Laos: Vientiane - Cherry's Diary: Our new home

Finally my half-sister Lily & I have a new home. A new home far from Bangkok. A new home in another country called Laos in the capital city of Vientiane. A new home surrounded by trees and plants & compared to Bangkok, this is a dream come true. We have our very own house, which is roomy & quite comfortable for our needs. We have a large garden to play in and explore and being surrounded by high walls a very safe place, too. ..... although, given the opportunity we both love to escape and roam in the quite Soi (street) outside and explore the Buddhist temple opposite. The young monks are very friendly and do not mind us playing around. Every morning, after a quick breakfast, Nigel takes me for a walk along the banks of the mighty River Mekong. At the moment, Lily is still too young to enjoy this walk, really, I think, she hates being on the lead. I like it, as I am always close to my master, but still able to explore and I have made a number of doggy friends too..... Life is just perfect:

The main house

This is our new house, which is roomy but quite cosy & is connected to the main house

Given the opportunity we do like to sit in comfort in the Main House watching the TV or just falling asleep.....

That's me

& this is my half- sister, Lily

The garden is a a great place to explore and has many interesting plants:

A pretty blossom tree

and produces Carambola or Star Fruit

We have our own large Mango tree

a couple of delicious Yellow Coconut palms

and a number of Banana Plants, too....

Here are the gates to the property from the quiet Soi

& here am I on guard duty.......

View of the gates to our home from the Buddhist temple

The temple from the front....

The Temple Bell-Tower has many stone carved animals in front...



Here are a couple of pictures, taken on my walk along the Mekong River, close-by
to home.

A Fish farm

A fisherman with traditional fishing net...

Young fisherman

Laos; Vientiane - Haw Pha Kaeo

My second stop on my "temple tour" is to Haw Pha Kaeo just a short walk from Wat Si Saket. This was once a royal temple built specifically to house the sacred Emerald Buddha, one of the most revered images in all of Southeast Asia and the symbol of Thailand. The temple was originally built in  1565 by command of King Setthathirat and was his personal place of worship.

The Emerald Buddha remained in situ until 1779 when, following a skirmish with the Siamese, the image was taken and installed in Wat Phra Kaew in Bangkok by King Rama I of Siam.  Haw Pha Kaeo stood until 1827 when Vientiane was completed destroyed by Siamese troops.

The Temple stood in ruins for many years until it was finally rebuilt between 1936 and 1942. The restoration being carried out, with French aid, by Prince Souvanna Phouma upon his return to Laos, following his engineering studies in France. According to contemporary studies, the reconstructed Temple followed the original 16th century plan exactly. However Haw Pha Kaeo,  seemingly, resembles more of a 19th century Bangkok-style Hall.

Whatever the case, the Temple is fine piece of architecture and serves today as a museum of Lao Buddhist art, surrounded by a lush landscape garden.........

 

The  Garden entrance to Haw Pha Kaeo

The second terrace of the Ordination Hall

 

Lotus lily carved corner stone

 

Buddha figures line the  colonnade that surrounds the Hall

 

One of the Buddha figures in the colonnade

Photography is prohibited inside the temple.....

Laos: Vientiane - Wat Si Saket

Historically, Vientiane has had more than its fair share of invasions, rebellions, wholesale destruction and foreign subjugation. Yet despite this, there are still a number of interesting places to visit. During the limited time I had here, I concentrated my attentions on only three of the countless dozens of Buddhist Temples to be found located throughout the city.

My first stop was to Wat Si Saket, built between 1819 and 1824 by Prince Chao Anou, the ruler of Vientiane at the time. It is believed to be the oldest surviving temple in Vientiane.
Prince Chao Anou had been educated at the Siamese Court and, thus, Wat Si Sakat was constructed in the 'early Bangkok' style and surrounded by a walled Cloister, similar to that which surrounds Pha That Luang. Today this beautiful Temple is both a place of worship and a national museum.....

 

Main Entrance Gate to Wat Si Saket

 

The 'Bangkok-style' Ordination Hall

 

The colonnade enclosing the Ordination Hall

 

Part of the thick-walled Cloister that surrounds the Inner Courtyard

 

Numerous Buddha images line the Cloister

 

The Cloister walls are full of tiny niches containing over

2000 silver and ceramic Buddha images

Beyond the cloistered walls housing the Ordination Hall is the working Temple - 

 

This is the raised 'Haw Tai' or Tripitaka Library

close to the main entrance and built partly upon the

exterior walls of the temple Complex.

The Buddhist scriptures that were once housed in here

are now in Bangkok

An old stupa close to the 'working' temple

  

Monk cells........

En route to Laos

A couple of weeks back, I made my first foray into Laos, that land locked country bounded by Thailand, Myanmar (Burma), China, Vietnam and finally Cambodia. My visit was to Vientiane, the capital and was two fold. First, to renew my Thai visa and second to visit the home of Bruce, my close friend, whose family hails from here.

Vientiane is about 525 km NNE from Bangkok and lies on the banks of the great River Mekong. We had three options of travelling there; plane, bus or train.
We chose the train option, the least quickest of them all. But the most fun. Requiring, as it did, of an overnight journey, a further short bus journey to the frontier station that lies across the "Friendship Bridge" which crosses the River Mekong. and then a further ride to Vientiane.....

I enjoy train travel for there is something inherently 'romantic' about them, conjuring up a bygone age. Also I am able to stretch my legs and not feel cooped up and restless, that I always experience when travelling by road. Here in Thailand the railway system is old and in dire need of modernisation. The carriages, I am sure, belonging originally to the railroads of China and Korea. The sleeping cars are cramped and noisy, but the couchettes surprisingly comfortable, (on the lower berth only). And, strangely, I am reminded of the night train scene from the 1959 movie "Some like it hot".....!! But alas there is no Marilyn Monroe or Jack Lemmon on this journey.
I slept fitfully as the train crawled through the night to its destination of Non Kai on the Thai side of the River Mekong. At Non Kai, we were given an unexpected lift by an old acquaintance of Bruce's, to the bus station, then a short journey by public bus took us through the Thai border formalities, crossed over the bridge into Laos and after more form filling and visa fees, I found myself in a new country...... Here, Bruce's brother-in-law took us into the city in his pick-up truck and a much needed lunch stop.....

 

Train sign

 

Relaxing on the train

 

Bruce looking excited at

visiting his home city

 

Relaxing in my couchette

 

In the back of a pick-up truck to the Thai border .........