Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
able mix of Luang Prabang and Vientiane styles, but the rebuilt watermelon stupa is still quite
unique.
Wat Aham
Ban Wat Aham ∙ 20,000K (includes Wat Visoun)
Next door to
Wat Visoun
,
atmospheric
Wat Aham
features a delightfully diminutive, unre-
stored
sim
, protected by stucco statues of leering guards and tigers with Cheshire cat smiles,
and a couple of mould-blackened
that
, one with a picturesque slant. This wat is associ-
ated with
Phu Nyoe
and
Nya Nyoe
, the shaggy, red-faced spirits that are believed to be the
founders and protectors of Luang Prabang. Effigies of the two deities head the parade during
the Lao New Year festivities in April, and they are believed to inhabit the two venerable
ban-
yan trees
whose shade-giving canopies make this a pleasant place to linger.
UXO Lao Visitor Centre
Behind President Souphanouvong Park, 1km south of the old city ∙ Mon-Fri 8am-noon & 1-4pm ∙ Free, dona-
tions welcome ∙
uxolao.org
The
UXO Lao Visitor Centre
addresses the devastating impact on Laos of the US's nine-
year bombing campaign during the Second Indochina War. The small but well-crafted exhib-
ition lays out the shocking statistics - more ordnance was dropped on the country than was
used during the whole of World War II - and outlines the uphill task facing UXO Lao. Des-
pite clearing some three million square metres of land a year, it's estimated that even now it
will still take over a hundred years to rid the country of cluster bombs alone.
Ock Pop Tok
Photisalath Rd ∙ Tours every 30min: daily 8.30am-5pm; free ∙ Classes from $59 (half-day) ∙ 071 212597,
ockpoptok.com
∙ Free tuk-tuks run during the daytime to the Living Crafts Centre from
Ock Pop Tok's shops
in the old city
Tucked down a bumpy lane on the banks of the Mekong opposite
Phosy Market
,
Ock Pop
Tok
(“East Meets West”) offers fascinating guided tours of its
Living Crafts Centre
, which
employs thirty expert weavers from local villages. The women work for a decent local wage
to their own schedules on looms custom-made for their body sizes. The intricate processes of
traditional dyeing and weaving - it takes over three weeks to create a typical wall-hanging -
are brought alive by enthusiastic and insightful commentary, and the quality of workmanship
on show is superb. The centre also runs excellent
classes and workshops
in natural dyes,
weaving and batik, ranging from a few hours up to three days. Each student is allotted a mas-
ter weaver and a translator, and if you're nimble-fingered enough you should be able to come
away with a reasonable two-colour scarf after two days of satisfying toil. You can also stay
here at the centre's lovely
villa
or come for lunch at the breezy riverside
Silk Road Café
.