Laos captivates you, there is something in the air here amongst forests, tribe villages and watercourses and even if there are sometimes events that make you feel annoyed or upset, here I am getting positive vibes seriously...
I am in one of the most popular destination in the whole region: Luang Prabang, previous capital of the Lan Xang (land of a million elephants) empire; you can hear any accents or languages and you can see every type of tourists, after all is also one of the best preserved old towns and one of the richest, culturally and historically speaking..
I am shocked at times to see how much tourism spoils places and traditions, and I would pay to know what locals think of us "farangs" and our attitude and lack of empathy...
The long and frustrating road from Vientiane takes you for an impressive landscape and small villages born on the side of the only road paved (or being paved!!) and few steps away from the ravines...kids and chickens sharing the same playground and the same risks, open shower (and water supplier) for everyone and a simple basic life based on their own bamboo framed veggie gardens..
Laos has still got the charme and the naivety of what Asia used to be maybe, yet I fear is gonna lose them...as we did in the west, I happened to think these days how it used to be "our world" when we were not so full of ourselves and "rich"!!!!
Laos where is effective a curfew and where is illegal to "get closer" or intimate to local women!!! (just like in Thailand!!!); where the orange robes of the monks are normality and nearly on every corner....or just lining up in hundreads for sunrise to receive alms from people (here in Luang Prabang even from tourists, sadly in a shameful and disturbing way!!! that spoils the real ancient and deep meaning of the ceremony).
I am in one of the most popular destination in the whole region: Luang Prabang, previous capital of the Lan Xang (land of a million elephants) empire; you can hear any accents or languages and you can see every type of tourists, after all is also one of the best preserved old towns and one of the richest, culturally and historically speaking..
I am shocked at times to see how much tourism spoils places and traditions, and I would pay to know what locals think of us "farangs" and our attitude and lack of empathy...
The long and frustrating road from Vientiane takes you for an impressive landscape and small villages born on the side of the only road paved (or being paved!!) and few steps away from the ravines...kids and chickens sharing the same playground and the same risks, open shower (and water supplier) for everyone and a simple basic life based on their own bamboo framed veggie gardens..
Laos has still got the charme and the naivety of what Asia used to be maybe, yet I fear is gonna lose them...as we did in the west, I happened to think these days how it used to be "our world" when we were not so full of ourselves and "rich"!!!!
Laos where is effective a curfew and where is illegal to "get closer" or intimate to local women!!! (just like in Thailand!!!); where the orange robes of the monks are normality and nearly on every corner....or just lining up in hundreads for sunrise to receive alms from people (here in Luang Prabang even from tourists, sadly in a shameful and disturbing way!!! that spoils the real ancient and deep meaning of the ceremony).
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