Laos: April 2006

Our cultural correspondent, Po Scard, continues with his coverage of Ray, Nikki and Dominiques recent trip to Laos, including their experiences of the New Year festivities, their encounters with the spirit world and other highlights of their adventures together. If you missed Part 1, you can read it by clicking here: Following the Mekong Trail.

After spending 10 days in Laos going down the Mekong and trekking deep into remote hill tribe villages, our trio had to start thinking about making their way back to Thailand. There were still one or two things on their 'must see' list to complete in the four remaining days of their whirlwind tour, so they agreed on a plan to continue their onward journey, starting with a brief return to Luang Prabang.

However, after a fantastic day in Nong Kiaow at the annual boat race (see Following the Mekong Trail), there was one final event to attend before the three of them were able to leave. They had been invited by one of the villagers to a private ceremony called a "Baci", at their home. "We were really pleased to be invited because we are all interested in experiencing ‘real’ life when travelling, as opposed to events that are specially staged for tourists" said Nikki. "Receiving this invitation gave the three of us an opportunity to spend an evening hanging out with Laos people in their own environment and to get a taste of how they commune" she added.

Above: "What are you going to wear to the Baci tonight, Dominique? I definitely think we need new outfits"

A Baci is a non-Buddhist ceremony, in which guardian spirits are called up and are bound to the guest(s) of honour by the act of tying white strings around their wrists. Apparently, there is one guardian spirit (or Khwan) for every part of the body. The idea of calling upon these spirit guardians is to bring good fortune to the people the ceremony is being held for - in this case it was a young couple - so there is a great atmosphere to be enjoyed. Once the guests of honour have been tied, there is a bit of a free for all in which everyone ends up with at least 2 or 3 white strings tied around their wrists.

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Above: String tying time for the guest of honour (man in centre wearing grey). Guests bring little gifts of money to place under the tree (left) and then have strings tied around their wrists as well

After the formal part of the ceremony is over, there is a huge feast in which guests are invited to partake in a variety of specially prepared dishes, buffet style on the floor. “There were no plates or cutlery for guests, as is normal in these parts" said Nikki. "I was shown how to eat with my fingers, rolling small balls of sticky rice to use as edible cutlery, to dip in to the delicious curries on offer” she explained.

It is also customary that guests are offered Lao Lao, a potent whiskey made from rice by villagers. A toastmaster goes round every person offering a glass. “We soon realised that the correct etiquette was not to drink one, but two glasses of Lao Lao, each time you were offered" said Ray. "Before you knock it back in one, which is the only way you are allowed to drink it, you have to make a toast the King. It is considered very impolite to refuse when you are offered the drink” said a very well informed Ray.

Above: Ray drinks the first of two glasses of Lao Lao whilst toasting the King (which is spoken in Lao). You must drink them straight down and are not allowed to refuse the Toastmaster. The more you drink, the harder it is to say the toast to the King and still have everyone understand it!

Below: The great feast enjoyed by our trio was prepared by….

…. these wonderful village women in the picture below. They all love to clear the food away after the meal and have a boogie on the dance floor whilst the men continue to drink Lao Lao outside

Above: There was a spectacular sunset as evening fell on the Baci. The men sang Laos songs and continued to drink well into the early hours

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Dominique, who captured the amazing picture above, said "I stepped outside of the house to see what the men were doing and I saw the sky, which looked like it was on fire. It was ominous, like something out of a science fiction movie, as it looked so unreal".

After a good night’s sleep, and not suffering too much from the excesses of the previous evening, our travelling threesome had a good breakfast and left Nong Kiaow to return to Luang Prabang. The main attraction was the “Pee Mai” festival, which happens each April and marks the start of the Laos New Year. The festival is also celebrated in neighbouring Thailand, where it is known as Songkran.

Above: This picturesque Laos woman travelled all the way from Nong Kiaow to Luang Prabang on the bus with our trio. Nikki kept remarking to the others about how wonderful she was, until she threw up on her shoulder during a rough part of the journey!

Both Songkran in Thailand and Pee Mai in Laos are huge water festivals and are widely celebrated by people in both countries. It's a time for fun and reflection and there are observances connected to Buddhist merit making. One of these is splashing water as a symbol of cleansing, renewing and refreshment of the heart and all good things associated with life. Traditionally, people sprinkle scented water on Buddha images and pour water on the hands ofmonksandeldersof the community. Children and young people douse one another in a more playful way – an aspect that Ray, Nikki and Dominique were quite unprepared for as there bus arrived in Luang Prabang and they received the first of many soakings from revellers.

Above: Our trio were not prepared for the intensity of the celebrations waiting for them in Luang Prabang!

“It is like nothing you have ever seen before and must be experienced first hand” said Nikki. “For three days, it is literally impossible to go out anywhere without getting completely soaked. People seem to really enjoy it and have no problem at all being permanently drenched” she added.

“We reckoned we had left Chiang Mai at the right time to go to Laos” said Ray “as they celebrate Songkran more vigorously there than just about anywhere else, or so we thought. In Luang Prabang, it was probably just as full on. We all had to get loads of plastic bags to protect our money and valuables when we were out. I tried in one case to ‘negotiate’ with the locals, who were heavily armed with water, pointing to my video camera” he recalled. “Unfortunately, they showed no sympathy at all towards me or any farang (foreigners) and continued to shower us with great amusement” he added.

Above: Scenes like the one in this picture can be witnessed all over Laos and Thailand during New Year. People absolutely love the water festival and seem to be in bliss as they all soak each other for three whole days!

