Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Other sights, such as the coffee plantations and waterfalls of
Bolaven Plateau
, can also be
taken in on day-trips from Pakse.
Chinese Society House
On No. 5 Road near
Salachampa
For one of the few surviving examples of colonial architecture in the far south, be sure to
check out the
Chinese Society House
, yet another French-era building. With many of the
town's French-influenced buildings in disrepair or already replaced by modern shop houses,
the Society House, beautifully renovated in 1998, is an elegant example of a style on the way
out in rapidly modernizing Pakse.
Champasak Palace Hotel
On the northern edge of Route 13, west of Wat Phabat
To some the
ChampasakPalaceHotel
is majestic, pretty even; to others it's a brash eyesore
that resembles an ugly wedding cake. One thing is certain: it's one of the few prominent re-
minders of the late Prince Boun Oum na Champasak, a colourful character who was the heir
to the Champasak kingdom and one of the most influential southerners of the last century.
Legend has it that Boun Oum needed a palace this size so that he could accommodate his
many concubines. The palace, left incomplete after the one-time prime minister wound up on
the wrong side of history and left for France in the 1970s, was converted into a
hotel
by Thai
investors, who retained its original wooden fittings, tiled pillars and high ceilings. The stucco
motifs on the gables depicting the country's post-revolutionary zeal were not in the prince's
original plans.
Champasak Provincial Museum
1.5km east of the town centre on Route 13 ∙ Mon-Fri 8-11.30am & 1.30-4pm ∙ 10,000K
