Author: Lonely Planet
Category: Nonfiction
Go to read content：https://onlinereadfreenovel.com/lonely-planet/page,19,460391-lonely_planet_laos.html
Curious corrugations in the floor that now look like great old tree roots once formed the lips of carbonate pools like those at Turkey's Pamukkale.
Around Luang Namtha
Vieng Phukha (Vieng Phoukha) ວຽງພູຄາ
%086
Sleepy Vieng Phukha (ວຽງພູຄາ; also spelt 'Phoukha') is an alternative trekking base for visiting the western limits of the Nam Ha NPA, notably on three-day Akha trail hikes. Such trails see fewer visitors than many from Luang Namtha and the partly forested landscapes can be magnificent, though many hills in Vieng Phukha's direct vicinity have been completely deforested.
1Sights
Just 15 minutes' stroll south of Rte 3 near Km 85 but utterly hidden in thick secondary woodlands is the almost invisible site of the 1530 temple Wat Mahapot. What little had survived the centuries was mostly pillaged for building materials around 1977 when all the residents moved back after the war, so now all you'll see is the odd scattering of bricks poking out from a tree-choked muddy rise. Getting there involves walking along a steep V-shaped gully that once protected the Khúu Wíeng (Ramparts) of a short-lived 16th-century 'city'. Again there's nothing but muddy banks to see but a good guide (essential) can fill in sketchy historical details and explain the medicinal uses of plants you'll encounter on a 40-minute walking tour. There are no longer local tour guides operating here, but Mr Tong Mua at Tigerman Treks in Muang Sing can take you.
2Activities
Nam Ha Hilltribe EcotrekHIKING
(%020-99440084; www.trekviengphoukha.com; h8am-noon & 1-6pm)
Run by Somhack (an experienced Khmu hunter who hung up his gun to use his tracking skills as a guide), this great outfit has multiday treks (from moderately easy to challenging) from Vieng Phukha to explore the Nam Ha NPA.
Nam Ha Ecoguide Service Vieng PhoukhaHIKING
(%020-55985289; www.namha-npa.org; h8am-noon & 1.30-5pm)
One- to five-day treks with homestays in Nam Ha NPA.
4Sleeping
Thongmyxai GuesthouseGUESTHOUSE$
(%020-22390351; r 50,000K)
Just about the smartest accommodation in town is the Thongmyxai Guesthouse, set in an attractive garden with bungalows.
Phuet Mung Khun GuesthouseGUESTHOUSE$
(%020-55886089; r 60,000-70,000K; W)
Located on a riverbank, the friendly Phuet Mung Khun Guesthouse has neat little bungalows, plus a small restaurant. The owner speaks rudimentary English.
8Getting There & Away
Sŏrngtăaou for Luang Namtha (40,000K, 1½ hours) depart at around 9am and 1pm from the middle of town. Or you can wave down a Huay Xai–Namtha through-service (three daily).
Muang Sing ເມືອງສິງ
Pop 10,000 / %081
Bordering Myanmar and within grasp of the green hills of China, Muang Sing (ເມືອງສິງ) is a rural backwater in the heart of the Golden Triangle. Formerly on the once infamous opium trail, it's a sleepy town of wilting, Tai Lü–style houses where trekking has overtaken smuggling contraband. Hmong, Tai Lü, Akha and Tai Dam are all seen here in traditional dress at the old market (get there at dawn), giving the town a frontier feel.
Back in the late '90s, it was one of the must-visit destinations in Laos, but with the end of fast boat services and clampdown on the opium trade, it has dropped off the traveller radar. Recently, a growing Chinese population has settled here, replacing rice fields with banana and rubber plantations for consumption on the other side of the border. Regrettably, Western travellers have spoken of being turned away from restaurants and guesthouses by Chinese operators.
