Betty

She knows not why she was born. She knows not her purpose in life. She knows not why she is here.

And yet she is happy. She plays. She frolics like a puppy though she is middle aged. She nibbles limes and makes a face at its sour taste. She runs. She explores. She chases almost everything that moves. She is curious, putting her nose into everything worth investigating. She guards her territory fearlessly. She fights. She gets angry. She feels. She breathes. She lives. She exists.

She is the way she is because, I suspect, she knows that she is safe, protected, taken care of. She is loved.

I should be more like her. Except. She has me to love her. I have no one.

Advice

I do not think I would have any offspring(s) in this lifetime. But if I had, my best advice to them would be, “Follow what I say, not what I do.” 

Bored

In the end, it is always up to me. I have to find my own adventures. I have to plan my own life. I have to make things happen. Of course, I could just sit and do nothing and wait for things to happen. Except that they never will. Nothing ever happens. Nothing exciting, that is. And I am not one to wait for things to happen. I’d just die of boredom. Or worse, do something out of sheer boredom that I may come to regret later.

I don’t know why it has to be like this. Some people’s lives are just full of excitement and adventure. When I look back on this past year, I actually did quite a lot. Changed jobs, went to Moscow, Jogjakarta, Jakarta, Lembah Bujang, Langkawi, Kota Kinabalu, Laos, ran 21 km for the first time, read about 70 books, submitted my application for PhD etc. But it’s not enough. I don’t know why.

I feel like I’m capable of so much more but I’m just sitting around waiting for things to happen. For once I would like something exciting to happen without me looking for it or planning for it.

Right. Back to my boring life.

Choices in the past

I read a book about a magic phone that could call back into the past. Ever the idealistic romantic, it got me thinking.

If, knowing what I know now, I could magically be transported into the past, would I make the same choices I made back then?

Specifically, if I went back to October 2004, would I still choose to be with Philip, knowing what I know now?

Yes, I would. If I had the chance to go through everything I went through with Philip for the 6 (and then some) years that we were together, I would go through it all again. Even though there was no fairy tale ending. Because I was loved. He loved me. And I loved him.

Because I will always choose him. Every time. 

The invisible one

If I thought the universe revolved around me;

If I changed my mind a thousand times,

and when things didn’t turn out the way I wanted them to,

I turned around and blamed it on you,

as if it was your idea in the first place;

If I lost my temper every time things don’t go my way;

If I threw tantrums every time I don’t get what I want;

If I took out my frustrations on you

every time I am stressed or upset;

If I ran to you for help every time I failed;

If I demanded for attention every time

I felt left out;

If I was selfish and irresponsible;

If I refused to compromise;

If I always wanted things my way;

If I disappeared and let you worry about me

because I didn’t care how you would feel;

If I bought you gifts as an apology,

instead of trying to avoid hurting you in the first place;

If I blamed you for my wrong decisions;

If I blamed you for my inadequacies;

If I blamed you because I didn’t try hard enough;

If I blamed you for my failures;

If I blamed you for my insecurities;

If I blamed you for everything bad that happens to me;

If I did all this, will you then love me like you love them?

Luang Prabang - Kuala Lumpur : Day 5

21 November 2016

Karma got me. I woke up at 5.30 a.m. with a terrible tummy ache, and when I went to the toilet there was a baby cockroach. I had no choice. I had to wake Silvia up and she killed it for me and I was having tummy ache for the rest of the morning. This developed into head ache around breakfast time. Luckily it is on the day I go back home.

We reached the airport in time. Here my sinus started. So tummy ache, head ache and sinus, all at once. This is what I get for being nasty to nasty people. According to the Buddha, I am supposed to retaliate against nasty people with nothing but love. I have learned nothing from this trip.

