SABAIDEE
Message From The President
Dr. Somphone Douangdara President & CEO Lao Airlines Dear Passengers,
ສະບາຍດີບັນດາທ່ານຜູ້ໂດຍສານທີ່ຮັກແພງ,
Welcome aboard, and thank you for choosing Lao Airlines. From the outset, I would like to share some of our news with you. From October 29, we will be reinstating our popular VientianeSingapore route, allowing our customers to experience this unique seaside city filled with exciting tourist attractions. We are always striving to ensure the services of Lao Airlines can respond to the demands of an increasing number of passengers. To this end, Lao Airlines will increase the number of flights between Vientiane and Pakse, including an afternoon flight, enabling passengers to take a round-trip between the two cities in one day. Lao Airlines has increased its focus on developing its capacity in a number of ways, including upgrading its personnel. On 27 June, nine new pilots graduated from an international aviation college in Nakhon Phanom, Thailand. These pilots, including two female graduates, may well be carrying you in future flights. In regard to standards, Lao Airlines has passed the latest IATA Operational Safety Audit and will have its IOSA certification extended. To keep its customers better informed and keep abreast of technology, Lao Airlines has launched a mobile phone application offering another service channel for customers when purchasing tickets, selecting seating, checking timetables and online checkin. You can download our app at the Play Store and App Store from today onward. On behalf of the board and all employees of Lao Airlines, I would like to again thank all our passengers for choosing to fly with us, and for instilling the airline with confidence in its international standards, ensuring our continued expansion into the future. Lao Airlines remains at your service, no matter if you are travelling near or far. We hope to serve you again soon, and wish you a pleasant flight.
ຍິນດີຕ້ອນຮັບບັນດາທ່ານສູ່ຖ້ຽວບິນຂອງສາຍການບິນລາວ ແລະ ຂໍສະແດງຄວາມ ຂອບໃຈເປັນຢ່າງຍິ່ງທີ່ທ່ານເລືອກໃຊ້ບໍລິການຂອງສາຍການບິນລາວ. ກ່ອນອື່ນ ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າຕ້ອງຂໍອະນຸຍາດແຈ້ງຂ່າວໃໝ່ມາຍັງບັນດາທ່ານຊາບວ່າ ເລີ່ມແຕ່ ທ້າຍເດືອນຕຸລາ 2017 ກໍ່ຄືເລີ່ມແຕ່ວັນທີ 29 ຕຸລາ 2017 ເປັນຕົ້ນໄປ, ເສັ້ນທາງບິນກົງ ວຽງຈັນ-ສິງກະໂປ ຈະກັບມາຮັບໃຊ້ທ່ານອີກຄັ້ງ. ນະຄອນກາງທະເລແຫ່ງນີ້ຈະພາທ່ານຄົ້ນ ພົບປະສົບການໃໝ່ໆ ແລະ ເພີດເພີນໄປກັບແຫຼ່ງທ່ອງທ່ຽວທີ່ຕື່ນຕາຕື່ນໃຈ. ນອກຈາກນີ້, ເພື່ອເຮັດໃຫ້ການບໍລິການຂອງສາຍການບິນລາວ ສາມາດຕອບສະໜອງ ກັບຄວາມຕ້ອງການຂອງຜູ້ໂດຍສານທີ່ມີຈຳນວນເພີ່ມຂື້ນ, ສາຍການບິນລາວ ຈະໄດ້ເພີ່ມ ຖ້ຽວບິນ ເສັ້ນທາງ ວຽງຈັນ-ປາກເຊ ອີກໜຶ່ງຖ້ຽວ ຊຶ່ງຈະເປັນຖ້ຽວຕອນບ່າຍເພື່ອອຳນວຍ ຄວາມສະດວກແກ່ຜູ້ເດີນທາງທີ່ສາມາດໄປເຊົ້າກັບແລງ. ການບິນລາວ ພວກເຮົາໄດ້ສຸມໃສ່ການພັດທະນາຫລາຍດ້ານໃນຊຸມປີຫລັງທີ່ຜ່ານມາ ແລະ ປັດຈຸບັນການພັດທະນາ ແລະ ສ້າງສາບຸກຄະລາກອນໃນອົງກອນກໍ່ໄດ້ສືບຕໍ່ຢູ່ສະເໝີ ເປັນຕົ້ນ ໃນວັນທີ 27 ມິຖຸນາ ທີ່ຜ່ານມາ, ກຸ່ມນັກບິນຮຽນຈົບໃໝ່ຈໍານວນ 9 ຄົນ ເປັນຍິງ 2 ຄົນ ໄດ້ຈົບຫຼັກສູດການບິນ ຈາກວິທະຍາໄລການບິນນານາຊາດ, ມະຫາວິທະຍາໄລ ນະຄອນພະນົມ - ປະເທດໄທ, ເຊິ່ງເປັນກຸ່ມຄົນໄຟແຮງທີ່ພ້ອມຈະຮັບໃຊ້ທ່ານທີ່ສາຍການ ບິນແຫ່ງຊາດນີ້. ທາງດ້ານມາດຖານ, ການບິນລາວ ກໍ່ໄດ້ສຳເລັດ ແລະ ໄດ້ຜ່ານການ ກວດສອບວຽກງານດ້ານຄວາມປອດໄພການບິນ ຈາກອົງການກວດສອບສາກົນ (IATA Operational Safety Audit) ເພື່ອຕໍ່ໃບຢັ້ງຢືນ IOSA ຊຶ່ງໃບຢັ້ງຢືນດັ່ງກ່າວ ກໍຈະໄດ້ມອບຮັບໃນເວລາອັນໃກ້ນີ້. ເພື່ອໃຫ້ການຮັບຮູ້ຂ່າວສານ ແລະ ການຊົມໃຊ້ບໍລິການຂອງສາຍການບິນລາວໃຫ້ມີ ຄວາມທັນສະໄໝ ແລະ ສະດວກສະບາຍຍິ່ງຂຶ້ນ, ສາຍການບິນລາວກໍມີລາຍການໃໝ່ຄື Lao Airlines Application ເຊິ່ງເປັນແອັບພລິເຄຊັນທາງມືຖື ທີ່ຈະເປັນອີກຊ່ອງທາງ ໜຶ່ງໃນການບໍລິການລູກຄ້າຂອງສາຍການບິນລາວ ໃນການຊື້ປີ້ເຮືອບິນ, ເລືອກບ່ອນນັ່ງ, ກວດຕາຕະລາງບິນ ແລະ ແຈ້ງປີ້ແບບອອນໄລນ໌ຜ່ານທາງມືຖື (Online Checkin). ທ່ານສາມາດດາວໂຫຼດແອັບພລິເຄຊັນນີ້ທີ່ Play Store ແລະ App Store ຕັ້ງແຕ່ມື້ນີ້ເປັນຕົ້ນໄປ. ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າຂໍຕາງໜ້າຄະນະນໍາ ແລະ ພະນັກງານການບິນລາວທຸກໆຄົນ ຂໍຂອບໃຈນໍາບັນ ດາທ່ານທີ່ໃຫ້ຄວາມໄວ້ວາງໃຈເລືອກໃຊ້ບໍລິການຂອງພວກເຮົາ ດ້ວຍປະສົບການການບິນທີ່ມີ ຄຸນນະພາບສູງລະດັບສາກົນ ແລະ ຄວາມມຸ່ງໝັ້ນຂອງການບິນລາວເຮົາໃນການສືບຕໍ່ ຂະຫຍາຍຈຸດໝາຍປາຍທາງ. ສາຍການບິນລາວພ້ອມບໍລິການທ່ານທຸກເມື່ອ ບໍ່ວ່າທ່ານຈະເດີນທາງໃກ້ ຫຼື ໄກ, ຂ້າພະເຈົ້າຂໍໃຫ້ການບິນລາວເປັນອີກໜຶ່ງທາງເລືອກເພື່ອອຳນວຍຄວາມສະດວກໃນການເດີນ ທາງຂອງທ່ານໄປເຖິງຈຸດໝາຍປາຍທາງ ແລະ ພວກເຮົາຫວັງຢ່າງຍິ່ງວ່າຈະໄດ້ມີໂອກາດຕ້ອນ ຮັບບັນດາທ່ານສູ່ຖ້ຽວບິນຂອງພວກເຮົາອີກຄັ້ງ. ຂໍໃຫ້ທ່ານເດີນທາງໂດຍສະຫວັດດີພາບ. ຮຽນມາດ້ວຍຄວາມເຄົາລົບ ແລະ ນັບຖືຢ່າງສູງ, ປອ. ສົມພອນ ດວງດາລາ
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ສາຍການບນ ິ ແຫ�ງຊາດ ຍນ ິ ດຕ� ີ ອນຮບ ັ ທກ ຸ ການເດນ ີ ທາງຂອງທ�ານ
welcome aboard
PUBLISHER PUBLISHER’S LETTER Hello readers, Welcome to the September-October edition of Champa Meuanglao, bringing you the best of Laos and its surrounds. Cover image: A guard standing outside the Yunnan Military Academy in Kunming. Photo by Mick Shippen
In this edition, we have the inside story of Vientiane’ only dairy farm on the outskirts of the capital, whose owner is on a mission to bring milk to the masses with her unique brand of fresh dairy. Up north, we give you the lowdown on how to spend a memorable weekend in Phonsavanh, Xieng Khouang, home to the mysterious Plain of Jars, while the Tai Dam ethnic group negotiates modern life and its influence on old traditions. Back in Vientiane, Les Artisans Lao are making luscious natural skincare and essential oils in a dream-scented laboratory above an art gallery, and writer Lilani Goonesena introduces us to the sweet, sweet dessert life that is a growing trend in Laos. She also shows us how to spend a holiday in Singapore with kids in town. Intrepid travel guru Mick Shippen ventures off to Kunming, China, where all his preconceptions of China are pleasantly overturned, while Melody Kemp has advice on how to be a responsible wildlife tourist. And, in keeping with Lao tradition, we have a smattering of folklore, in the form of a mysterious fish with half a ribcage, and a vintage Jaguar fit for a king.