History
In the late 18th century, a dowager of the Chiang Khaen principality founded the square, grid-plan citadel of Wiang Fa Ya (today's Muang Sing) along with the That Xieng Tung stupa. In 1803 this area became vassal to Nan (now in Thailand) and was largely abandoned following the deportations of 1805 and 1813. But the Chiang Khaen princes returned, moving their capital here in 1884 from Xiang Khaeng on the Mekong. This kicked off a 20-year tug of war between France, Britain and Siam, causing the principality to be split in two, with the western sector, including Muang Sing, being absorbed into French Indochina. Muang Sing rapidly became the biggest opium market in the Golden Triangle, a function officially sanctioned by the French. In 1946, parts of town were devastated by Kuomintang troops who continued to operate here well into the 1950s after losing the Chinese civil war. In 1958 the famous American 'jungle doctor' Tom Dooley set up his hospital in Muang Sing, which became the setting for a series of international intrigues.
Muang Sing
1Sights
1Morning MarketA1
2Old MarketA2
3Tribal MuseumB2
4Wat Namkeo LuangA3
2Activities, Courses & Tours
5Phou Iu TravelA3
6Tigerman TreksB2
4Sleeping
7Phou Iu II GuesthouseA2
8Singduangdao BungalowsA3
5Eating
9Thai Lü RestaurantB2
10Veranda RestaurantA3
6Drinking & Nightlife
11Singsavanh NightclubA3
1Sights
Sprinkled along the town's main street are a few classic Lao-French hybrid mansion-houses. These mostly 1920s structures have ground-floor walls of brick and stucco topped with a wooden upper storey featuring a wraparound roofed verandah. Classic examples house the tourist office and the Thai Lü Guesthouse.
The old market ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; Main St), built in 1954, was under reconstruction at the time of writing as the roof had collapsed. The bustling new market ( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; h7am-10pm) is near the bus station and is very colourful first thing in the morning, though you'll be harder pressed to find ethnic women in tribal dress here.
Tribal MuseumMUSEUM
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; 5000K; h8.30am-4.30pm Mon-Fri, 8-11am Sat)
The most distinctive of the old Lao-French buildings is now home to the two-room Tribal Museum, which boasts costume displays downstairs and six cases of cultural artefacts upstairs. Watching a 40-minute video on the Akha people costs 5000K extra.
That Xieng TungBUDDHIST TEMPLE
(ທາດຊຽງຕຶງ )
Around 6km southeast of Muang Sing, That Xieng Tung sits on a grassy plateau dotted with sacred trees, 1km up a rough access track that branches south off the Luang Namtha road 200m after Km 52. This place really comes alive at festival time (full moon of the 12th lunar month, between late October and mid-November), with a carnival atmosphere, traditional dance performances and merit-makers offering candles and flowers around the base of the stupa.
Wat Namkeo LuangBUDDHIST TEMPLE
(ວັດນຳແກ້ວຫລວງ MAP GOOGLE MAP )
Wat Namkeo Luang is one of most visually striking monastic buildings in Muang Sing. It features an entry porch with red-tongued golden naga (river serpent) and an unusually tall and ornate gilded stupa. Some villagers still draw water from shaduf-style lever wells in the slowly gentrifying bâhn (the general Lao word for house or village) opposite. Nearby you can also find a modest Lak Bâan spirit-totem, but touching it would cause serious offence.
MYSTERIOUS TOM DOOLEY
Saint or shameless self-promoter? Humanitarian or CIA pawn? Fifty years after his early death, opinions are still divided over the 'jungle doctor' who set up his famous benevolent hospital in Muang Sing in 1958. Passionately Catholic yet dismissed from the US Navy for his sexual orientation, this complex character was cited by President Kennedy as an inspiration for the Peace Corps (founded in 1961, the year Dooley succumbed to cancer). However, his anti-communist books helped encourage the US political slide towards war in Indochina and rumours abound that the flights that brought in medical supplies to his Muang Sing base would return laden with opium. For much more read James Fisher's flawed but detailed Dooley biography Dr America.
2Activities
Tigerman TreksTREKKING
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %020-55467833, 020
-56783156, 030-5264881; [email protected]; Main St; 7am-7pm)S
English-speaking teacher and nice guy Mr Tong Mua has long been a fixture of Muang Sing and with the slow death of the tourist office (located opposite), he's a safer bet for general information, decent treks and homestays in the Nam Ha NPA, as well as tuk-tuk tours and cycle/trek combos. He also rents bikes and motorcycles (50,000/100,000K).
