Destination Laos: Part 5 Patuxai

Did a huge pointless detour and found my way back onto Thanon Lane Xang again after attempting an, ahem, shortcut.

Nevertheless having guided myself back onto the broad street, it was a short stroll before i saw the unmisteakable form of the Patuxai in front of me.

Looks like its Parisian cousin, no? Also known as the vertical runway as it was built with American cement donated for the construction of a new airstrip. Speaking of which, Laos is littered with old Air America bases and previously top secret airstrips with code names like Lima site number 5, remnants of the Second Indochina war. Along with more malicious souvenirs like a load of warscrap and UXO (unexploded ordnance) from tennis ball sized bomblets to huge missiles that maim or kill when local villagers attempt to defuse them to extract the scrap metal which they sell to make ends meet. Laos is, tragically, the most bombed country on earth.

Sitting outside on the benches in the garden surrounding the Patuxai one gets a feel of Lao, the easy going, laid back and "please don't rush" mentality. The endearing honesty of this land, true jewel of the Mekong as proclaims so many travel brochures and souvenir T-shirts, best encapsulated in the official looking plaque that proclaims the Patuxai a "monster of concrete". It was a great feeling, just lounging on the park benches on a lazy afternoon, scribbling random thoughts into my diary, watching the world go by.

Ceiling Detail at the Patuxai

Dropped by the Talat Sao and the nearby Ethnic Minorities Handicraft Market on the way back to the riverside, basically just following Lan Xang avenue down south. Caught a glimpse of the Talat Sao Mall, an incongruity right next to the venerable Talat Sao, with its spotless concrete facade and shining glass windows. Plus the only elevators and escalators i've seen in Lao. Inside, you find rows of shops selling the latest fashions, accessories, handphones, gold jewellery, furniture, gourmet coffee and a whole load more. In short, you really can't tell it apart form any shopping mall in Malaysia or Singapore. Perhaps this is due to the fact that the Talat Sao Shopping Mall is Malaysian financed and built by a Singaporean developer.