www.champameuanglao.com
PUBLISHING Managing Editor Editors
Contributing Editor Creative Director Contributing Writers
Happy reading! The Champa Meuanglao publishing team
ADVISORY BOARD Somphone Douangdara
Head Photographer Contributing Photographers
President
Sally Pryor Cameron Darke Dalaphone Pholsena Duangtavanh Oudomchith Jason Rolan Jakkrit Srichan Francis Savanhkham Latsamy Phonevilay Melody Kemp Mick Shippen Ouphachay Thongsamouth Silvia Luanglath Marie-Pierre Lissoir Lilani Goonesena Phoonsab Thevongsa Mick Shippen Xayyaphone Thammavongsa
Somsamay Visounnarath
Vice President - Technical, Operation & Training
Sengpraseuth Mathouchanh
Vice President - Planning, Cooperation & International Relations & Legislation
Leuangsamay Leuangvanxay
Vice President - Administration, Finance & Accounting
ADVERTISING Director of Marketing & Sales
Rada Sunthorn
Vice President - Passenger Service, Cargo & Catering
Saleum Tayarath
Marketing & Sales Executive
Vice President - Commercial, Tourism
Aditta Kittikhoun
aditta.kittikhoun@champameuanglao.com
(856-20) 55555521
Duangtavanh Oudomchith
duangtavanh.oudomchith@champameuanglao.com
(856-20) 55474555
LAO AIRLINES STATE ENTERPRISE LIMITED
RDK GROUP
Headquarters Wattay International Airport Vientiane Capital, Laos Tel: (856-21) 513243-46, Fax: (856-21) 513247 www.laoairlines.com
134 Samsenthai Road, Xiengyeun Village, Chanthabouly District, Vientiane Capital, Laos (856-20) 55731717 info@rdkgroup.la
Follow our official Facebook page at www.facebook.com/laoairlinesofficial to get the latest news and updates from the national carrier of Laos
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Disclaimer Champa Meuanglaois published bi-monthly for Lao Airlines State Enterprise by SMP Consultants in collaboration with RDK Group. The views and opinions expressed or implied in Champa Meuanglaodo not necessarily reflect those of Lao Airlines State Enterprise or its publishing agents. All information in C hampa Meuanglaois correct at time of printing. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without the written permission of the publisher. All rights reserved. Copyright © 2017 by Lao Airlines State Enterprise and SMP Consultants & RDK Group.
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CONTENTS COVER STORY
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40
20
Family fun in Singapore
From farm to fridge
46
Have your cake and eat it too 10
12 26 42 54 58 62 66 70 74 77
30
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Laos’ first Jaguar
24 hours in Phonesavanh The best of Laos Essential ingredients Before the rains come Into the Wild Wondrous Korea Singing through the microphone Lao Airlines News Lao Airlines timetable Lao Airlines contact
The tale of the Lady Fish
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PHONESAVANH Bamboozle is a popular foreign-owned and run restaurant located with an extensive bamboo-designed interior, and a menu packed with western comfort food, including delicacies sourced from the mulberry farm. There is live music on some nights.
Cranky-T Cafe and Bar is the latest place, for both breakfast (served all day) and evening drinks. Coffee is much praised, and the place has very helpful owners as well, by all accounts, despite the name. A welcome addition to the growing culninary landscape in this frontier town.
See
Plain of Jars Mysterious giant stone jars of unknown ancient origin are scattered over hundreds of hilly square kilometres around Phonsavanh (not a “plain” in site, actually). Remarkably, nobody knows which civilisation created them, although archaeologists estimate they date from the Southeast Asian iron age (500 BC to AD 200). Amazing so many have survived, given the extensive bombings throughout the Indochina wars. Lots of UXO remains, so pay close attention to the signs. So, old, mysterious and embattled largely unexplained, although archaelogists are doing their best! It’s exactly what you travelled all this way for, and if you can get yourself a good tour guide (ask at the hotel), the experience will be even heightened. Sites 1, 2 and 3 form the bases of most tour loops.
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Eat
Auberge de la Plain des Jarres Phoupadeng Hotel has an excellent French restaurant with cuisine influenced from the Alsace. Recommended but not cheap. The next best thing if you can’t afford to actually stay there.
Do
Mulberry Silk Farm This fair trade company just west of the town is dedicated to enabling Lao village silk producers in the Northern provinces to revive the art of high quality local silk production. Villagers are trained in sericulture, the process of raising silkworms, processing and improved weaving techniques and natural dying. Leaves, bark, vines, berries and seeds create colour choices to match virtually any taste. Take the free 30-minute guided tour to learn about the whole process, and buy some souvenirs - you’ll be helping local communities.
Spoon village Laos is known for its handicrafts, but spoons? Ban Napia and other villages close to Jar Site 2 produce spoons from downed aircraft and shrapnel that litter the village’s fields. The idea for producing spoons occurred to the Tai Phuan villagers in the 1980s, when eight families were discussing what should be done with all the war junk in their fields. They decided to recycle it into spoons, because someone noticed a supply shortage in nearby markets. Ban Napia’s spoons have been feeding Xieng Khouang diners for years; the same diners often take home a souvenir from the scrap metal. Directions: Drive a few km’s further on from Site 3 to reach Ban Napia
Hot Springs There’s something so retro and old-school about hot springs, as a health retreat under doctor’s orders, perhaps? The Tai Dam hot springs are about 70km outside Phonsavanh, making for a rewarding day or overnight trip. Soak in pools that mix the hot springs with the cooler water from the Mat River. See Khmu and Tai Dam handicrafts being made and eat at the local restaurant. Overnight accommodation is available in the village tourist lodge. A couple of kilometres further on is the Big Hot Springs Resort, which has indoor bathing facilities with hot spring water. Directions: About 70 km north of Phonsavanh and 3 km east of Kham Town off Route 7
Tham Piu cave Tham Piu Cave stands as a solemn memorial to the hundreds of innocent villagers killed in a 1968 US missile attack. The statue of a man, straining to hold his anger as he carries a lifeless child, calls for an Annual Day of Remembrance. Visit the information centre and contemplate the display of photographs and learn about history behind the bombings. You will read about the single shell that hit Piu Cave and claimed the lives of a reported 374 locals seeking shelter inside. Climb the staircase that passes a large, golden Buddha, grave markers, and bomb craters until you reach Tham Piu. Enter the cave and observe the rubble on the floor. Inside, people light incense and candles to pay tribute to the dead. Directions: Take Route 6 north from Kham Town for 3km to Ban Bouam, turn left (west), and follow the road to the end.
SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2017
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n u F y il m a F t s e B e h T : y la Child’s P
e r o p a g in Sin
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Amidst the gleaming glass and steel of one of Asia’s busiest cities, you’ll find a paradise of family fun. By Lilani Goonesena
M
odern Singapore hides a virtual treasure trove of family friendly activities. From parks and playgrounds to nature attractions and art, culture and food, you’ll find endless ways to occupy the youngsters in this clean, green city.
