BY NICOLA APORTI

Living in Shanghai is exciting: most, if not all, Shanghai’s expats (as well as, of course, real Shanghainese) will share this view.

Nevertheless, nature and green spaces are indeed something missing in Shanghai. There are a few parks; most streets in the French Concession are sidelined with trees, but still the prevailing feeling is being suffocated by buildings, cement, cars, people…

When, after a long spell on the Yangtze Delta, this feeling of physical oppression becomes too strong … it’s time to head southwards!

Laos is not far away from Shanghai: a little more than one hour to go to Kunming, a little less then two to arrive in Vientiane – and to understand, once you have arrived there, that you must have crossed some invisible borders and have entered a new world.

1. Vientiane , the capital

Vientiane welcomes you with what is supposed to be the quietest and less busy airport of the world, and you might find yourself as the only one wandering in its aisles looking for the info desk where a friendly lady might interrupt her nap to provide you with the list of hotels you were asking for.

Vientiane is the capital of Laos, although it is a little bizarre thinking that this lay-down city, with more trees than buildings where, except for a tall hotel on the Mekong, I would say no building has more than 4 floors, is a Country’s capital.

Walking dows its roads, tuk-tuks queue up to pick up tourists as well as local villagers returning to their homes after a market day; sometimes you might encounter some of those vehicles parked on the side of the street, the driver sleeping and loudly snoring on his seat, and you might feel unconfortable to wake him up asking for a ride.

The whole city is spread on the right bank of Mekong river, this huge snake crawling from the high plateau of Tibet down through the whole Indochina, and marking the border with Thailand, which stands just in front of the drowsy capital of Laos.

The promenade on the Mekong is something unexpected. Nothing monumental or solemn; rather, an “off-the-beaten track” muddy path, not wide enough to allow two people to walk side by side, passing through small stands offering local food to be eaten sitting the Lao way on matterasses on the floor, staring at Mekong’s eternal stream.

The city has indeed some interesting feature: the Pha That Luang, the most important national monumnent, the That Dam (or black stupa) and many other Wat temples, all in the typical Lao style.

A little french taste still remains in a few colonial style houses, in a few boulangeries, and in what is an asian version of the Champs Elysees…

Beside this, maybe one of Vientiane’s the biggest surprises is its nightlife. Which, simply, does not exist.

A law passed by Laos’government imposes a curfew all over the Country: after 11.30 any kind of shop, retaurant, disco, etc shall close.

This causes discos to open at 8.30 pm and close at 11,30 (!), but the main effect is that streets are empy and mostly unlit after 11 pm.

Only a couple of dodgy places make exception, one being situated within the biggest and tallest Hotel of the city, on the Mekong’s bank, gathering basically two kind of people – curious tourists looking for a couple of extra beers and hookers.

This city is living at the same slow pace as the whole Country, and it is interesting to notice that the few evident signals of development all bear the “made in China” label: the biggest shopping mall of the Country has just been inaugurated in August 2007, needless to say with Chinese capital (almost all of the available space has been allocated to Chinese stores). Entrepreneurs from Yunnan, Hunan and elsewhere in China are little by little streming into Laos to set up small factories, or even just to sell their made in China products… just take a look at the Talat Sao market, where most of tpyical Laos handicraft products are made in China!

2. Going North

A couple of days in Vientiane is pretty enough to appreciate this city, and to get more familiar with this Country. After this, moving north is a great way to get really into it!

Vang Viengh well deserves to be the first stop. Situated just 150 km away form Vientiane, this tiny village is nested in between a wonderful limestone area. The landscape is magic and primordial, with bizarrely-shaped hills, jungle and wild rivers offering un unforgettable scenario.

No wonders that Vang Viengh has become one of the most popular tourist destination in Laos; and, being Laos a backpacker’s paridise, no wonders for Vang Vieng being a must for hippies looking for some fun in one of the countless pubs providing happy food, happy drinks and happy shakes!

Something not to be missed in Vang Viengh is tubing: it is possible to rent tubes and to jump in the Nam Song river, being carried for a couple of hours by the stream through wild scenarios; by the way, it is nice to have a (happy) beer-stop in one of the numerous pubs recently opened on the banks, in some of whom you can enjoy the experience of jumping into the river holding to a rope – the Tarzan’s way.

When Vang Viengh has given you the amount of adrenaline you were looking for, and you feel happy enough, next stop shall be Luang Prabang, the old capital, one of the most beautiful cities in Asia.

Perched at the confluence of the Nam Khan river into Mekong, this small city is literally the heart of Laos’ culture.

Dating back as of the 8^th century AD, it reached its most glorious epoque until the 16^th century, when it used to be called “the city of gold” and was the prosperous capital of Lan Xan kingdom.

The city hosts a surprising number of Wats, most of whom of ancient origin and concealing buddhist art treasures. The Wat Xieng Thong is doubtless the most beautiful temple of the city, and maybe of the whole country, but all over the oldest part of Luang Prabang – a tiny peninsula between its two rivers – art’s masterpieces sprawl, in a relaxed atmosphere where old french-colonial buildings, ancient gilded temples and the typical Lao wooden houses coexist next to eachother.