After one dousing too many, Ray and Dominique decided to take sanctuary in their (dry) guesthouse, whilst Nikki chose to rise to the challenge and join the hard core revellers in the centre of town. “I decided that the old adage - If you can't beat em, join em! - applied in this case” said Nikki. “I dumped anything that would bother me if it got wet, in our guesthouse and set off in search of fun!” she told me. 

“Within a couple of minutes, I was right in the middle of the chaos and it felt like I was standing in a shower with all my clothes on” she continued. “There was an amazing party atmosphere, with Laos people and Farang all engaged together in simultaneous water combat and street dancing. I had heard that beer in Laos was expensive for locals, at sixty pence a bottle. This gave me an opportunity to buy a few rounds for my new found Laos party friends” added a wet, but satisfied Nikki.

Above: Not a drop of water in sight! Despite the really tacky turquoise plastic armchairs, Ray manages to enjoy the dry sanctuary of his guesthouse, whilst Nikki parties with the locals.

With only a couple of days left before Ray and Nikki had to return to Chiang Mai for their TEFL course, our trio made the ten and a half a hour bus journey south through the mountains, heading for the capital, Vientiane. All buses making this journey carry an armed guard to protect passengers from the small number of rebel militia that still live in the mountains, and are at odds with the government. Although there have been no incidents in the last two years, the authorities are still taking precautions to ensure the safety of travellers.

“It was the first time that I had been somewhere in the world where we could be in direct contact with the sort of trouble you would usually be more likely to watch on television news” said Ray. “This made me feel nervous and excited in equal measures, and it was very re-assuring to know we had an armed chap with us. We tried to take a picture of him with his gun, which was discreetly concealed under his clothing. We were too nervous to ask him to pose, so we dropped the idea!” he said. "Ray was making me guess the movie theme tunes he was whistling to me, and this helped to take my mind off any possibility that something badwouldhappen”addedNikki.

Arriving in Vientiane, the gang of three found a guesthouse in town and immediately sorted out transportation for their short stay, opting again for bicycles. “We loved using bikes in Luang Prabang, and also thought that the water festivities were coming to an end, so the bikes would be a safe bet” said Ray.

Above: Ray, Nikki and Domi chose bikes again as their preferred transportation for their short stop in Vientiane

Busy and hectic in comparison to the rest of the country, Vientiane is quiet compared with any other city in Asia.  As with all of Lao's major cities, it is situated on the Mekong river which forms the lifeline of the country. Vientiane is also the hub for all travel in the country. It has a population of 450,000.

The most famous landmark in Vientiane is That Luang (The Royal Stupa) which was constructed in 1566 by King Setthatirat and restored in 1935. In the 17th century, it was covered by some 500 kg of gold leaf.

Above: Ray and Nikki, outside That Luang, contemplate buying a few miniature, gold plastic souvenir Stupa’s for friends and family back home

Another landmark worth visiting is the Patuxai, also known as the Victory Monument. Built in 1962, it resembles the Paris' Arc de Triomphe - as it is sometimes known – which is ironic as it was built to commemorate victory in the struggle for independence from the French! During the day, the monument can be climbed and gives visitors an excellent view of the city.

Above: Ray and Nikki on their way to the Patuxai – from a distance, you cannot see that the monument was never properly finished and when you get close up, is quite ugly!

Below: The view from the top of the Victory Monument is excellent and worth the climb, but the claim that it looks like Paris is somewhat stretching the truth!

Above: Ray and Nikki take a well earned rest at the top of the Victory Monument, having cycled around Vientiane for most of the day in the hot sun

On the final day of Pee Mai, the celebrations take on a much more sombre and religiously significant tone than the earlier stages of the festival. People are more inclined to spend time at their local temple, praying together and bringing offerings for the monks. Our three travellers dropped in at one of the main temples in Vientiane to observe the proceedings.

“We saw that white strings had been tied around the pillars of the temple, in much the same way as we had tied strings around our wrists at the Baci in Nong Kiaow” said Nikki. “A young monk explained to me that it would help to hold good fortune in peoples lives for the coming year” she told me.

Above: White strings are tied around the pillars of the temple during Pee Mai to hold in good fortune for the community

Another tradition that our three travellers observed at the temple was the construction of a huge sand stupa in the pagoda yard. The sand stupa gets decorated with many types of flags, flowers and white lime, and is sprinkled with perfumed water. Finally, the sand stupas are granted to the monks for merit making.

“We were given incense and candles and invited to place them into the Stupa. It was a great experience to be making something together with Lao people and monks at such a wonderful, happy time of year” said Dominique.

Above: Nikki, Dominique and Ray admire the work of the local community as they construct a huge sand stupa outside the temple

The final evening in Vientiane for our travelling friends was spent having supper at a local restaurant and talking about all of the amazing experiences of their journey, following the Mekong trail through Laos.

Above: Our trio, having thoroughly dried out from the Pee Mai festivities, celebrate their last night in Vientiane by having supper together at a local restaurant. Upon their departure, Dominique went to Vietnam, whilst Ray and Nikki returned to start their TEFL course at Chiang Mai University

Editors Note: Congratulations to Po Scard, our cultural correspondent, who created this superb two part feature about Ray and Nikki’s trip to Laos.  The Editor at Blogster was so impressed with the quality of Part 1, he decided to select it as the Featured Blog of the Week – an honour we were all extremely proud to receive.

Remember readers that the next issue of The Daily Lama, "University Challenge Part 2", will contain full coverage of Ray and Nikki’s TEFL course, including news of their final results and graduation. It promises to be a really exciting read and I hope you will enjoy our coverage!

For those of you that may be able to get hold of a copy, our main rival in Thailand, Hello! Magazine is also covering the story – Ray and Nikki are shown at the bottom of the cover.                                                                     

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AMBER SOLAIRE

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