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Jurong Bird Park From pelicans to parakeets and birds of prey, Asia’s largest bird park is home to more than 400 species. Colourful and chatty, Jurong is a veritable hive of activity for kids and adults alike. Wander through the rainforest paths of the enormous Waterfall Aviary and see what happens underwater at the Riverine. Don’t miss the free flying talents at one of the daily shows.
Singapore Zoo As the world’s best rainforest zoo, Singapore Zoo is one the island’s most popular attractions. See the free-ranging orangutans in the primate enclosures and get up close to a variety of mouse deer, lemurs and flying foxes in the Fragile Forest. Catch a live show in the arena and definitely don’t miss feeding the Galapagos tortoises - they love tomatoes!
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Combine your visit with the River and Night Safaris to see all of the zoo’s nocturnal animals after dark.
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zoo.com.sg Images courtesy of the Singapore Tourism Board. Main: Gardens by the Bay, Super Trees 1. Jurong Bird Park 2. A family enjoying a day at the Jurong Bird Park 3. A family feeding an elephant at the Elephant Enclosure SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2017
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Gardens by the Bay Enter the Gardens by the Bay via a high, wooden platform and what seems like a forest stretches before you. It’s scattered with ponds, playgrounds, bike trails, sculptures, and a special children’s garden (with a water park so bring your swimmers!). Take your time exploring and don’t forget to indulge in Singaporean chicken satay hawker-style on the bay.
Chinatown Step onto the busy streets of Chinatown in downtown Singapore for a sharp contrast between new and old. Eat noodles at Michelin Star restaurant, Hawker Chan, and stop in to buy some of Singapore’s famous pineapple tarts (they are very generous with the samples). Light an incense offering at the ornate Buddha Tooth Relic Temple; its hundreds of statues and massive solid gold stupa is sure to impress young and old alike.
Take a walk Singapore is a very walkable city with its big pavements, tree-lined avenues and orderly traffic. The architecture is an eclectic mix of preserved colonial heritage and traditional wooden Malay houses amidst Art-Deco commercial buildings. Bring a stroller for when little legs get tired and when parents need a break, a shopping mall is sure to magically appear nearby.
Garden Domes It’s hard to miss these two giant domes sitting on the waterfront and part of Gardens by the Bay. The Cloud Forest and the Flower Dome are the two largest greenhouses in the world, home to immaculately cultivated and climate-controlled gardens. The entry fee is well worth it. Bring a cardigan; it’s cold inside.
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Super Trees Save Singapore’s famous Super Trees for last during your visit to the Gardens. This collection of incredible vertical gardens dominate the skyline, rising are up to 50 metres tall. If you’re game, you can wander between them using the Skyline Walk. After dark, they really come to life in a nightly light rhapsody, that mesmerises kids and adults alike.
Changi Airport Before hopping on your plane home, squeeze out a last bit of Singapore kids’ fun at Changi Airport where you’ll find playgrounds in every terminal, interactive gardens, drawing stations, cinemas, a butterfly garden, and more.
Sentosa Island Zip across to the man-made Sentosa Island via the monorail or spend a few days there, for a whole horde of other family-fun activities await you. Whether you love rides, water parks, interactive play, nature, or art and culture, you’ll something to love on Sentosa Island. Make a splash at the Adventure Cove Waterpark and definitely don’t miss snorkelling in a simulated reef surrounded by tropical fish, and cuddling the dolphins. Become a doctor, fireman and a beautician all in one day at the interactive Kidzania, or ride the roller coasters at Universal Studios. Animal lovers will adore the Butterfly Park and Insect Kingdom, and the daily bird show at Palawan Beach. Clamber over the amazing mosaic sculptures along Merlion Walk before stepping into the mouth of the mythical creature for a bird’s eye view of Singapore.
Images courtesy of the Singapore Tourism Board
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From farm to fridge
the local dairy farm bringing fresh milk to Vientiane By Sally Pryor
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engmany Yathotou is on a mission. It’s a weekday morning in Naxayneua village, Vientiane, and on her family farm that borders on a national park, she is overseeing the milking of more than 100 cattle – peaceful, black-and-white Fresian dairy cows that produce around 15 litres of milk a day. Sengmany wants more people in Laos to drink the milk they produce – pasteurised, free from preservatives and marketed under the brand name Crysta (soon to be changed to Nom Lao), from Vientiane’s only dairy farm to local cafes and mini-marts.
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But Sengmany is the first to admit that the family business still has a way to go in convincing Lao people – from ordinary consumers to food manufacturers and government officials – of the benefits of drinking milk and eating dairy products. Just four years ago, Sengmany’s farm-loving parents - her now-retired father was once Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Forestry - were breeding a small herd of dairy cows “for fun” on their 10-hectare farm on the outskirts of Vientiane Capital. The cows produced enough milk for the family’s own consumption, and to share with friends,
neighbours and relatives. So far, so eccentric for a well-respected family in a non-dairy-consuming society. As it happened, the milk coming out of the farm was actually quite good. The friends and neighbours began asking for more, wondering aloud why the family didn’t consider selling the farm’s produce. And so, in 2014, Sengmany launched Crysta – named after her young daughter. Crysta Milk stands out from other brands in supermarket fridges because it’s the only one produced in Laos, but is of the same quality as its imported neighbours on the shelf.