Ours was the first Air Asia flight ever from Luang Prabang to Kuala Lumpur. How eventful. Flight was about 2 hours 45 minutes. By the time we reached KLIA, I couldn’t wait to go home, take my sinus medication and sleep for the rest of the day till work tomorrow. But the first thing I did was to apologize to Geri for not being there for her, for not protecting her and her pups, for not caring enough. I hope she forgives me. I hope I can forgive myself.

Luang Prabang: Day 4 (Part 4)

20 November 2016

And then we were done! We said goodbye to our guide at the night market (after telling him to inform the hotel to pick us up at 9.30 lest we become stowaways again!) and went for another foot massage. Then some last minute shopping and finally, since it was our last evening in Luang Prabang, we sat at a street stall and had noodle soup. I chose the spicier one known as “Khao Suey” but it wasn’t as spicy as expected.

Then back to our convenience store for the last time for beer, chips and good conversation. At 9.30 p.m. we took the shuttle back to our hotel. Before showering, I sat outside our room on the veranda enjoying the night air, and Silvia joined me with a shot of Bekherov (Slovakian liquor without sugar, it tasted foul!) and we were just sitting and talking when this nasty creep in the room next to us stepped out and unkindly told us to keep it down as he was trying to sleep. It was 10.30 p.m.

10.30 p.m.! Creep. Already I have a bad impression of Westerners and today’s experiences merely confirmed my impression. Luckily our room doors did not close very well so I took the opportunity to loudly close the room door several times. I hope he stayed awake for the rest of the night, nasty creep.

Luang Prabang : Day 4 (Part 3)

20 November 2016

After lunch, back on the tuk tuk to the harbour but we stopped at a pottery village on the way. On the way to the pottery village, I did probably the stupidest thing that I ever did in my life. While the tuk tuk was passing by narrow gravel roads which were most probably cleared through a jungle, I decided that it would be a good idea to stick my hand out and touch the beautiful green leaves of the jungle. It had thorns. They tore my poor soft hand in so many different places it wasn’t at all funny.

My first instinct was to hide my stupidity. Then it started bleeding and it stung like you wouldn’t believe so in the end I had to show Silvia and she immediately cleaned all wounds with a wet tissue and put plasters on. No question about where I got the wounds from. Thank God.

The pottery is 100% hand made using really traditional methods. In fact, I think the whole of Laos is still using very traditional methods for all their produce, be it farming or pottery or whiskey/wine. No tractors, no machineries, no technology. Like I said, Malaysia was probably like Laos 50 years ago. On average, a family can make up to 30 pots a day. Even their kiln is traditional, made underground.

After this, to the harbour where we took a ferry this time across the Mekong. Here Silvia asked me what happened to my hand and I told her the truth; I felt that I owed her the truth after she nursed my wounds.

The last tourist site that we will visit here is Mount Phousi, which is about 150 metres above the centre of town. (I think it’s a hill). There were some temples along the way. At the top of Mount Phousi is the golden Wat Chomsi, which was built in 1804. The view from the top is spectacular, a bird’s eye view of Luang Prabang. The sun set was amazing. We went up on one side and used the other set of steps to make our way down again.

Luang Prabang: Day 4 (Part 2)

20 November 2016

The second temple we visited also was built and taken care of by the villagers. In the history of Laos, there had been some trouble with China and some Chinese soldiers had drawn pictures of Chinese soldiers on the walls of this temple. Apparently this was what stopped the Chinese army from destroying this temple.

We were supposed to turn back around but I saw a Buddhist monk walking straight ahead and I asked our guide where he was going and he said there was another temple in a cave nearby. So of course we went to the cave temple! This temple is in a 100m deep limestone cave called Tham Sakkarin Savannakuha. Many Buddha images from temples that have been torched or otherwise fallen into decay are kept here. It was really dark inside and we had to use torch lights, and parts were slippery too. I love caves.