Buddhism might be the soul of Laos; for sure it is Luang Prabang’s. The streets are teeming with shaven-heads, orange-dressed monks, and one of the strongest experiences to live is to attend the daily morning ryth of the alm.

At 5 am thousands of monks, queuing up on the street side, invade every corner of the city in a silent procession. They stop at every house, gently knock at the door, wait for somebody to open and to offer them some rice, some food, or better some kips or baths, all being stucked in the same jar.

The ryth ends with the monk blessing the believer.

This ryth is central in the Lao people culture, and all the population takes part in it.

In fact bouddhism – after a few years of ban – has now been fully re-acceptedand re-collocated in its original pivot position in Lao culture and society, as fundamental element of social cohesion and identity : for instance, it is the morning ryth of giving the alm to monks that officially provided the reason to the cur-few after 11.30 pm.

Luang Prabang is on the way to reach some of Laos most amazing wild areas, including Luang Nam Tha in the far north, close to the border with China.

From this village it is possible to leave for amazing one, two and even three day trekkings in the jungle, tasting the unique contact with an un-touched nature and with isolated communities living in unaccessible villages.

Most of this minorities have very little contact with foreigners, and tourists should be very discrete when approaching them. These tribes being animist, clap of hands or stamping feet on the ground are believed to perturbate the spirits, therefore this kind of behaviour should be avoided.

If jungle is one of the main feature of Laos, the other one is for sure the Mekong, Indochina’s big river.

Laos is, simply, a gift of Mekong.

This river provides fish, water for the fields and the lush forests but mainly this river is indeed one of the worlds’ longest highways: lacking of main long distance roads, Laos relies on Mekong for transportation between main cities and, most of all, small villages, otherwise impossible to reach.

From the northern border with Thailand, in the remote village of Huay Xay, starts one of the most beautiful navigations on the Mekong. With the slow boat, Luang Prabang, roughy 200 km southwards, will be reached in 2 days and one night.

The route sneaks through inaccessible spots, useless to say covered by the most untouched vegetation.

Except for a few fishermen, precariously perched on their long, thin boats, so motionless to seem completely melted with the surrounding landscape, and some occasional villages showing their roofs through the vegetation, no other sign of human life is perceivable.

The night will be spent in the isolated village of Pak Beng, with nothing else to do but staring at the sun that spreads its last beams on the mountains and on the crispy surface of the river.

3. Ten thousand islands…

A gift of Mekong…

This is particularly the case for the marvellous archipelago of Siphandon, at Laos’s southern border with Cambodia.

The river is here 14 km wide, in his riverbed hosts more than 10.000 islands, in Lao language called si phan don, indeed.

The islands are a peaceful shelter for travellers, tourism appearing to become more and more important as revenue for the local community.

Little running water and electricity may scare those more dependent on comfort, but the prize for the brave ones is great: a real Lao experience in un untouched place, enjoying baths in the Mekong, beautiful walks or even bicycle rides in forest; ever-present rice fields are an ideal mirror for ancient temples and the amazing sunsets, while before sleeping nothing is more relaxing than balancing on a comfortable hammock, staring at the stars while the Mekong flows by…

If, after a few days, you have enough of this complete relax, or when you think to have explored each and every corner of the island you are lodging in, the high lands of Boulaven Plateau are just six hours by boat (heading north to Pakse) plus two more by bus (to Paksong) away.

What about sipping one of the world’s best coffee (the Plateau produces the famous Lao coffee, exported all over the world, especially in France), and buying plenty of freshly ground powder to bring home in the Lao coffee’s Mecca, i.e. the coffee market of Paksong? A few spoonful of coffee ground are put into a net and then dipped into hot water; after a while the creamy, sweet, strong Lao coffee will delight you, maybe with an extra spoon of condensed milk.

With that exquisite taste still in the mouth, you might then be eager to adventure once more into the jungle looking for Tat Fan water falls, 120 metres high, one of the highest of south-east asia, certainly one of the most spectacular ones. The path will lead you on the very edge of the cliff, get ready for a breath taking view!

Anything better than this? Maybe yes.

Southern Laos can still surprise you with the amazing Champasak temple. A Khmer site buried in the jungle, a kind of little (an much less visisted) Angkor, with surprisingly well preserved statues, temples, stairs. Originally a hindu temple, the Wat Phu in Champasak (whose age is still to be ascertained, though its most ancient parts are generally dated between 6^th and 8^th centuries) was then converted into a bouddhist site, nevertheless, statues of Hindu gods still was preserved. Climbing the stairs and walking between the remainings of such a glorious site, now invaded by trees, herbs and moss, conceives the feeling of the discovery.

A journey in Laos is a journey in the time, more than in the space.

Despite its wild, untouched nature, its treasures of art, its unforgettable landscapes, the strongest feeling that remains is the magic of the slowliness of its rhythm.

Lao live according to the eternal rhythm of the temple; the whole existence seems to flow away in the same way as the Mekong has been doing from the beginning of the times… and all that remains, is the serenity, the calm, the soothing smile of Lao people.