Pi Mai Lao

  Vientiane, Lao Peoples Dem Rep
April 14, 2009

Sabai Dee Pi Mai Lao is Laos Happy New Year! It is a 3 day celebration that starts today. People dress in bright floral shirts, flower garlands and wide brim hats. The holiday is also celebrated in Thailand at the same time and it is also know as the Water Cleansing Festival. People line the streets with hoses and buckets to douse pedestrians and motor vehicles for 3 days. Families also go to the temples to bathe Buddha and give offerings. Things to watch out for are: hoses, talcum powder, coloured water and small bags of water (like water balloons).
 
We had our complimentary breakfast at the restaurant beside the hotel, Spirit House. Bill had scrambled eggs, but did not like the seasoning, with a croissant and juice. I had corn flakes, (I added my peanut butter) fruit (that I know have to share) and tea.
 
We took a long hike to the downtown area to find a place to do laundry as we were not sure they would be open. We found one and walked back to our hotel and collected our things. Bill is wearing his swim trunks and I have a bikini top on under my shirt. We managed to drop off our laundry and get to an internet cafe dry. We stayed there until 2:00 and then went out into IT.
 
We were drenched before we walked 2 blocks. I bought a hat for 12,000 kip ($2) and we went to a Riverfront spot for lunch, Noy. It is a local place that has a platform and a frame that is covered with tarps for a roof. At first I thought all of these places were set up for the holiday, but the book indicates that thse restaurants are always here.
 
We ordered grilled pork, grilled prawns and I wanted the grilled summer rolls, but pointed to a picture of sausage by mistake (we saw them as we walked up and it looks really good), BeerLao, a shake and Lao Lao. We mixed the shake and Lao Lao together, it was very good. Our lunch was very good and cost 117,000 kip ($19).
 
Bill went back to the room to get the camcorder to video some of the festivities and I stayed at Noy to catch up on my note taking from our recent activities. Bill was gone a long time, so I finally ordered another BeerLao. I was sipping my beer while watching a toddler torture 2 small sparrows in a bamboo cage. The sparrows are normally released at temples (an offering), but for some reason the child was allowed to drag them around like a dog on a leash during lunch. Those poor things!
 
Bill had taken some video on the way back and stopped in at Wat Xieng Nygean. People have buckets of water with flowers and are splashing the Buddha statues with them. One older couple poured some of their water on him while he was there.
 
We walked up the riverfront to another Wat, Vieng Nheun. Many people have come to make donations and to cleanse the Buddhas. At this Wat and all the others they have music playing and monks talking over a loudspeakers.
 
We walked past the palace, Ho Kham. It is a large white and gray building that is behind a high white fence and gates. By the time we got to Haw Pha Kaew (Ho Pha Keo), the royal temple, we were completely drenched with some cold water from a passing minivan. There are many Buddhas on display here. On the outside of the main building on two sides there are seated Buddhas. At the front there are 2 large Buddhas dispelling fear and what looks like grave stones propped up against the walls. At the back there were more Buddhas and a small lion and a tortoise. Inside there was a large collection of Buddhas, said to be the best in Laos. While we were there some people splashed us with their holy water and 2 ladies put talcum powder on us.
 
We then went to Wat Si Saket which was built from 1819 - 1824 by King Anouvong. It was the only temple to survive the attack by the Siamese (Thai) in 1829. Initially this Wat is not as impressive, but the cloister is filled with thousands of Buddhas. The small niches in the walls each have 2 buddhas and then on the floor there are larger Buddhas - wood, stone or bronze in different styles, from different eras. The building in the middle of the cloister is unique because of the direction it faces and has some fading frescos inside.
 
We walked back to the riverfront and we got wet again. We ordered a snack of papaya salad and grilled summer rolls from Noy and carried it back to the room. I sampled the salad, it was so hot that I had 3 tiny bites and Bill did not have any. The rolls were good though. We dried off, relaxed, watched TV and read.
 
It was after 7:30 when we went back out. We walked back downtown and thought we would see everyone in party mode, but nothing was going on. We are not sure where everyone is...
 
We had a bite to eat at Istanbul Restaurant (Turkish food) after over an hour of wandering around. Bill had beef shish kebabs and I had a pita (like gyros) with water, BeerLao and ayran (yoghurt drink). It was really good. I enjoyed feeding a calico cat while we were there. She had some of my drink too!

After dinner we walked back to the room and went to bed.