February 16, 2013 - Vientiane
From our Daily Itinerary:
Day 8: Vientiane
Meals included: 1 breakfast
Activities:
A city tour acquaints us with the major sights of the capital. We visit the imposing Patuxai monument (also known as the Anousavari, which translates as 'Victory' in Lao - hence the name Victory monument), which is Vientiane's version of the Arc de Triomphe and dominates the city's main thoroughfare. It has also been nicknamed the 'Vertical Runway', which refers to the fact that it was built in the 1960s from funds the US Government had given to the Lao Government for the expressed purpose of extending the runway at the airport! Wat Si Saket is the oldest temple in the city, while the former royal temple of Wat Prakeo previously housed the famous Emerald Buddha image before it was taken by the Siamese in the late 18th Century. We visit both temples and the most famous structure in Laos, the That Luang stupa. A drink in a riverside bar watching the glorious sunset over the Mekong River is the perfect way to finish our day.
***********
This morning we started our explorations of Vientiane. The Loa name is Viang Jan, pronounced as Wiang Jan. The French could not pronounce it correctly and changed it to a similar name that they could spell and say. The Lao name means city of the moon. It is the most developed and international city that we have been in Laos.
By means of walking and taxi, we explored temples, statues, and the Patuxai monument or the vertical runway. Americans gave the governmamt dollars to extend the runway and the Lao government used the dollars instead to build this monumemt to their communist victory. We found a geocache here.
At the Wat Prakeo, we learned about the various poses of the Buddah and the symbolism now associated with these poses.
 |
| Dennis, Aaron, and Guide Tui |
Photos from Wat Si Saket:
 |
| Stop Fighting |
Today is our last day with our guides Moh and Tui. When we returned to the hotel at noon, we bade a fond farewell toTui as he will be returning to his home in Liang Probang later this adternoon. We will say goodbye to Moh later, as we will be seeing jer tonight, and she will see us off tomorrow morning to Cambodia where we will meet up with a Cambodian guide.
After our lunch, Russ and I, along with Marek and Eva, and Jan headed out to the Buddha park about 29 km out of Vientiane. The park is filled with statuary that reflect both Hinduism and Buddhism. It was interesting and we had a lot of fun taking photos there.
 |
| Could not find the geocache here. |
 |
| Monklings |
Interesting fact..Direct access to Facebook is blocked here. We can only go through a backdoor using our personal app or a link from an email.
Tonight, we are going to the night market and dinner,then we are off to Cambodia in the morning.
Allos Well With the Worrall Travel Rs
No comments:
Post a Comment