The farm is equipped with cutting-edge modern technology, and the cows – from a strain originally from Australia - are fed a strict diet of African Napier grass and corn grown on the land, to ensure a clean and regular yield. The Lao Dairy Farm employs dozens of staff from the local area, and a dairy consultant from Thailand whose passion for the industry dates back to the 1960s, when he studied dairy production in Denmark. He has been helping the Lao Dairy Farm with its burgeoning business since the beginning, and says while consumers have been somewhat slow on the uptake of dairy consumption, he has hope the market will take off once smallholder farmers begin breeding the Fresian cows to milk as a source of income.
strains into existing cattle herds, but that local governments were yet to latch onto the potential for poverty reduction such farms could have.
Main: Sengmany Yathotou Opposite: Farm worker milking cows Images by Phoonsab Thevongsa
“In the beginning, it was the same story [in neighbouring countries], the same thing as here,” he says. But for Sengmany, the main challenge lies in changing consumer habits; many local minimarts don’t maintain the correct refrigerator temperatures for the preservative-free milk that lasts just seven days. And then, when Lao people do choose to drink milk, they tend to buy the established brands from neighbouring countries.
He said the farm had a challenging but successful process of artificial insemination of cows to breed certain
Lao people trust and believe foreign milk is the best quality, but they don’t know about dairy and the good things about pasteurised milk, or the difference between fresh milk and UHT.
“Lao people trust and believe foreign milk is the best quality, but they don’t know about dairy and the good things about pasteurised milk, or the difference between fresh milk and UHT,” she says. But for the moment, while the brand’s growth in the market has been quicker than Sengmany expected, Crysta is sticking to a select range of products – milk, yoghurt and drinking yoghurt. Its most recent innovation was to add passionfruit to the drinking yoghurt, which turned out to be the right move – sales rose by 10 per cent straight away. Sengmany has also set up a café on the first floor of Lao-ITECC in Vientiane, selling smoothies and other milk drinks. Crysta is now being sold in several other provinces, including Luang Prabang and Attapeu, but Sengmany has no plans yet to try exporting the farm’s products. Nor does she have any intention of adding preservatives to Crysta Milk to stretch out its shelf life, even if this might give it a better chance against its competitors, as the farm is committed to its all-natural product. Sengmany has just one message for all potential dairy consumers in Laos – think local and buy Lao milk. You might just develop a taste for it, and there will always be more coming from the Lao Dairy Farm. SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2017
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The Best
of Laos A country could tell its whole story through food, if only it knew how.
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hen Latsamy Vetsaphong first heard a western friend wondering aloud where they could buy some of the amazing delicacies they had tried while in Laos, she realised there was a gap in the market for Lao souvenirs. And when she heard yet another friend lamenting that some of the food she had gathered to take home to relatives wasn’t nicely packaged, she knew she was onto something. “I heard people saying that Laos didn’t export anything but timber and handicrafts,” she says. “This was more than five years ago. I thought to myself, okay, what can I do to help?” She decided to focus on some of the country’s unique foods, using comments from her foreigner friends as a guide. “Let's say when they go to Luang Prabang, what do they like to buy? Quite often it’s riverweed, the famous one with sesame seeds,” she says. But it wasn’t just foreigners who were picking up food as gifts for the family back home. “I think even in Laos, locals still don’t know what food is available from north to south,” she says. “Laos may be a small country, but people don’t realise how diverse the food is here. Northerners are often unfamiliar with specific southern ingredients.”
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Through her new business, Lao Best, Latsamy has begun selecting what she believes is the best of the country’s
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With the right packaging and presentation, we can tell our story all over the world - why we eat the way we do, and how we make our food.
1. Latsamy Vetsaphong 2. Fish Paste 3. Lao Honey 4. Lao green tea 5. Wild Almond Seed
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Lao Best products to sell in her shop, from small plantation coffee and wild honey, to riverweed and fish sauce. And with a career in the import and export trade under her belt, she has learned over the years what works. “With the right packaging and presentation, we can tell our story all over the world - why we eat the way we do, and how we make our food,” she says. The shop has been open just two months at the time of writing, and Ms Latsamy already has plans to open more branches outside of Vientiane one in every province, if she has her way. She has also started selling products to local minimarts, including Thai chainstore Jiffy, and hopes foreign shoppers will soon catch on to how easy it is to pick up well-packaged foods to take home. She also plans, ultimately, to export the products through Lao Best, although not all of the foodstuffs will be successful on the international market. “We’re now testing the market, to see what foods can be exported,” she says.
“An example is Lao jerky. Dried meat is eaten all over the world, and we have our version from Savannakhet, made from pork and beef. We just have to work out how to export it, and where it would sell best.” But she also wants to educate her own people about what her country has to offer. One thing she has noted during the process of identifying the best foods is that many producers of food and handicrafts have benefited from sporadic assistance - both technical and in marketing terms from non-government organisations. The assistance, while welcome, is often non-ongoing, and projects are often left to flounder.
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“They know the help won’t go on forever, but they often don’t know what to do next,” she says. “They need someone to come in and encourage them to continue to produce their products, and guide them with their marketing. That’s what I’m trying to do.” For the moment, though, she is focused on growing the business and expanding its list of products and urges anyone who wants to become involved to contact Lao Best on Facebook.
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Kunming is a city of colour and contrast. It’s also a city of surprises.
