The chanting started at 4.15am. It was just as well that I was up at 4.00.
Jet-lagged body-time 8.00.

Went on the balcony to see a wonderful start to the day. Devotees were stretched along the pavement outside the hotel giving food to a passing parade of monks.

The street lighting added to the fabulous saffron colour.







Breakfast at the hotel was great.

Then we hired a car to go to Buddha Park (Xieng Khuan) about forty minutes away on the banks of the Mekong. The drive was bumpy and incredibly dusty.







Along the road were many small out-door cafes.

Would you like a mouth-full of dust with that sir?



The Park was built in 1958 by an eccentric mystic, Luang Pu Bunleua Sulilat.

So it is one man’s vision. And his vision was a little odd.







The Park is a bizarre collection of huge concrete sculptures of both Hindu and Buddhist gods interspersed with peculiar creatures.





It looks like the same model was used for every statue as they all have the same large disproportionate nose. Lots of peculiar Kodak moments.





At the Park were hordes of school children who wanted to practice their English.

I left Omar to be a teacher while I wandered around documenting the weirdness.



We drove back via the Pha That Luang. It is the national symbol of Laos and the most important religious monument in the country.



It is a three-layered gilded stupa. You can only access the court-yard and walk round it. It opens at 1.00pm but there was a delay of 15 minutes while the gate keeper, an indolent, slothful girl, finished her ice-cream. By then there were about 30 people baking in the sun.





Beside That Luang are the Wat That Luang Neua and the Wat That Luang Tai.
Two temples that were also closed. The area itself is really harsh with acres of glaring pavement.

Bring your sunglasses.







We drove back to the hotel and dropped into a local cafe for an assortment of dishes that had us guessing. Time for a nanny-nap and a read while we prepared for tomorrows meeting. Later we went to Asmara for dinner. Asmara is a beautiful French Colonial building that has been turned into an up-market hotel and restaurant. The food is very cheap in Vientiane. Lunch for two was about $US8.00 and dinner with wine was a steep $US40.00 for two and so far the quality is great.