On the way back to the main road we passed a group of tourists and Silvia had an altercation with them and when I asked her what happened, she said that one of them had said in Czech, “here comes the black lady” or something like that, which was referring no doubt to me. Me! All I did was to peacefully walk along the path, minding my own business and contemplating the life of a Buddhist monk this side of the Mekong river. Not necessary for such remarks. Racism is unfortunately very much alive. I’m on holiday so karma can deal with him.

The tuk tuk was waiting for us at the main road, and then we had a very bumpy ride mostly uphill, about 15 km to a Khmu village. Khmu is one of the minority group in Laos. They have their own language but are taught Lao in schools. They are animistic. It was a really small village and I suspect everyone knew each other here. It was a Sunday so children were just running riot playing all sorts of outdoor games. No tv, video games, handphones. They should enjoy it all while they still can.

For lunch we had vegetable and duck soup with sticky rice. I thought the duck was not cooked properly; it was too hard for me so I didn’t finish it. Plus it felt a bit wrong eating duck when I just played with some ducklings earlier.

Luang Prabang: Day 4 (Part 1)

20 November 2016

After another dull breakfast we got on a tuk tuk to the harbour, and got into a sampan to go across the Mekong river.

Upon reaching the other side, we walked for a bit through a Lao village. Most of the houses here are built on stilts, to avoid the flood waters pf the Mekong in the rainy season. Still, many of the villagers are asked to move during the rainy season when the water level of the Mekong river appears dangerous.

The majority of the people who live in Luang Prabang are farmers. There are 2 types of farming – low land (usually beside the river and during the dry season) and high land (more in land, usually sticky rice and during the rainy season).

After walking for about 10 to 15 minutes, we reached a temple which was built and taken care of by the villagers. There was also a monks’ residence here. Then we walked some more and the path (for me) became more and more beautiful because the houses were few and far in between lush plants and trees in various shades of green. There were also kittens and puppies here and there, the place was quiet, untainted by civilization and just so serene.

On the way to the next temple we passed by a sort of clearing which our guide informed us used to be the King’s garden. When the monarchy was overthrown by the present government, they gave the garden to the villagers. Although it was not really taken care of, I still found the view so green and serene. 

Luang Prabang : Day 3 (Part 4)

19 November 2016

The last temple of the day was Vat Aham. This is a small temple with 2 ancient looking stupas. It has a history of both Buddhism and spirit worship. The temple was built in 1818 on the site of a much older temple dating back to 1527. According to our guide, in the 14^th century at the site where the Vat Aham currently stands, a shrine was built for the guardian spirits of Luang Prabang. Nearly two centuries later, the shrines were destroyed by the King who was a staunch Buddhist. Soon after, the town of Luang Prabang was hit by several disasters including diseases, drought and failed harvest. The locals believed the destruction of the spirit shrines to be the cause, and were rebuilt. When the spirit houses were destroyed again in the 20^thcentury, the spirits were believed to have taken residence in the large banyan trees on the temple grounds.

The walls of the temple are covered with colourful murals with depictions of scenes from the Jataka tales, the stories about the previous lives of the Buddha. Other murals contain scenes of Buddhist hell, with rather vivid drawings of the punishments and tortures received by those who stay there.

We were then done for the day, and were dropped off at the night market in the city again. First we walked along the market and bought some souveniers here and there. I think most of the souveniers are over priced because I see mostly foreigners here and you have to bargain which I hate to do. I should’ve just bought souveniers in Vientiane, I think it would be much cheaper there as there are less tourists there.

Then I went for my first foot massage ever (costing around RM20 which according to everyone is cheap) and it wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Then again back to our convenience store for chips and beer. Life is good.

At 9.30 p.m. we waited for the shuttle. By 9.45 p.m. we were contemplating a tuk tuk when I noticed a guy who I guessed was from a hotel, waiting for guests to get into the van. I decided to try playing the damsel in distress so I told him that we were from the Le Vang Bua Hotel and unfortunately our van is not here. It worked. He said we could sit in his van as our hotel was on the way, but we had to walk for about a minute. We had to sit at the back of the van like stowaways but at least we got a free ride safely back!