Phou Iu TravelADVENTURE SPORTS
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %081-400012; www.muangsingtravel.com; h7am-7pm)
Run out of the Phou Iu II Guesthouse, this decent outfit offers well-organised treks around Muang Sing. It also offers treks to the more remote Xieng Khaeng district towards Burma; check www.adventure-trek-laos.com for details. Other options include one- and two-day cycling tours and minority-village homestays.
TRIPS TO MINORITY VILLAGES
The main reason visitors come to Muang Sing is to venture into the minority villages that dot the valley of rice paddies and sugar-cane fields surrounding town. To do it yourself by bicycle or motorbike, start by purchasing Wolfgang Korn's helpful Muang Sing Cultural Guide Book from the tourist office. Its map shows major roads and labels the ethnicities of the valley's villages. To make the village-visiting experience somewhat less voyeuristic you can engage a guide for as little as 100,000K from one of Muang Sing's ecotour agencies, which also offer a gamut of longer treks and homestay experiences.
If you've got your own wheels, the dusty, unpaved but reasonably smooth Xieng Kok road leads through a predominantly Akha district where an unusually large proportion of women wear distinctive silver 'coin' headdresses and billowing indigo blouses.
4Sleeping
Central Muang Sing
Singduangdao BungalowsGUESTHOUSE$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %020-22004565; r from 70,000K; W)
Set in a verdant garden, Singduangdao offers spartan bungalows hidden away behind the truck weighbridge. All have hot showers. English is spoken.
oPhou Iu II GuesthouseGUESTHOUSE$$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %086-400012; www.muangsingtravel.com; bungalow small/medium/large 100,000/200,000/400,000K)
Set around an expansive garden, the biggest bungalows have fun, outdoor, rock-clad shower spaces. All rooms have comfortable beds, mosquito nets, fans and small verandahs (although rooms are cold at night during the cool season). There's an on-site herbal sauna (10,000K) and massage (50,000K per hour), plus the restaurant Veranda, probably the best place in town to eat.
Outside Muang Sing
Adima GuesthouseGUESTHOUSE$
(%020-22393398; r 100,000K; W)
Adima sits conveniently on the edge of an Akha village; Nam Dath is only 700m up the trail. Many other minority villages are also within easy walking distance. Adima's sturdy brick-and-thatch bungalows have hot showers and bucket-flush toilets, though have faded considerably over recent years. The Veranda, their appealing rustic restaurant, overlooks fish ponds and is pleasant come sundown.
It's 8.5km from Muang Sing. From town take the Pang Hai road to the far edge of Ban Udomsin (500m after Km 7) and turn right; Adima is 600m south. A tuk-tuk from town costs about 30,000K.
5Eating
Veranda RestaurantASIAN$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; mains 30,000K; h6.30am-9pm)
About the best Lao, Thai and Chinese food you can expect in town, this is a simple, cosy spot to eat hearty Lao fare – think soups and noodle dishes – in a friendly atmosphere. It's based in the garden of the Phou Iu II Guesthouse.
Thai Lü RestaurantLAOTIAN, THAI$
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; %086-400375; Hwy 17; mains 20,000K; h7am-9pm)
Looking like a backdrop from an old Bruce Lee flick, this creaky wooden building has a certain charm and serves Laotian, Thai and Western dishes. The female owner is friendly and produce is locally sourced and seasonal.
6Drinking & Nightlife
Singsavanh NightclubCLUB
( MAP GOOGLE MAP ; h7-11.30pm; W)
Most of Muang Sing is dead asleep by 9pm except at the Singsavanh, where the locals get down to live Lao and Chinese pop. It might look permanently closed down by day, but somehow it picks itself up at night.
8Information
Medical Services
Hospital ( GOOGLE MAP )
Money
Lao Development Bank ( GOOGLE MAP ; h8am-noon & 2-3.30pm Mon-Fri) Exchanges US dollars, Thai baht and Chinese yuan but at less-than-favourable rates.
Post
Post Office ( GOOGLE MAP ; h8am-4pm Mon-Fri) As tiny as the petang rectangle next to it.
Tourist Information
Tourist Office ( GOOGLE MAP ; h8am-4pm Mon-Fri) Displays of fact scrolls are useful but the staff aren't likely to win any Lao National Tourism Authority employee of the month awards.
