Laos Journey – the land of a million elephants

Welcome to the land of a million elephants

Laos is a forgotten land. Tourists visiting the main tourist attractions of Indochina (such as Bangkok, Angkor Wat or the Mekong Delta), and even travelers exploring less known parts of the region rarely visit this country … It’s a pity, because Laos will welcome visitors with wild, exotic and extraordinarily beautiful vegetation, unique, Buddhist monuments and the smile of friendly, sympathetic, colorfully dressed people.

About the earth and people …

This country on the Indochina Peninsula (bordering the north with China and Burma, the east with Vietnam, the south with Cambodia, and the west with Thailand) is – as the only one in the region – landlocked. There are also highlands and mountains in Laos. At the northern tip of the Annamskie Mountains (the main mountain range of the Indochina Peninsula) lies the most famous geographical region of Laos, the so-called The Plain of Jars. This land is not only exceptionally fertile, but very important to the culture and history of Laotians. On the plain, also known as the Amphora Valley or the Urn Plateau, great stone vessels are “scattered around”: urns and pitchers. Researchers do not agree whether they are burial urns or containers for food and water. They were probably created between the 6th century BCE. and the 9th century AD and they are the work of prehistoric people from the mon-khmer language group (whose culture is completely unknown today). However, according to Lao tales and legends, the plateau in the distant past was inhabited by a race of giants. Their king, Khun Cheung, defeated his enemies after a long, bloody but victorious battle and had large stone vessels forged for lao lao rice wine, which was celebrated triumph.

The country is crossed by a dense network of rivers. And since there are very few paved roads in Laos, rivers are not only a source of water abstraction, but also (and perhaps above all) important transport and communication routes. The most important river in the country (as well as in the entire Indochina region) is the Mekong – the longest river in Southeast Asia, which flows through Laos for almost 1/3 of its length, marking its borders with Burma and Thailand.

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