Thus ended another fruitful day.

Luang Prabang: Day 3 (Part 3)

19 November 2016

After lunch, we had Lao coffee (with condense milk and plain hot tea on the side) and then we were off to Kuang Sy waterfalls. After the heavy lunch and a can of Beer Lao, and despite the strong coffee, I fell asleep in the car. But of course.

“Kuang” means deer and “Sy” means hermit. According to legend, there was a hermit who was thirsty but couldn’t find any water. He saw a deer and asked the deer to find water for him. The deer also couldn’t find any water and sadly reported this to the hermit. The hermit said that if no water was found soonest, he would most likely die. The deer went again in search of water, and, frustrated, he struck his antlers into the ground and lo and behold! There was not only water but a waterfall! The hermit was saved and Kuang Sy waterfall was found.

The view of the waterfall is simply beautiful. This is definitely one of the more beautiful waterfalls that I’ve seen in my life. The water is almost turquoise in colour, due to the limestone rocks. The water is quite cool due to the shade provided by the lush tropical jungle surrounding the falls.

On the way out of the falls area, we passed by sun bears frolicking in enclosures. These are bears rescued from the wild and taken care of here. One was sleeping in a hammock! It’s the cutest thing.

We then headed back to town, where we were supposed to go up Mount Phousi. However, it was already getting late and instead of rushing, we decided to keep Mount Phousi for tomorrow, and visit the remaining important temples today.

Upon our return to the city, we visited the Vat Visoun temple. This temple was built in 1512 by King Visounnarath and is the oldest temple in town. It’s style is reminiscent of Khmer architecture (especially the windows), and there are statues of Buddha here made from stone dating back to the 16^th century.

On the grounds of this temple is a domed shape stupa referred to by locals as the “watermelon stupa”. It was built by the wife of King Visounnarath. According to legend, it was built over an ancient lake that was a danger to the locals as people kept falling in and drowning. 

Luang Prabang: Day 3 (Part 2)

19 November 2016

After breakfast we headed to the Vat May temple, built at the end of the 18^th century. It has a five tiered roof almost touching the floor which according to our guide is a traditional Lao style. An emerald Buddha statue sits inside the red-gold interior. Here we could tell our luck by shaking a tin of sticks and letting one fall on the ground. The number on the stick has a corresponding number being a piece of paper with your luck written on it. Apparently my luck is very very good, I don’t have to worry about money, work or friends. Everything will be taken care of. Oh, and I will most probably have a son. (Roll eyes).

Next, to the Royal Palace or what used to be the Royal Palace. It was built in 1904 during the French colonial era for King Sisavang Vong and his family. The site for the palace was chosen so that official visitors to Luang Prabang could disembark from their river voyages directly below the palace and be received there. After the death of King Sisavang Vong, the Crown Prince Sisavang Vatthana and his family were the last to occupy the grounds. In 1975, the monarchy was overthrown by the communists and the Royal Family were taken to re-education camps. The palace was then converted into a national museum.

The most important and revered statues in all of Luang Prabang is housed here, the “Phra Bang” or Buddha, by which Luang Prabang gets its name. It is made out of a cast of gold, silver and bronze alloy, but some say it’s made of pure gold. This Buddha stands at 83 cm tall and weighs around 50 kg. Legend has it that the statue was made around the 1^st century in Sri Lanka and was later presented to the Khmer King Phaya Sirichantha, who then gave it to King Fa Ngum in 1359 as a Lao Buddhist leader. The Siamese twice took the image to Thailand in 1779 and 1827, but it was returned to Laos by King Mongkut in 1867.

