Xieng Khoang

Phonsavan is the capital of the province of Xieng Khouang in Laos. It has a population of 37,507 and the name Phonsavan roughly translates as ‘hills of paradise’. Built during the 1970s, Phonsavan has picturesque countryside full of green hillsides and forests of pine trees. It replaced Muang Khoun which used to be known as Xieng Khoung which was ravaged during the Second War of Indochina. The colourful houses in the villages here are made from wood. Cattle raising provides a livelihood for the locals in this region. One can often see Hmong cowboys dressed in violet-and-brown attire complete with hats. New Year’s Day here is celebrated with bullfighting.

Phonsavan Attractions
UNESCO has nominated the Plain of Jars in Phonsavan as a heritage site. It is a popular tourist attraction, receiving a many visitors every year.
The Indochinese war sites such as the Plain of Jars became the Plain of Scars during the Indochinese war since it was directly in the way of the conflict. This site experienced extensive bombing and was also used as the drop-off point for unused artillery after the war. Xieng Khoung and Houaphan became the most heavily bombed places in the world on per capita basis. The condition was worsened by the intense amounts of herbicides and defoliants dropped here.
All these violent events have left their indelible scars on the area in the form of craters, empty shells and tanks. Locals have managed to recycle and reuse some of the war shrapnel into products of daily use such as vegetable planting tools, spoons, fencing material, barbeques and pumps.
Many locals used the caves in the surrounding areas as shelter to live during the war days. Some of them were even made into care facilities that looked after war victims and injured soldiers. Even others were used to store weapons as well as medicine.
Tham Piu Cave is one of the caves that allow visitors to look around and inspect the remains of the war days. It is one of witnesses to unfortunate events that occurred during the ‘Secret War’, as it was called. Around 374 people died due to a rocket that landed at this spot in November 1969. These victims were refugees in this cave. Sadly, their bones still remain inside the cave. As the second of the two caves which are now open for tourists, the Tham Xang Caves still houses remains of the arsenal, medicines and traces of refugees that lived here during the war. Other than that, this cave is also worth a visit because of its sheer beauty. Ban Ta’s Hmong community maintains the cave and offers guided tours to visitors.

 
Phonsavan Restaurants
You will find a wide variety of cuisine offered in Phonsavan. Lao, Chinese and Vietnamese are some of the cuisines found here. Although the size of the town is not too impressive, there are 32 restaurants and plenty of noodle shops also known as Pho-shops.
Craters Bar and Restaurant sells fast food as well as Western dishes such as pizzas and burgers. The interior has been designed subtly and with plenty of taste, especially when compared with some of the other joints in Phonsavan. Nirvana is a restaurant built with bamboo and is located on a street just off the main road. The spot used to be an ancient air strip. Along with the Maly Hotel, it is famous for its Lao and western cuisine.
Vietnamese Simmaly is a popular local restaurant serving Vietnamese food in large quantities and offering excellent customer service.
If you want Indian cuisine served alongside Lao food try Nisha, with its vegetarian and meat dishes at reasonable prices.
Auberge de la Plain des Jarres at the Phoupadeng Hotel is good for French food. The food here has a strong Alsace influence to it. Although the prices are quite high, the food is worth trying.

Phonsavan Nightlife
Most locals and tourists drink at restaurants which have bars attached to them however there are a few independent bars such as the one facing Maly Hotel, situated on the banks of a lake. The Tiger beer here is very popular among customers. Fresh fish served here is a common side dish. The disco at Chittavanh Hotel is also frequented by tourists and locals. It serves authentic Cambodian cuisine and if you want something slightly different the Highway Karaoke is an example of Western bars in the city.

Phonsavan Shopping
Products that are primarily catered towards tourists include those made by local artisans and textile workers. These items are made from indigenous wood, silk obtained from mulberry worms, using natural colours and local designs. Baskets and paper umbrellas made from mulberry silk can be found at Ban Mixay. Ban Napia has a lot of embroidered work of Hmong origin.
Mastake whiskey is a locally brewed alcohol derived from hed wai, which is a wild mushroom found in the Xieng Khouang pine forests. It is quite popular among locals and many tourists try it.
The Chinese Market is located to the west of the main strip of Phonsavan. It is popular for the souvenirs and plastic tacks found here along with silver and gold items as well.

