French and Lao colonial buildings in Vientiane

While touring through Vientiane one will encounter French colonial Villas and administration buildings, old Lao town houses, hidden and forgotten shrines of Vientiane’s guardian deities, small spirit houses and famous temples. Among those last ones are Wat Si Muang - where the city pillar of Vientiane is located -, Wat Sisaket - which miraculously survived the Siamese invasion -, or Wat Ho Phra Keo, the former temple of the revered Emerald Buddha.

Although the French colonial government never had a big budget for impressive and large colonial constructions and buildings as they had in Saigon, Hanoi or to a lesser extend in Phnom Penh, by touring through Vientiane’s present one will experience its French past…

French Colonial Villas (ADB) at the junction Lane Xang - Samsenthai, which belong to the first section of French colonial construction in Vientiane. This first phase of construction took place in 1914 to 1930.

French Colonial Villas right after the junction Samsenthai - Lane Xang on Samsenthai road.

The Sacred Heart Church was constructed between 1914 and 1930 east of the main administrative district.

The church served the French colonists and the Vietnamese administration staff.

Lao colonial houses built for the local elite during the French occupation of Laos. This type of house was built until 1950.

Nowadays many of these houses have disappeared .

Lao housing from the French colonial period is clearly different from other colonial housing styles as well as from traditional Lao housing and architecture.

This Lao colonial house is built on stilts and the walls are made of torchis (mixture of straw, lime and sand) covered with whitewash - another characteristic element of this period.

This Lao colonial house is characterized by the use of architectural structures such as twin gables, a large covered balcony, from the outside visible access points and the significant use of wood.

The use of bricks however is a contribution from the European architecture.

While the French colonial government established national libraries in Vietnam and Cambodia, they only created a small city library in Laos.

In 1956 this library became the Vientiane General Library.

Since then, the Library has been moved several times until it became the Lao National Library in its current building on Samsenthai Road.

The Education Printing Office was first constructed in 1910/11 and used as a school. The school was part of the core establishment of colonial buildings I Vientiane area.

Constructed 1925 as Hôtel du commissariat, was then used as Ministry of Defence. 1980, it was turned into the Revolutionary Exhibition Hall. 1985, it was upgraded to become the Lao Revolutionary Museum.

In 2000 it was re-established as the Lao National Museum.

Namphou Fountain belonged together with the area around That Dam to the second settlement zone during the French colonial area. At the Northeastern corner one can find the former police station, built in 1921 – nowadays the Vietnamese tourism office.

The sala - where the Thais and Laotians meet their friends...

A Sala (Thai: ศาลา), is an open pavilion like construction, which is used as a meeting, resting or relaxation place.
It's main purpose is to protect people from the tropical weather phenomenon, such as intense sun and rain.

Most salas are open on four sides. They can be found throughout Thailand and Laos. Originally salas were built within Buddhist temple areas, also know as Wats, but they can also be located in other places, such as road side shelters, in plantations or in front of private houses.

If a person builds a sala within a temple compound or in another public place, the person will gain merit and the respect of the local community.

A sala located on the ground of a temple is called a sala wat.

While some temples have large salas where the public can hear sermons or receive religious instructions other have only small salas or none at all. In Cambodia, sala also refers to school.

In Thailand's and Laos' more rural areas, travelers can use the salas to rest and reflect. A roadside sala is a sala rim thannon and may be used as a bus stop.

Salas in front of private houses are often constructed from wood, bamboo and thatched with a palm tree roof. This natural material allows the air to freely flow, which is especially helpful during the hotter time of the year. The sala is used by the whole family. It serves as storage, working and resting place, but also to meet friends and other people. The sala is a often used socializing place in Thailand and Laos.

Exploring the Sun... - a laotian joke II

Future Exploration

Four delegates from China, Russia, the United States and Lao PDR attended the United Nations' Meeting. All the nations were discussing about space exploration by the year 2010. Here are some of the conversations:

Chinese Delegate: "By the year 2010, China will start their moon exploration project."

Russian Delegate: "We too, we are going to explore the moon. This time we will see to it that our cosmonauts will step on the moon."

American Delegate: "We, the United States will also explore the moon for second time."

The Lao Delegate announced: "By the year 2010, Laos will explore the sun."

There was a long silence, the American stood up and asked the laotian guy: "Isn't it too hot to explore the sun?"

The Laotian said (smiling): "We had this thought out already. We will do it in the evening."

Interesting places in Vientiane: Nam Pasak Spirit House

Nam Pasak Spirit House of the guardian naga lord Inthachakkhunag, one of the nine guardian naga of Vientiane.

During the French colonization the shrine was owned and cared for by the Vietnamese community,

In 2000 the spirit house reverted back to Lao custodianship.

The shrine houses deities of several different religions and is located at the western end of Vientiane's Mekong riverside.

Usually the small shrine is closed. Best chance to get a glimpse of the interior of the spirit house is in the morning when offerings are made and the shrine is cleaned.

Sinking... - a laotian joke I

Once upon a time, three people were stranded out at sea - A Japanese, a Laotian and a Vietnamese. The boat started leaking and if they do not act fast they would all die.

The Japanese (as usual) was the first to take the initiative. He threw all his Japanese gizmos - CD player, laptop, hi-fi, radio etc. off the boat. The Laotian and the Vietnamese looked at him in disbelief. The Japanese said, "Don't worry...still got a lot more in my country...BANZAIIIEE!"