Next, to Vat Xieng Thong or the Temple of the Royal City. Built in Lao architecture in 1560, it features an elaborate tree of life mosaic, intricately carved walls, rare Buddhist deities and a 12-metre high funeral carriage. This temple acts as a gateway to Luang Prabang as it is strategically situated close to where the Mekong joins the Nam Khan River. The temple is famous as the location for the coronation of Lao kings and as an important gathering place for significant annual festivities. The temple still remains in much its original form.  Some of the Buddha statues here apparently date back to the 16^th century.

Then lunch by the river. The menu had Western dishes! We made noise of course, and then they changed the menu – river weed salad, cold salad, vegetable soup, brinjal and pork soup (thick) and chicken lap (minced chicken). I suspect they held back on the chillis again. According to Silvia, we are the odd ones out for wanting to eat local dishes, the other Western tourists are happy to eat Western food. I agree with Silvia. We are the odd ones out. But what’s the point of eating Western food in Laos??

Luang Prabang: Day 3 (Part 1)

19 November 2016

We woke up at 5.30 a.m. this morning, and left the hotel at 6 a.m. to go into town to watch the alms giving ceremony. This is when the locals give all kinds of food to the Buddhist monks; this is their food for the day. Silvia and I bought a basket of sticky rice, and we knelt on the mat left by the locals along the road, and then the monks in saffron robes came in a procession and we gave them a pinch of sticky rice each.

According to our guide, families from all over Laos who cannot afford education for their children, send their children to Buddhist monasteries to learn the ways of a monk, and they will also receive an education. At the age of majority, they can choose whether to continue being a Buddhist monk or to lead a normal life. It’s not easy I guess, especially if you’re a growing child, having to depend on the kindness of society to feed you every day. Having to wake up at 5 a.m., walk to town and collect food for the day.

After this we went to the morning market where the locals sold and bought all their daily needs. We saw some pretty bizarre things here such as frogs, moles, worms, live fish, a tortoise, river weed, various types of vegetables and various types of fish from the Mekong river. Some were really big. Silvia wanted to try the blood sausage but it was made of cows’ blood so we bought pork sausages instead. It was not bad but not great either.

Then back to the hotel for breakfast, which was not very good. Not many local dishes, and the coffee was so weak it felt like I was drinking milk with sugar.

And then more devastating news. Philip found a 6^th dead pup. Will this nightmare never end? 6 dead puppies! Poor, poor Geri.

Luang Prabang: Day 2 (Part 2)

18 November 2016

Then into the boat again, where we ate lunch bought by our guide, which was fried rice. Not very tasty and not at all spicy, I think our guide probably ordered it less spicy thinking we can’t eat spicy food. He has no idea.

Next stop is Ban Xang Hai village, famous for producing Lao wine and Lao whiskey. “Ban” means village in Lao. We walked through the village for a bit, and we saw many bottles containing dead snakes, centipedes, bear paws and herbs. According to our guide, these are whiskey used for medicinal purposes – to cure headaches in particular. There was one with a cobra! Then we were told about the traditional methods in producing Lao wine and Lao whiskey, which is made from sticky rice, and left to ferment in hand made earthen jars.

And then we got to try Lao whiskey, with 50% alcohol (known as “lao lao”). It was surprisingly smooth. Then 2 types of Lao wine (15% alcohol); one was brownish in colour made from white sticky rice and the other was sweeter and reddish in colour made from black sticky rice. I bought a 100ml bottle of the brown wine and Silvia bought the red.

Then back to the boat to another village, Ban Xang Khong. This village is famous for its wood paper and Lao silk weaving. The wood paper is made from the bark of the mulberry tree, soaked for days and then mushed up and finally weaved into paper.

We walked around a bit and saw some temples, one in particular with young monks busy sweeping the temple grounds and right opposite them, sitting on the second floor of a building and smoking a cigarette, sat and old monk overseeing the antics of the young monks. Smoking??

On the way back to the harbour by boat, we saw many young monks playing by the river, frolicking around and jumping into the water. They seemed really happy, as if untainted by the harsh realities of life, despite not knowing whether they will have enough to eat the next day, or what they will have to eat the next day. As if today is the only day that matters. It’s a wonderful feeling just watching them through half closed eyes as we cruised along the Mekong.