8Getting There & Away
From the bus station ( GOOGLE MAP ) in the northwest corner of town, sŏrngtăaou depart for Muang Long (30,000K, 1½ hours) at 9am and 11am. To Luang Namtha (25,000K, two hours) minibuses leave at 8am, 9am and 11am. The bus to Muang La (40,000K) leaves at 7.30am and 1pm.
8Getting Around
Kalao Motorcycle ( GOOGLE MAP ; per day 100,000K; h8am-5pm), on the road to the morning market, rents motorbikes, but bring a good phrasebook as nobody here speaks English.
Bicycle rental (30,000K per day) is available from several main-street agencies and guesthouses.
Xieng Kok ຊຽງກົກ
Xieng Kok (ຊຽງກົກ) is a sleepy, riverine destination surveying a deep slice of Mekong Valley and the Burmese banks behind. Market days (the 14th and 28th of every month) attract hill-tribe folks and traders from the surrounding countries. Given that it's part of the Golden Triangle and on the drug-smuggling route, not surprisingly in 2012 Chinese supply boats were attacked by Burmese drug gangs, whose leader was caught and allegedly executed in China. Be warned that although it might appear soporific, things here are more mercurial than they might seem. In autumn, when river levels are high, Chinese barges call in at the river port; come April river levels are too low for boats to travel. Due to the Chinese pirates and Burmese drug traffickers attacking boats, speedboats no longer make the short journey downriver to Muang Mom, nor upriver to Muang Long.
Avoid wandering around by the river after dark as this is a major thoroughfare for drug smugglers.
Two roads converge where the minibus to Muang Long (20,000K, 35 minutes) leaves at 6am, 8am and 2pm from outside the town's little pharmacy. Finding any other vehicle can be hard here, even if you're prepared to charter.
The Middle Mekong
For many tourists the region is seen merely in passing between Thailand and Luang Prabang – typically on the two-day slowboat route from Huay Xai via Pak Beng – but there's plenty to interest the more adventurous traveller. Bokeo, meaning 'Gem Mine', takes its name from the sapphire deposits in Huay Xai district, and the province harbours 34 ethnicities despite a particularly sparse population. Sainyabuli Province is synonymous with working elephants and the Elephant Conservation Center is just outside the eponymous capital. Other than in Huay Xai and Pak Beng you'll need a decent phrasebook wherever you go.
Western Sainyabuli remains particularly far off the traveller radar; places such as the dramatic Khop district are 'last frontiers' with a complex ethnic mix and reputedly high proportion of still-pristine forests.
Huay Xai ຫ້ວຍຊາຍ
Pop 20,000 / %084
Huay Xai (ຫ້ວຍຊາຍ) was allegedly home to a US heroin-processing plant during the Secret War, but these days the only things trafficked through are travellers en route to Luang Prabang. Separated from Thailand by the mother river that is the Mekong, Huay Xai is for many their first impression of Laos: don't worry, it does get better. By night its central drag dons its fairy lights and roadside food vendors fire things up, and there are some welcoming traveller guesthouses and cafes serving tasty food. Huay Xai is also the HQ of the now-fabled Gibbon Experience, deservedly the most talked-about environmentally responsible jungle adventure in th
e country.
Huay Xai
1Sights
1Fort CarnotC4
2Main MarketC4
3Wat Keophone SavanthanaramC5
4Wat Khonekeo XaiyaramB1
2Activities, Courses & Tours
5Lao Red CrossB2
4Sleeping
6BAP GuesthouseD2
7Daauw HomestayD2
8Gateway Villa HotelD2
9Kaupjai GuesthouseB4
10Oudomphone Guesthouse 2D2
11Phonevichith Guesthouse & RestaurantA1
12Riverside Houayxay HotelD3
13Sabaydee Guest HouseC1
5Eating
DaauwD2
14Riverside RestaurantD3
15Riverview CafeC2
16Tavendeng RestaurantB5
6Drinking & Nightlife
17Bar HowD2
8Information
18BCELD2
19Gibbon Experience OfficeC2
20Lao Development Bank Exchange BoothC2
21Lao Immigration (for Drivers)A1
22Tourist Information OfficeD2
23Yon Computer Internet CafeD2
Transport
24Luang Say CruiseC2
25Shompoo CruiseA2
26Slowboat Ticket BoothA1