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ven as a seasoned food and travel writer and photographer, I have numerous preconceived notions about Chinese cities. You probably share some of them; sprawling conurbations that you’d never heard of inhabited by multi-millions (even my editor said, “you are going where?”), towering buildings of concrete, glass and steel that erased centuries of traditional architectural splendour, traffic-clogged streets, and fetid air. And yes, there is no doubt this description can be applied to parts of modern China. But then there is Kunming. Kunming is the capital of Yunnan province in the mountainous and ethnically diverse southwest China where it borders Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam. Known as the City of Eternal Spring due to its average temperature of 15° C (59° F), tree-lined streets and flowers that bloom throughout the year, it is regarded as one of China’s most friendly and livable cities. Stepping out of my hotel and onto the main street, my image of polluted gridlocked streets was the first preconception to take a tumble – or rather it was knocked down by a bicycle…then completely flattened by an electric scooter. In a move that could shame all but a handful of western cities, Kunming has bicycle hire stations everywhere and without exception all motorcycles are electric. Look out for the bright yellow ‘Ofo’, silver and orange ‘Mobike’ and the blue and yellow ‘Yong An Xing’ bicycles, to name but a few. All you need to do is download an app, register, scan a QR code to pay and receive a number to unlock the bike, and you are away. Taxis are also cheap and there is an underground and a great bus system, so getting around is a breeze. For the most part, however, I explored the fascinating neighbourhoods and backstreets of this largely low-rise and clean city on foot. Did you hear that thud? Another preconception just hit the dirt.
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1. The entrance to a tea garden at Green Lake 2. An old lady selling potatoes in an evening street market 3. Bicycles for hire, just one of many green initiatives in Kunming 4. Making noodles in Zhuanxin Market
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This city of 6.5 million people is not only committed to a greener future through the implementation of more sustainable initiatives and technologies, it also has more than its fair share of public spaces. One of the city’s most scenic is Green Lake, known locally as Cui Hu. Situated at the foot of Wuhua Hill, the 22-hectare park is an excellent place for people-watching as it is a popular spot for early morning Tai Chi, exercise classes, music, and catching up on the gossip. A series of bridges lead to islands where paths meander through groves of bamboo and weeping willow toward tranquil tea gardens and temples that look out across a lake greened by lotus plants. It’s also close to the imposing building of the Yunnan Military Academy which was established in 1909. The building still has guards at the entrance to the courtyard but as it is now open to the public, their only purpose seems to be to delight snap-happy tourists. As a photographer who is never happier than when local food is in the frame, I was keen to visit one of Kunming’s many fresh markets. Tucked away behind Xinwen Road, Zhuanxin Agricultural Market is a feast for the eyes and the appetite. From 9 a.m. through until dusk each day, this vibrant market is shoulder-to-shoulder with shoppers who come to stock up on farm fresh produce. There’s a bewildering array of exotic fruits and vegetables, piquant Yunnan-style 32
pickles and assertive chili pastes, and no shortage of shops where I was enticed by unfamiliar regional specialties. Nobody here speaks English but it’s not an obstacle – simply point, pay, sit down and get ready to discover new tastes and textures. In open-fronted shophouses, food producers who have honed their skills for decades load giant steamers with buns, bag up freshly cut noodles, grilled pillows of tofu over charcoal until golden and charred, and check air-cured hams and sausages that wouldn’t look out of place in Tuscan deli. In July and August though, it’s the abundance of highly-prized wild mushrooms that customers haggle over in Kunming’s markets.
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The array of foraged fungi was a reminder that I had a lunch appointment with Chef Ken Liang from Le Chinois at the award-winning Sofitel Kunming. Chef Ken is a master of his art and, like the shoppers in the local market, he embraces seasonality. Within the elegant setting of Le Chinois, however, he elevates Yunnan cuisine to new levels of refinement in both taste and presentation. This is regional cuisine reimagined for the 21st century. Dishes such as double-boiled organic chicken with matsutake mushrooms, and black truffle rice noodles are executed with precision and creativity, yet are still infused with authentic flavours and a clear sense of history. Downtown, I pick up more threads of local history. In an area known as Old Street Kunming, part of China’s rich
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tapestry of life has been unpicked and reconstructed. Old Street Kunming encompasses six main streets, including the 400-metre-long Qian Wang Street, and 15 alleys, each lined with old buildings, some of which date back to the early 1900s. Although admittedly much of Kunming’s stunning architectural heritage has been lost, what remains here was designated a ‘Protection and Restoration Project’ in 2004, and efforts to save it should be applauded. The ongoing work to rebuild, restore, and often incorporate intriguing contemporary elements in these heritage buildings and family courtyard houses has served to stimulate local pride in culture and history. A mini renaissance is evident in the number of stylish cafés and restaurants, craft breweries, chic boutiques and design-led hotels such as the Silver Chest that have opened here in recent years. It appears that not everything in China is about the future. Thud. Kunming is a city of colour and contrast. It’s also a city of surprises. Perhaps the most surprising of all is
that it’s just 90 minutes from Vientiane with Lao Airlines. Beyond the city, mountainous Yunnan province is populated by 26 ethnic minority groups and the UNESCO Heritage Site of Liijang, but I’ll save that for my next trip.
Lao Airlines flies to Kunming daily.
Sofitel Kunming
Towering above a busy downtown neighbourhood, the 50-storey Sofitel Kunming is the city’s most prestigious address. The hotel’s 397 rooms and suites start on the 27th floor, ensuring that guests have spectacular views of Kunming, Dianchi Lake, and the mountains beyond. There are also 144 Club rooms across floors 40 to 48 with exclusive access to the Club Millésime Lounge. Venues for dining and relaxation include a dramatic lobby bar, Le Chenois restaurant serving regional Cantonese, Sichuan and Yunnan cuisines, Kwee Zeen, an all-day dining international restaurant, Lan with cuisines from across Southeast Asia, and Voyager Bar on the 50th floor where guests can enjoy creative cocktails, fine wines and the best view
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in Kunming. It is a truly luxurious hotel, but the food at Sofitel Kunming is also an intrinsic part of the guest experience and keeps diners coming back for more. Exclusive offer for Lao Airlines passengers at Sofitel Kunming Experience the luxury and refinement of Sofitel Kunming and get 10% off our Best Available Rate. To benefit from the special rate, simply show your Lao Airlines boarding pass when you check-in at the front desk. The offer is valid until 31 December 2017. Win a one-night stay at Sofitel Kunming Share your most memorable impression of Kunming with us. We’ll choose three of our favourites to publish on the hotel’s official WeChat, and each winner will get a one-night stay at the luxurious Sofitel Kunming. Send your story to H8529-MK2@sofitelkunming.com before 31 December, 2017.