Then back to the hotel, where we discovered that we were not strategically located. If we crossed a bamboo bridge along the Mekong river, we could reach the city centre in about 10 minutes. However, the bridge was under repair. So if we were to walk to town it would take us about 15-20 minutes. The hotel did however provide shuttle service to and from town, everyday at 6.30 p.m. to town and 9.30 p.m. from town. But today our guide dropped us in town where we walked around the night market and picked out stuff that we could potentially buy. I was not very hungry, so in the end we found a convenience store where we bought beer and chips and sat outside the store (there were chairs and tables there) and talked and drank beer and ate chips and watched the world go by.

At 9.30 p.m. we took the shuttle van back to the hotel, then shower and sleep. 

Luang Prabang : Day 2 (Part 1)

18 November 2016

Breakfast was rice soup, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausage with Lao coffee – delicious!

Then off to the airport for our flight to Luang Prabang. The entire town of Luang Prabang is a World Heritage Site, situated in a valley. It has a population of about 78,000 people. It was the shortest flight in my life, 30 minutes including take off and landing.

Our guide Lon met us at the airport and took us to the hotel to check in. I liked the ambience of the hotel, but we later discovered that it was not in a very strategic location i.e. not walking distance to the city.

From the hotel we went to the harbour where we alighted a very pretty (and much too big) boat for a cruise along the Mekong river. The harbour is situated where the Nam Khong river meets the Mekong river. The views from the river were very beautiful. During the dry season (which was now), the depth of the Mekong is about 10 metres deep. During the rainy season, it can go up to 50 metres deep!

After about 2 hours, we arrived at the Pak Ou Caves, formed from limestone cliffs. “Pak” means mouth and “Ou” is from the name of the river Nam Ou. So, mouth of the river Nam Ou. The Cave is divided into the lower (Tham Ting) and upper (Than Theung) cave. In the lower cave, we saw thousands of Buddha icons (according to our guide, more than 7,000) made of wood, metal and clay, which were brought and left in the cave from the 17^th century till to date. Originally, the cave was in reverence to the spirit of the river and later, to Buddha. People from all over Laos come to the cave to leave a Buddha icon in the cave.

The upper cave is a much bigger cavity with more Buddha statues. According to our guide, in the 8^th century, Lao people came from South China, and stayed in the upper cave for some time before eventually venturing out and constructing villages, farms etc

The caves are a very popular pilgrim site for locals especially during the Lao New Year in April (suspiciously the Tamil New Year is also in April) when the locals will wash and attend to the images. There are markings on the outer wall of the lower cave marking the height of the Mekong river when it floods; the worst was in 1966 and thereafter in 2008 and 2009. 

Vientiane: Day 1 (Part 4)

17 November 2016

Next destination is Patuxay. This building was built in 1957, and is the most prominent landmark in the city. It was inspired by the architecture of Arc de Triomphe in Paris, built in typical Lao motifs. We climbed about 284 steps (by my count) and enjoyed an excellent panoramic view of the city from the top of the monument.

I find Vientiane very clean, reasonably structured, and very slow paced. This was probably what Malaysia looked like 50 years ago. More importantly, I got the impression that the people here are contented and happy with what little they have. In my opinion, this is the best kind of happiness.

And then we were done for the day. Back to the hotel to check in and freshen up, and here I received devastating news (and photos) from back home. When Philip went to feed the girls, he found 3 dead pups around the garden, and 2 dead pups in the store room being carefully guarded by Geri. The newborn pups had been mauled, some with heads and stomach bitten off and missing. Of course I suspect Molly although there are 2 male stray dogs mooching around the house. I suspect Molly because I saw with my own eyes her vicious attack on Betty, an attack that was unprovoked and without rhyme or reason.