But the boat was still sinking. The Vietnamese without hesitation started throwing aboard all his dog jerkies, nuoc mam, Pho noodle, etc.. He comforted the other two, "Don't worry. Still have a lot more in my country".

But still the boat was sinking. The Japanese and the Vietnamese looked at the Laotian. Suddenly, without any hesitation and with stride, the Laotian threw the Vietnamese overboard. The poor guy couldn't swim and drowned. The Japanese was shocked. The Laotian said, "Don't worry...still got a lot more in MY country!!!"

Phra That Luang - Laos national symbol

According to the Lao people, Phra That Luang was built in the 3rd century as an Indic temple. Buddhist missionaries, sent by the Emperor Ashoka of India, including Bury Chan and five Arahata monks, who are beliefed to have brought a holy relic of Lord Buddha which resides in the stupa. Phra That Luang was rebuilt in the 13th century as a Khmer temple.

In the mid of the 16th century, Lane Xang King Setthathirat relocated his capital from Luang Prabang to Vientiane. He ordered the re-construction of Phra That Luang in 1566.

Phra That Luang was rebuilt in the northeastern outskirts of Vientiane, about 4 km from the center. Phra That Luang's bases had a length of 69 meters each and was 45 meters high. The main stupa was surrounded by 30 smaller stupas.


In 1641, the Dutch envoy Gerrit van Wuysoff visited Vientiane. He was received by the Lao King at the temple site of Phra That Luang, where he was received in a magnificent ceremony. Gerrit van Wuysoff was impressed by the "enormous pyramid and the top was covered with gold leaf weighing about a thousand pounds".

However, the Phra That Luang stupa was repeatedly plundered by Burmese, Siamese and Chinese invaders.

Phra That Luang was heavily damaged by the Siamese invasion in 1828 and left abandoned. In 1900, Phra That Luang was restored by the French colonialists to its original design based on the drawings from the French architect and explorer Louis Delaporte.

The final reconstruction work was done in the 1930s.

Phra That Luang is revered in a festival each year during November, where laymen honor monks with food offerings. Phra That Luang is the most important symbol of the Lao state and its people.

The Baci ceremony

The Baci ceremony is one of the most important, unique and most regularly held ceremonies in Laos and Thailand’s northeastern Isaan provinces.

The Baci celebration is always sincere, and anyone is welcome to join. During the ceremony a goood health and long life is wished to all its participants.

The Baci ceremony is also known by Laotians and Thais as “Soukhouan” which means the calling and receiving of the soul. People in Laos and Isaan believe that the body has 32 parts and each part comes with its own wandering soul. While the ceremony is held, the absent souls are asked to return to their physical bodies.
This is part of the ceremony is usually performed by an elderly man also known as a “Thit” or “Chane” a former monk.

On the day of Soukkhouan the participating people take a tray called a “Phakouan” with them. The tray is made of banana leafs filled with flowers, the “champa” or frangipani flower, which is the national flower of Laos.

Other things which are used during the Baci ceremony are: alcohol; eggs; rice cakes; money; candles and cotton thread.

When all the guests have arrived the ceremony will begin with the lighting of the candle on the top of the tray and some incense sticks after which the “Thit” communicates with the divinities. Then cotton thread is nodded around the participants’ wrists, like thin white bracelets.

During a wedding Baci ceremony also money is tied on the wrist of the married couple…

Minority people and cultures of Laos II - impressions

Laos' Plain of Jars - the next UNESCO World Heritage site

The Lao government prepares the nomination dossier to inscribe the Plain of Jars to become the third Lao UNESCO World Heritage site, after the ancient town of Luang Prabang in the north of Laos and the ruined Khmer temple of Vat Phou (Champasak province) in Laos' South. The Plain of Jars is situated on a vast plateau in the Vietnam bordering province of Xieng Khouang. A province, which was often conquered and fought for in the past because of its strategic importance to the Vietnamese Emperors residing in Hue as well as to the Kings of the Lao Kingdom of Lane Xang.

The jars can be found all over the plateau, scattered in clusters of up to 300 at different spots, and varying in size from one to over three meters in height. However, the most famous jar sites are located in close proximity to the town of Phonsavanh, the provincial capital of Xieng Khouang province.

Some locals belief, that the jars were build as big distilleries for alcoholic drinks, brewed to celebrate various victories and military campaigns won in the past over ancient enemies. More scientific and archaeological evidence suggests that the jars are used as urns for funerary. They were used by people back in the Bronze Age approximately 2'000 years ago.

In the Second Indochina War, Xieng Khouang once again, played an important role as battle ground in the fights between Pathet Lao revolutionary troops and the Royal Lao government and its American backed Hmong rebels. Many battles and intense aerial bombardments took place. Its legacy, the contamination of the land with unexploded mines and bombs, still takes its toll today amongst the rural villages and farmers.

However, nowadays Xieng Khouang province in central Laos is a peaceful area with a cooler weather then elsewhere in Laos, vast grasslands, ethnic minorities and a developing tourism industry with good hotels and interesting attractions.

The Plain of Jars can be reached either from the Lao side by air from Vientiane or by following the National highway 7 from Phou Khoun or from Vietnam. The Lao government is constructing the National highway 10 from Phonsavan to Pakxan, which will link the province even closer with Vientiane and the Southern Lao provinces.