Phonsavan Activities
You can visit the SOS Orphanage between 08:00 – 16:00 on weekdays. Established in 1998, this orphanage takes in children who have lost their parents due to some mishap caused by UXO (unexploded ordinance). About 150 children are housed in 12 homes here. There is a pre-school along with a primary school where these kids receive basic education. Feel free to drop in sometime when you are in Xieng Khouang to spend time with them.
If you want a taste of local food go to the fresh food markets to experience products that are indigenous to the forests such as exotic mushrooms, pheasant meat and bamboo rats, and fruits such as plums, passion fruit and peaches.
The Navang Craft Centre is family run and is known for its wooden products mainly made from the rare Long Leng Wood procured from the Fujian Cypress tree. It is excellent for gifts and souvenirs.
There are a number of scenic war memorials for soldiers who died in the war of Indochina as well as that of Vietnam.
The Mulberry Silk Farm is a fair trade company that is trying to uphold the ancient tradition of sericulture and is keeping it alive amidst other more commercially viable fabrics in the present world market. The complete process of breeding silk worms and procuring the silk fibre from them is elaborated at the farm for visitors with a free guide to explain things. Workers use bark, leaves, berries, flowers, vines and seeds to make the colours used to dye the fabric. They try to promote the products as well as meet financial needs by selling souvenirs to tourists.
The interesting thing about the old cemetery up a hilltop located a kilometre away from the city of Phonsavan is the Tai Dam which is right in the middle of the tombstones. These graves are a mix of Chinese, Catholic and Lao Buddhist origin.
 
How to get to Phonsavan
Flights travel to and from Vientiane four days of the week at the Xiang Khouang Airport in Phonsavan. During the holiday season there are six flights via Lao Airlines which can be used from Hanoi or Vinh in Vietnam. This reduces to four flights during off season. One can acquire visas on arrival to Phonsavan at the Nam Ka border.
If you prefer taking the bus from Vinh it will take you 12 hours to reach Phonsavan. There are VIP or local buses running once a week from Vinh.

Xieng Khouang consists of six districts Muang Khoune, Muang Phonsavanh, Muang Nong Hai, Muang Kham, Muang Mork, and Muang Phou Koud. Situated in the northeastern remote provinces of Laos, the area was part of the Ho Chi Minh Trail, where troops, supplies and artillery were smuggled out of northern Vietnam and through the mountains on the eastern edge of the country, and subsequently into southern Vietnam.While the vast majority of people reading this will be aware of the Vietnam War fought between 1963 to 1974, fewer know that a large part of the war was fought in Laos, giving the country the dubious title of being ‘the most bombed country in the world’.

During the space of eleven years, the equivalent of one bomb was dropped every eight minutes. In total, two million tonnes of ordinance was dropped on Laos, more than on Germany and Japan combined during the Second World War. As a result the vast majority of sights within the province are dedicated to paying respects to the great tragedy that was inflicted on the area and its people.

The Plain Of Jars
The Plain of Jars is considered the most distinctive and enigmatic of all Laos attractions. The large area around Phonsavan, the main city of Xieng Khouang Province is dotted with stone jars but no one has a clear idea as to why they are there.
The mysterious jars were carved from both sandstone and granite in various sizes from very small to about 3.5 metres high and are thought to be more than 2,000 years old. Legend has it that they were made to store rice wine while some believe they were for storing the dead. Until today the function of the jars is still disputed.
The Plain Of Jars Highlights
Of all the many jar sites, the three most popular ones to visit are known as Site 1, 2 and 3. The main reason is because they are safe from UXO (unexploded ordinance). Still, visitors are advised to walk only on the known routes as Laos is considered the most heavily bombed/mined country in the world. During the Vietnam War this area got hit hard and some of the bombs did not go off. Site 1 is where the biggest jar is located. While Site 2 and 3 offer picturesque views of farmlands and villages as they sit on top of small hills.
Opening Hours: All year round
Location: Around Phonsavan, the main town of Xieng Khouang Province in Northeast Laos. Site 1 is about 15km southwest of Phonsavan and has about 300 jars. Site 2 is about 25km south of Phonsavan and contains about 90 jars spread over two hills. Site 3 is about 35km southeast of Phonsavan and contains about 150 jars. It’s actually only 10km away from Site 2.
How to get there: It’s easy to hire taxi (4WD and driver) from Phonsavan to the jar sites or visitors can catch a local bus to Site 3 but not site 1 and 2