1. Sofitel Kunming is one of the city’s most luxurious hotels 2. Lotus plants and a pagoda at Green Lake 6
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Essential ingredients Keeping it real is the name of the game for Les Artisans Lao, writes Sally Pryor.
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igh above an art gallery, in a small room in a narrow building off a side street in downtown Vientiane, is a humming laboratory.
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There, young Lao people in white lab coats hover over heating and cutting machines, surrounded by glass vials and bubbling oils. Shelves are crammed with brown bottles, many with handwritten labels. It could be a mad scientist’s lab, or a chemist’s workspace, except that the smell is just heavenly. There’s citronella, tea-tree and jojoba, for a start, and the busy-bee workers are trialling products to see how they perform as essential oils, soap, shampoo, lip balm and insect repellent.
This last is one of the company’s best sellers – one of several beautifully packaged cosmetic products that form part of a range by Les Artisans Lao, a company that makes natural skincare products, fragrances and handicrafts, including furniture and jewellery. Les Artisans Lao is the brainchild of Michel Saada, a French native who has been in Laos so long, he can’t ever imagine going back to his old life in France. It was more than 25 years ago that Saada left Paris, where he ran a restaurant, and fetched up in Vientiane. That was in 1993, back when Laos was just opening up to international tourism. It was a very different place then – no cars, no
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motorbikes, not much commercial enterprise. But, desperate for a reason to stay in a place he had swiftly fallen in love with, Saada began making handicrafts. It began, he says, with an ornamental bowl made of coconut, which fell on the floor and shattered. He put a hole in one piece and began wearing it as a necklace, and before too long, he was making them for anyone who asked. He moved on to other decorative pieces made from coconut, and eventually opened a gallery, T’ShopLai, in a repurposed terrace house a street back from the Mekong, still his main headquarters today.
He moved onto a special technique involving crushed eggshells and resin, from which he and his team make everything from furniture to homewares, and invited other artists to stage exhibitions in the space. In the process, he was also training young, unskilled Lao people to create objects and run the business with him. “Usually, I train people, and soon they can do the work even better than me,” he says. But even with a gallery and burgeoning handicrafts business, he couldn’t quitesolve the conundrum of throwing away piles of coconut flesh as a by-product of many of his works.
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1. Michel Saada 2. Soap by Les Artisans Lao 3. Michel Saada and staff 4. Making soap
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“Then someone from America told me I could make oil from it, and I said, really, I can make oil? So I started to make oil,” he says. But of course, it wasn’t quite as simple at the time. Today, he says, he knows “everything about coconuts - I am crazy about coconuts”, but making refined oil was a long learning process that involved a donated machine and a lot of trial and error.
a new product, we have to wait for six months or one year to see how the stability is,” he says.
And no sooner had he perfected his coconut oil game, that another friend suggested he try making soap, another slow learning process in the age before the Internet. A friend agreed to join the enterprise as a financial backer, and so, six years ago, he launched the Les Artisans Lao line of skincare and fragrance products. It was perfect timing, with the ever-growing trend of natural alternatives to commercial skin products, and a clamour among well-heeled tourists to take home the perfect classy souvenirs as gifts from Laos.
Today, Saada employs around 25 people – all Lao and non-English-speaking - and the products are sold everywhere in Laos main cities, from small handicrafts shops to international minimarts and large-scale supermarkets. And, to Saada’s surprise, his biggest market is Chinese and Korean consumers, many of whom buy the products in large quantities, safe in the knowledge that they’re sourced on a small scale inLaos, and can’t be bought elsewhere. Visit artisanslao.com for more information.
“We’re really careful with packaging - we have many products coming out every few months, but when we make
Indeed, exclusivity could be one of the company’s main selling points, beyond being naturally sourced and ethically produced.
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“Our formula is very precise and we are very careful. I say to people, if it’s not correct, if you make a mistake, throw it away and make it again… From when you create until you go to the market it takes maybe one year and a half or two years.”
Saada has so far declined to export the products, fearing a dilution of quality if demand grows too high. In this way, the products are the very definition of sustainable – not to mention desirable.
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1. Les Artisans Lao products on display. 2. Inside the laboratory of Les Artisans Lao.
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It’s become common to eat out, spend time with friends in cafes, and enjoy sweet treats after their meals. Nor is the trend for modern desserts the sole domain of the young. The older Lao generation is also partial to pastries and cakes, and they know what they like.
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ao people have long subscribed to the sweeter side of life and these days, that means indulging in all kinds of creative cakes and confectionary. New dessert and cake cafes are popping up like toffee-covered mushrooms in Vientiane, and a spread of delectable goodies linger temptingly alongside every gleaming coffee machine.And for at least one worker at the frontier of the dessert movement - 23-year-old Ms Tiay, at Baan Ton Mali Cakes, the rise of the cake shop in the past decade has quick and notable. “Previously Lao people didn’t like cake - they ate fruit,” she says. “Now they’re more likely to try different things like cake, sweets and biscuits.” It’s a new dawn of sugar, sprinkles and selfies as Lao people, spearheaded by the younger, mediasavvy and internationally-influenced generation, embrace the Asian passion for all things cute and sugary. In the past, Lao people only bought cakes for special occasions like a work celebration, and there are still various local Vietnamese bakeries that sell elaborate celebration cakes decorated with white, sugary mock cream. But Vientiane’s growing middle class are refining their dessert preferences. “People have more money now,” says Tiay.
