Kingdom of a Million Elephants Under the White Parasol, that's how Laos used to be called just a few centuries ago. That time it was a powerful kingdom, well known in South East Asia. I would like to share my journey to this wonderful country with you:)
I traveled to Vientiane to get my Thai visa, you have to get it somewhere outside Thailand, so most tourist travel to Vientiane, Laos or Penang, Malaysia to get one.
Due to its central location in South East Asia, Lao Kingdom was quite a powerful and wealthy country, it used to be a big overland trading hub. Unfortunately, in 1893 Laos became a French colony and stayed one until 1953 when it got independence. After 20 years the communist party came to power. so now the country is still called Lao People's Democratic Republic( which is not democratic at all btw :)
The capital of Laos is Vientiane, which was settled in 9century and got the population of around 800 thousand people. I've spent couple days in Vientiane and visited some places of interest. The name Vientiane originally means "City of sandalwood" from Pali language (it's a sacred language used for Buddhist texts). Vientiane got many beautiful temples. Only 65% of Laotian are Buddhist and around 30% fo people still believe in so called Laotian Folk Religion, which I couldn't find much information about in English, but it is based on believing in spirits of nature and spirits of those, who have passed. Laotian people believe, that objects, places, and creatures possess a distant spiritual essence, so they are animated and alive.
In the center of Vientiane, one can find a magnificent monument called Patuxai. It was built in 1957-1968 to commemorate Laotian people, who struggled for the freedom and independence. People also call it Patuxai Arch or the Arc de Triomphe of Vientiane. It has stairs inside, so I could get to the top and get excited from the spectacular view!
There is a small shop in the middle of the arch, where you can buy some souvenirs. There are many small windows on your way up, so you can check the views from a different height. People of Vientiane are not rich, you can see mostly old cars on its streets and not many new buildings, but still one can feel some very special atmosphere of the Kingdom of a Million Elephants!
Patuxai literally means Victory Gate or Gate of Triumph in the Sanskrit language. Even though the idea of the Arch was taken from France, the design and decoration is 100% Laotian style. One can find mythological creatures, such as the Kinnari (half-female, half-bird) on the Arch. Patuxai got 5 towers, which shows the idea of coexistence of the nations of the world and 5 principes of Buddhism -thoughtful amiability, flexibility, honesty, honor and prosperity. I like this architecture style a lot, it got all the best from European and South East Asian architecture and it looks very authentic.
Unfortunately, my visit to this amazing country was very short and I only visited Vientiane. I loved quiet and sleepy Laos with its vintage cars and beautiful temples. Hopefully, I will explore other regions of the Kingdom of a Million Elephants very soon!
Thank you for reading! I hope you have a magnificent day :)
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