Pa Ouk caves were interesting, I can't imagine why they put so many Buddhas in these caves, unless it was to protect them from something, or someone. It was a beautiful trip on the boat which I really enjoyed more than the caves. So peaceful and picturesque.
I caught the bus this morning to Vang Vieng and again their was a chap with an AK 47 on board keeping harm from us, or us from harm or some such theory. Hardly had the bus been on the road half an hour than the bus conductor was handing out little rose tinted barf bags. I wonder what archaeologists in the future will make of this society which preserves bodily wastes so lovingly (in non-biodegradable plastic to enhance longevity) sprinkled along major transportation routes. Not to mention a society that so reveres the canine as to preserve it's fecal matter with similar scrupulousness In densely populated cities across the globe.
There is quite a distinct difference between the architecture, housing materials and clothing styles of the people up North and those down here in central Lao. But wow you should see the tourists in this town, It could be the new Bali or Goa. I must take photo's of the creatures in their natural habitat, lounging about on matress' watching television, drinking whisky. Tomorrow there is a trance party on I don't know if the opium dens mentioned in the guide book are responsible for this behaviour but I shall endeavour to find out, stay tuned. In fact generally Lao is completely over run with travelers. I realised that the global gypsy has become something more than a phenomenon, it has become an inverse cargo cult and ironically becoming a tourist attraction in and of ourselves.
The entire city of Vang Vieng is undergoing simultaneous renovation, instead of digging up and resealing one street at a time. In true communist fashion they have dug up every street in town and are in the process of rebuilding all the streets, so all the good citizens are inconvenienced equally (for twice as long). The dust is out of control, twice a day a huge water tanker rolls through town spraying the streets so for a few hours you can wander through mud instead of dust, personally I'm not sure this is better, just vexation of a different stripe.
It's funny how when I see a newspaper in these news poor environments I can't wait to read it, there is nothing more heart warming than seeing a story from ones homeland. Yes there was a story from New Zealand (I think it is an old story too, I seem to remember my sister telling me this story a year ago). All over the world New Zealanders are now renowned for being the country where sad, fat, lazy blokes can win Russian brides if they drink enough vodka, hmmm.
The other news item I thought worthy of note was the one from India, a woman and her two sons kidnapped an 8 yr old boy and killed him cutting off his ears and nose apparently in order to cure themselves of their nightmares!!! And they thought they were having nightmares before they took part in a ceremony of mutilation and murder, one can only wonder if they are sleeping peacefully now?
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