Laos

When visiting Laos, one can be rest-assured that they will have an enjoyable experience regardless of time of the year. The best time to visit Laos is during the dry and relatively cool months from November to March. As a land-locked country, Laos’s geography heavily influences the weather. For example, in the northern regions it can get quite chilly at night, especially during the winter months of December and January. From May to October, Laos (as all of the Southeast Asian countries) goes through its rainy season and the Mekong’s water levels rise. Since rains are usually short and sharp, excursions and sightseeing should not be heavily impacted. But travelling during this period is also special, as vegetation is green, the locals are pleased about the rain and, above all, visitors can experience the true serenity and slow-paced charm of Laos during the low tourist season.

Many Laotians are the descendants of settlers from the Chinese province of Yunnan. In the 14th century, the first Lao kingdom was founded by Fa Ngum. He had grown up at the court of the Khmer king, where he learned more about Theravada Buddhism and introduced it to Laos to unite the many tribes in his lands. After 200 prosperous years, internal strife took hold and the then large kingdom started to crumble as parts of it were overtaken by the neighbouring Chinese, Siamese and Vietnamese. French colonization was soon to follow. After the Second World War, it was drawn into the Cold War and the Vietnam War due to its location. In the Laotian Civil War of 1975, King Savang Vatthana and his royalist Lao government was overthrown with the assistance of the Vietnam People’s Army, giving birth to the ‘Lao People’s Democratic Republic’ which exists to this day.

In Laos, it is tradition for a boy or young man between the ages of 8 and 20 to shave their heads, don the saffron-coloured robe and become a novice monk. A novice typically joins a monastery with other novice monks and elder monks for a period of a few months to several years. Here, they rise at 4 AM every day to attend prayer followed by morning alms, then attend school and do chores until the sun sets. For many children in Laos, becoming a monk is often the only way to access and receive education. Because their teachers are often foreigners, it can be surprising how proficient they can be at speaking English in addition to French, German, or other languages. Rest assured, despite the strict schedule and intensive schooling, elder monks do encourage novices to just be boys during their free time – they can often be seen laughing and playing with each other just as any other child would do.

Laotians are the highest consumers of sticky rice (khao niaow) in the world. In fact, they refer to themselves as luk khao niaow meaning, “children of sticky rice.” For centuries, sticky rice remains a fundamental portion of every meal in Laos. And surprisingly for a small country, Beer Lao is an award-winning national beer made from rice and yeast imported from Germany and malts from France. It won the Monde Selection gold quality awards in 2006 and 2010, and is arguably the tastiest national beer in Southeast Asia. Though Laos is a completely landlocked country, in the south of the country lies an incredible natural wonder – Si Phan Don, better known as the 4000 Islands. This is a riverine archipelago with countless sandy shores and tropical beach flair, making Laos the only country in Southeast Asia possessing so many islands in absence of the ocean.

Laos is home the longest stretch of the Mekong river (1,835 km/1,140 mi) among all countries the river runs through. Not only does the river offer plentiful food in the form of fish, water for irrigation, and a pathway for transportation of people and goods, but it also becoming the country’s major natural source of energy production. With the first hydropower plant, Xayaburi Dam, opening 2019 and several more in development, Laos is set to bring in much needed revenue by becoming the battery of Southeast Asia (Xayaburi currently exports 95% of its generated electricity). Though seen as a clean and sustainable form of energy, if not plans are set in place to protect the environment, scientists fear these projects may have a negative impact on the Mekong’s rich biodiversity as well as the river’s agricultural and fishing activities which locals heavily depend on.

The former name of Laos, “Lan Xang” literally means “Land of a Million Elephants”. Though the country’s national symbol once had an abundance of these mighty beasts, today their numbers have dwindled to around 400 domesticated 700 wild elephants due to massive bombing campaigns during the Vietnam war, the illegal ivory trade and habitat destruction. In ancient times, elephants were used to wage war and as the Royal Family’s preferred method of transportation, while in modern times some are still being exploited by the logging industry. But fortunately, this practice, which often leads to overworked and malnourished elephants, has reduced dramatically in recent decades. And because it is not possible for a former logging elephant to survive in the wild, several sustainable elephant sanctuaries have been established across Laos, allowing these gentle giants to survive in a natural environment and giving them a second chance at life.