But here’s the saddest part. Philip dug a hole in the garden to bury the pups, but Geri wouldn’t let go of the 2 dead pups that she was guarding, she must’ve thought they were still alive. He had to lure her away with trickery, and then he locked her in the store room while he buried all 5 dead pups. Born only to die. And the Geri! The poor whistling, singing Geri! How she would’ve felt after being in labour and giving birth, there is no way she could’ve protected all her pups from murderous, evil intentions. I’m so upset that I wasn’t there to protect her. And now they’re all dead!

With a heavy heart we walked from the hotel towards the Mekong river to watch the sun set. I was contemplating the meaning of life, death and reincarnation. It seems so senseless for the pups to be born only to die, and to die such horrible deaths. They had their whole lives ahead of them. Why? This is a question I will never get the answer to.

After that we walked through the night market along the river, had dinner (pork rice and fried noodles and Beer Lao) and then back to the hotel to pack and sleep.

Vientiane: Day 1 (Part 3)

17 November 2016

Then, to lunch at a local restaurant beside the Mekong river. Just across the river is Thailand. Countries bordered by a river. Here I tasted my first Beer Lao, and it was good! I think I like it even more than Bintang Beer in Indonesia. What I want to know is, why there is no local beer in Malaysia.

Anyway. For lunch we had local food which consisted of sticky rice (you have to roll it into a ball and eat it with the dishes), tilapia from the Mekong river cooked with lemongrass, spicy papaya salad, water buffalo beef lap (salad) and a plate of fresh herbs – basil, kafir leaves and another vegetable that I do not know. The papaya salad was spicy and according to Silvia, the beef lap even more so, and I was surprised to learn that Lao people loved spicy food. I’ll fit right in!

After lunch we went to Pha That Louang, an important stupa built in 1566 and reconstructed in 1930, considered the symbol of Laos as it is the most important Laotian religious and national monument. The top is covered with pure gold. The architecture of the stupa is in Lao style influenced by Buddhist beliefs.

Locals say that it was originally built as early as the third century to house a breastbone of the Lord Buddha brought to Laos by an Indian missionary. However, the current structure was built by King Setthathirat in 1566 on the site of a 13th century Khmer ruin. He named Vientiane the capital after Luang Prabang in the mid-sixteenth century. There is a statue of him in front of the main entrance to That Luang. We just missed a big celebration as we could see the remnants of the same all around the stupa grounds. We went around the stupa and lit a candle.

Beside this there was a temple known as Vat Sisaket. This is a beautiful temple dating back to 1818. It has thousands of tiny Buddha images and rows with hundreds of seated Buddhas. These images mainly date from the 16^th to 19^th centuries and come in all sizes and are made from wood, stone and bronze – more than 6,800 Buddhas in total.

We were supposed to visit another temple, Vat Phra Keo but unfortunately it is under construction at the moment. Apparently this temple used to house the Emerald Buddha. According to our guide, legend has it that the Emerald Buddha was forged in Sri Lanka, and then given to Cambodia as a gift. A prince in Thailand fell in love with a princess from Cambodia and as a wedding gift, the princess’ father gave the Emerald Buddha to Thailand. Laos and Thailand then had some dispute and the Emerald Buddha was taken to Laos from Thailand, and currently it is back in Bangkok, Thailand. 

Vientiane: Day 1 (Part 2)

17 November 2016

First we went to the morning market where the local people were selling all sorts of local products, mainly vegetables which were farmed by themselves, and many of the buyers were also locals. However as it was already late morning, the crowd had already begun to dwindle – the market starts at 4.30 am! The weather here is quite hot, and I of course forgot to bring my sunglasses.  

Then we went on a local bus (about USD0.60 for about 25 km away from the city) to the Beer Lao brewery. This is their local beer which comes in 3 flavours – regular, dark and gold (premium).

