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The Patuxay Monument is also referred to as the Arc de Triomphe of Laos and is located in the city centre of Vientiane. Standing in front of this good looking structure it might feel for a seconf like you're in the Paris of Asia but as soon as your eyes drift of to the ceiling of the Patuxay you'll notice all the Lao details.
If you take a closer look you can see all kinds of kinnari figurines painted in bright colours on the ceiling of the arc which obviously aren't very french and a typical detail of Lao style buildings. This all results very logical once you know that the Victory Gate was build...
Located on the corner of Lane Xang Road and Setthathirat Road Wat Si Saket is known as the oldest temple of Vientiane. Tourists are attracted by the many Buddhist statues which count up to at least 2000 ceramic and silver Buddha figures.
On the interior temple walls you'll find thousands of small niches carrying a small Buddha statue or a couple of figures. The larger Buddha's in...
The Pha That Luang is considered the most important temple in Laos and also referred to as The Golden Temple of Vientiane. This Buddhist stupa is not only a major touristic attraction but also a national symbol for the Lao people.
The Pha That Luang is placed in a beautifully constructed garden about 4 kms out of town and surrounded by a gate to seperate the temple from the street traffic. The best way to get to the Luang Stupa is by tuk tuk or rental car but seen the frentic traffic jams I would definitely suggest the first one.
On the temple grounds of Pha That Luang you'll...
A good and inexpensive way to travel in Thailand is by train and especially when you have to travel longer distances the night train is a real invention.
To get from Ayutthaya to Chiang Mai we bought some tickets for the night train. We thought nobody would be getting on that train so we bought the tickets the evening before. Unfortunately the train turned out to be fully booked!
It...
In Chiang Mai we had a great stay and were so happy to have found a good and clean hotel with nice caring owners. We stayed for 5 days in the Chiang Mai Boutique Hotel which was perfectly located in the town centre and close to a lot of nice attractions. The rooms were spotless with great fluffy pillows on the bed and a breakfast table with a view.
During our stay we wanted to visit the Doi Suthep mountain with its impressive monastery. The hotel reception helped us arrange a taxi driver for the day which worked out great. Luckily the driver arrived in a huge jeep because driving up curvy Doi Suthep...