Mulberries Organic Silk Farm in Phonsavan
Among other things, the province of Xieng Khouang has always been synonymous with fine Laotian silk, the tradition of which dates back for centuries. Mulberries Organic Silk Farm, in the Phonsavan District of Xieng Khouang Province, is an establishment that aims to promote silk production as a way to generate income to families in surrounding areas while preserving the vanishing art of Laotian weaving.
This non-profit company, certified both by Fairtrade and Lao Organic Department, grows their own chemical-free mulberry trees. Mulberry leaves are the staple diet of silk worms, which are raised here for four months, after which their silk cocoon is collected and reeled. The dyeing process that follows makes use of indigenous plants (such as indigo, jackfruit, and tamarind), which produce deep and rich colours.
Once the thread is spun, it is given to village women who take them home to weave in their spare time. The silk farm then buys back the finished products to sell in their gift shops here and in Vientiane. Prior to that, the women attend workshops and learn how to make and use natural dyes, and the complex art of incorporating traditional designs into their creations.
Visitors can view all the silk making process right here in the house. There are guided tours in English. If you are lucky enough, you may catch a glimpse of Miss Kommaly, who will tell you how she started this environmental-friendly cooperative 20 years ago. Her tireless work to empower local women and ethnic minority groups by raising their incomes through weaving earned her the 2005 nomination for the Nobel Peace Prize.
Mulberries gift shop features beautiful plain silk scarves in a variety of rich colours, patterned throws and cushion covers and fabrics by the metre. Some patterns and home furnishing fabrics can be ordered.
Mulberries Silk Farm in Xieng Khouang Province can be reached by plane from Vientiane. Lao Airlines operates three flights a week from Vientiane to Xieng Khouang. There is also a bus service from Vientiane that takes about 10 hours. If you can’t travel to Xieng Khouang, there is a Mulberries shop in Vientiane selling the same products.

Muang Khan Cemetery
Unique and worth a visit just for the unusual site of mixing together Thai Dam animist tombs, Catholic headstones and Laos (Buddhist) tombs, situated east of Phonosavan.

Muang Khoun
Located 30 km southeast of Phonsavan. This town was once the Royal Capital and the centre of the Phuan Kingdom. Some might describe it as a shadow of its former self and they would be quite accurate in doing so. A few French colonial buildings still remain in the town centre alongside Watt Is Phum- home to a sitting Buddha. On the outskirts the ancient stupas tower over the city and the vistas surrounding the structures are well worth the hike. A few kilometers beyond the old capital, near the village of Ban Phai, lies a jar site; the jars are located just off an old dirt road and, unlike the jars at the three main sites, strangely enough they're built from granite.

Muang Sui
Used by the Americans as a landing site for planes during the Second Indochina War, much like neighboring Muang Khoun the town has endured a gradual rebuilding process since its obliteration during the war, and is now part of the Muang Phu Kut district. Once a quaint town housing antique Buddhist temples and provincial architecture, visitors can still bear witness to some of the temple remains, in particular War Ban Phong where monks still reside.

Tham Pa
These two limestone caves hid hundreds of small Buddha figures from the Haw invasion a few centuries ago. Dimly lit with the help of the rigged electrical lights (switched on by the locals for a small donation) making the passageways that link one cave to another accessible. The caves persist deep into the hill side and are pretty amazing.

That Foun (Old Xieng Khuang- Muang Khoun)
This Buddhist stupa is also known as That Chomsi. It measures about 30 metres and was built in 1576. The Lanna inspired structure stands tall over the town and can be entered by a cavity left by the Chinese Ho marauders, over a century ago after they looted the stupa in order to seize valuable Buddha images enshrined within. The stupa was erected to cover ashes of Lord Buddha that were brought from India, during a time when Buddhism was proliferating in Laos. There are few if any sleeping options within this area so it is advised to take a day trip from the more populated Phonosavan.

War Memorials
South of Phonosavan are two major war memorials set 1 km apart on separate hill tops. Both are set in the style of traditional Laos stupas (each containing the bones of the dead) although one is representative of the Vietnamese and the other the Laos lives lost. Inscribed on the Lao monument is the slogan ‘The nation remembers your sacrifice’, erected in 1998 a nearby slab of granite has the names of all the soldiers lost inscribed on its surface. The Vietnamese war memorial has the inscription ‘Lao-Vietnamese solidarity and generosity forever’. Both memorials enjoy sprawling views of the countryside and are especially attractive at sunset.

The harsh realities of war are not lost in Xieng Khouang, a recurring battle zone throughout the early 19th century up until 1975 and much of the land is still littered with unexploded munitions, land mines and cluster bombs. For obvious reasons activities such as trekking and hiking should always be done with an experienced guide, who can lead you away from areas of potential danger.
The Mineral Springs in Baw Nyai are an innovational government-run project that combine a hot springs experience with a weekend trip, in which guests can stay at the Hot Springs Resort. Hopefully, this is the start of many activities and tours to reach the area.  