Next, to the Buddha Park. This park is home to more than 200 Buddha statues and an enormous reclining Buddha image which is 40 m in length. The best spot for photography here is on top of the giant dome structure standing about three stories high. The entrance is crafted to look like a demon’s mouth (about three metres high) with a stone ladder inside leading to a bird's eye view of the entire park. The dome is divided into 3 parts – earth when you enter, hell down a flight of really narrow stairs, and heaven up a flight of equally narrow stairs. But the view from the top is mesmerizing.

The park was built in 1958 by Luang Pu Bunleua Sulilat, a monk who studied both Buddhism and Hinduism. This explains why the park is full not only of Buddha images but also of Hindu gods as well as demons and animals from both beliefs. His statue is also in the park.

Some that I remember are Indra, the king of Hindu gods riding the three-headed elephant, a crocodile, a god or demon of the sun and moon, and my favourite was of a 4 faced god/buddha/demon with 8 hands stretching out to the ground. There was also Hanuman and Ganesha at the edge of the park, by the Mekong river where he is apparently covered up to the waist when the river floods. 

Vientiane : Day 1 (Part 1)

17 November 2016

Geri was in labour I think but I’d no time to await the arrival of her pups. Seems like I’m always away when pups are born; I was in Moscow when Molly’s pups arrived.

2 and ½ hour flight to Vientiane, the capital city of Laos. “Lao” means kingdom and “Prabang” means Buddha; so the kingdom of Buddha. Lao People’s Democratic Republic or Laos has a population of about 5.5 million people. There are about 500,000 people in Vientiane. Laos is 1 hour behind Malaysia, so we arrived at about 9 am Malaysia time, 8 am Laos time. Our guide Phet (pronounced Pat) met us at the airport, we left our bags at the hotel and had Lao coffee (it’s done with condense milk and comes with plain tea on the side) and a baguette (a remnant of the French colonists).

Present day Laos traces its historic and cultural identity to the kingdom of Lan Xang Hom Khao (Kingdom of a Million Elephants Under the White Parasol), existed for four centuries as one of the largest kingdoms in Southeast Asia. It was founded in the 14^th century by a Lao prince Fa Ngum, who with 10,000 Khmer troops, took over Vientiane. Fa Ngum was descended from a long line of Lao kings, tracing back to Khoun Boulom. He made Theravada Buddhism the state religion and Lan Xang prospered. His ministers, unable to tolerate his ruthlessness, forced him into exile to the present-day Thai province of Nan in 1373, where he died. 

It was not until 1637, when Sourigna Vongsa ascended the throne, that Lan Xang would further expand its frontiers. His reign is often regarded as Laos's golden age. When he died, leaving Lan Xang without an heir, the kingdom divided into three principalities — Luang Phrabang, Vientiane and Champasak. In 1893, it became a French protectorate, with the three territories uniting to form what is now known as Laos. It briefly gained independence in 1945 after Japanese occupation, but returned to French rule until it was granted autonomy in 1949. Laos became independent in 1953, with a constitutional monarchy under Sisavang Vong. Shortly after independence, a long civil war ended the monarchy, when the Communist Pathet Lao movement came to power in 1975.

Laos is a one-party republic. The government came into power in 1975 after overthrowing the royal government. According to Phet, it is 50% communist and 50% socialist, and 80% of the Lao people are happy with the present government. The official language is Lao. Apparently it is one of the most heavily bombed countries in the world, thanks to the Vietnam war. There are still bombs and land mines around, undiscovered.

Laos is a multi-ethnic country with the politically and culturally dominant Lao people making up approximately 60% of the population, mostly in the lowlands. 75% of the population are Buddhists; 25% are animistic. The minority tribes are Khmu, Hmong and Tibetans, who are usually animistic. The main exports of Laos are gold, copper, silver and timber, electricity generated from the Mekong river, and tourism. The currency is known as “kip”. US$1 is equivalent to about 8,300 kip. “Sabaidee” means hello and “Kop Chai” means thank you.