, or Site 1, there are 250 jars that range from about 600 kg (1,300 lb) to l tonne, and the largest jar on the plain weighs 6 tonnes. Some have stone lids lying nearby.

Many different theories have been advanced regarding their purpose, but as no other material has been discovered, they remain a mystery. They may have been storage vessels, or possibly funerary urns. Even dating them reliably is difficult, although archaeologists seem to agree that they are about 2,000 years old.

Although this is a site of intense interest to archaeologists, and has been for decades, the Indochinese wars have prevented much work
being done here. As the flattest area in northern Laos, the plain has been extensively fought over for centuries, and during the Vietnam War it was heavily bombed by the US. Local legend has it that the jars were made to ferment the rice wine needed to celebrate victory over a cruel Chieftain — even this story reflects the war-torn history of the area.

The plain itself is often forgotten, as visitors concentrate on the jar sites, but it is beautiful in its own right, with its grassy meadows and rolling brown and purple hills. Villages have been rebuilt, and rice and fruit trees planted. Sadly the area is still not free of unexploded ordnance and only the main three jar sites are considered reasonably clear, so stay on the footpaths or take a guide.