Mineral Springs
The hot springs of Muang Kham are situated approximately 52km north of Muang Phonsavanh. Owned and operated by government organizations, the pool where the hot water bubbles up, can be reached by following a path parallel to the Hot Springs Resort, this pool is strictly off limits to the public but makes for some interesting viewing. The resort consists of a number of old-fashioned style bungalows where electricity runs from 18:00 to the early morning, with its water supply coming from the fresh springs.
For those who wish to frequent the hot springs, staying at the resort is part of the package. The mineral springs are within a wooded area where bamboo rigs have been built so that you can bathe nearby. Baw Noi is the smaller spring that feeds into a stream, here visitors can bathe where the cool stream waters meet with the warm waters of the springs.

Next to the bus station in the centre of town is the Dry Goods Market selling various selections of silver, silk and handicrafts, much of which has been turned out by the Hmong tribe.

Xieng Khouang does not offer much in the way of nightlife. Western-themed bars and discos are your best bet for nightlife here although there are a few worthwhile Laos-style clubs.

Xieng Khouang and the enigmatic Plain of Jars make up one of the most important sites for studying the late prehistory of mainland Southeast Asia. While the ancient civilization that constructed the jars was flourishing, advances in agricultural production, the manufacturing of metals, and the organization of long-distance overland trade between India and China were also rapidly transforming local society and setting the stage for urbanization across the region. Mortuary practices associated with the jars consisting of both cremation and secondary burial suggest a highly-evolved local tradition of ritual, symbolism and metaphysics which persisted through to the kingdoms of the Angkor Period, long after the arrival of Hindu and Buddhist philosophies into Southeast Asia.

Prehistoric material found at the Plain of Jars is still under study, and apparently spans a considerable period of time, with some dating from as early as 2000 BC. The bulk of the archaeological material, however, as well as the jars themselves appeared much later, dating to the early Iron Age between 500 BC and 500-800 AD. The closet archaeological parallels to the finds at the Plain of Jars appear to be Bronze and Iron Age materials from Dong Son in Viet Nam, Samrong Sen in Cambodia, and the Khorat Plateau in northeast Thailand. There are also similarities with the present-day city of Danang, as well as with sites in the North Cachar Hills of northeastern India where megalithic jar North exist. All of these similar sites date to approximately the same period-roughly 500 BC - 500 AD. Together they form a mosaic picture of a large area of upland Southeast Asia criss-crossed by traders, with the Xieng Khouang Plateau at its centre.
Although little is known about the people that constructed the megalithic stone jars, an account of the area's history as it relates to the Tai Puan and the lands they settled in Xieng Khouang is recorded in the Pongsawadan Meuang Puan or the Muang Puan Chronicles. The Tai Puan are a Buddhist Tai-Lao ethnic group that migrated from what is today southern China and by the 13th century had formed an independent principality at the Plain of Jars that prospered from the overland trade in metals and forest products. In the mid-14th century, Muang Puan was incorporated into the Lane Xang Kingdom under Fa Ngum, though the Phuan were able to retain a high degree of autonomy. After Siam (Thailand) extended control to Lao territories east of the Mekong in the 1770's, Muang Puan became a Siamese vassal state and also maintained tributary relations with Dai Viet (Viet Nam). To exert greater control of the lands and people of Muang Phuan, the Siamese launched three separate campaigns (1777-1779, 1834-1836, 1875-1876) to resettle large parts of the Phuan population to the south to regions under firm Siamese control.

Subsequent invasions by Chinese marauders called "Haw" plundered Luang Prabang and Xieng Khouang, and the Franco-Siamese treaties of the 1890's placed Xieng Khouang under colonial rule as part of French Indochina until briefly after World War II.
During the Second Indochina War that raged in Laos during the 1960's and early 1970's Xieng Khouang suffered heavy aerial bombardment and intense ground battles due to its strategic importance. This conflict has left a deadly legacy of unexploded ordnance (UXO) which is still being cleared today. Since Laos gained full independence in 1975, Xiengkhouang and the Plain of Jars are enjoying peace and tranquility after centuries of conflict.

The original capital city, Muong Khoun, was almost totally obliterated by US bombing and consequently, the capital was moved to nearby Phonsavanh. Of several Muong Khoun Buddhist temples built between the 16th and 19th century, only ruins remain. Vat Pia Vat, however, survived the bombing and can be visited.