Mr Giap, 63, is unashamedly choosy about his desserts. He swears by the homemade coconut and taro flavours at Apae Ice Cream downtown. “And I definitely indulge in eclairs from Jeremy Herzog,” he says, referring to the relatively new riverfront patisserie, run by its namesake, a long-time French expat. The fashionable cake trend hasn’t, however, squeezed traditional Lao desserts off Vientiane’s culinary table. Stall vendors at markets and around town still do a thriving trade in old time favourite Lao sweets, including khaonom khok (coconut cakes), bamboo sticky rice, nam varn (“sweet water”), and khao khorp (sweet crispy rice). “The best southeast Asian dessert in Vientiane is nam vanh from That Khao road,” says Mr Giap. Nam vanh is a sweetened soup of coconut milk and sugar syrup with fruits, tapioca and jellies. He adds that khaonom thouay, a traditional coconut custard served in small glass bowls and literally translated as “dessert bowls”, is best at Chao Anou night market. “Though,” he adds wistfully “the khaonom thouay may not be as great as in the old days.” It’s a changing world. You may need to sit down with a piece of cake. Here’s where to indulge your sweet tooth in Vientiane: JULY / AUGUST 2017
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Thai-style cake shops Baan Ton Mali Cakes
opened in 2011 with Thai-style cakes made by the owner’s wife, who went to Thailand to study cake making. Today, they continue to make all their cakes in-house. It’s a popular spot especially at lunchtime with students and locals who work in the area. Tiay says their
Korean and Japanese dessert bars
Tokyo Cake
has been serving up Japanese style desserts since 2013. Their customers’ favourite desserts include sponge cakes heaped with whipped cream and fresh fruit, traditional milk puddings with custard, and fruit mousses.
Cafe Kream
Under The Tree
from Udon Thani in Thailand is a current hot favourite in the Vientiane cake scene. Step through the bright red front door of this tiny shopfront and into a cutesy, 1950s “home sweet home”, serving rich, creamy cakes and sweet, milky drinks. Owner Ms Vilayvanh says that the coconut caramel crepes with fresh whipped cream is one of their best loved dishes.
opened in late 2016 and already has three outlets in Vientiane, each a modern affair of black steel, floor-toceiling windows and a bold red front door. Their tagline “First Snow in Vientiane” refers to their signature bingsu, shaved milk “snowflakes” doused in flavoured toppings such as green tea and strawberry.
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1. Dark Beer Lao cake at Under the Tree 2. Green tea cake at Ban Ton Mali 3. Bingsu at Cake Kream 4. Inside Cafe Kream 5. Inside Tokyo Cake 6. Cream and fruit cake at Tokyo Cake
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Ice-Creameries Apae Ice Cream
is a tiny ice-cream parlour on the corner of Chao Anou Road in downtown Vientiane. It has been dishing out scoops of homemade icecream to its loyal customers for many years, and the coconut, taro and chocolate flavours are particularly special.
Love Life Ice Cream
is a cake, ice-cream and dessert cafe well frequented by families. They have been selling ice cream in Vientiane since 2012 before opening their popular cafe. Owner and chef Ms Fleur names the Lady Berry Sundae with whipped cream, strawberry sauce and chocolate cookie as their best seller.
Sweet Moo
is a popular Lao ice cream bar on the main street downtown, and also at Vientiane Center. The light-filled, bright yellow and black retro cafe opened in 2015 and serves an army of ice-cream flavours and desserts. The Chocolate Banana Toast, served with a generous scoop of ice-cream is a favourite dish.
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French patisseries Jeremy’s Cafe
is home to the creations of well-known French pastry chef, Jeremy Herzog. His delicate and innovative pastries and cakes are gobbled down by Lao people, expats and tourists alike. Some of their most popular desserts are their signature religieuse choux pastry and, of course, the chocolate eclairs.
Bakery by Boris
is a new Vientiane cafe, owned by French-Lao pastry chef, Boris Luangkhot. The cafe serves traditional French-style pastries, biscuits and slices, as well as a generous selection of sponge, meringue and cream-based cakes.
Vientiane’s homage to cream-filled cakes and heady desserts is only just beginning. It’s time to get a slice of the action now.
7. Chocolate Banana Toast at Sweet Moo 8. Inside Sweet Moo 9. Passionata at Jeremy’s Cafe 10. Apae ice-cream 11. Lady Berry Sundae at Love Life Ice Cream 12. A confection at Bakery by Boris 13. Inside Bakery by Boris Photos: Phoonsab Thevongsa
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aos, with its wild rugged lanscapes, reticulated rivers, and huge but diminishing number of tree species, is home to animals, birds and reptiles you may have never heard of. Many species are yet to be discovered.
Into the
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Doing It Right. The Experts' Guide to Responsible Wildlife Tourism By Melody Kemp 58
Development has dragged a doubleedged sword through the landscape, allowing scientist access to previously inaccessible areas, along with hunters. Still, there is plenty see, both big and small. Wildlife tourism acts as a disincentive to poachers. After all, who wants to be caught with a rare deer in their sights by a group of energetic travellers? But when you think about wildlife tourism, what comes to mind? A selfie with an elephant? A brag shot for Facebook? A chance to see creatures performing circus-type antics? An adrenaline-pumping zipline trip that may reveal a primate? Perhaps, sadly, a ‘last chance to see’ experience? Or is it to close the gap that is widening between us and them via the Anthropocene, the current age that puts humans above everything else, including the environment that supports us?
Laos offers some great and hopeful opportunities to interact with animals to be up close and personal with elephants, for instance, and maybe even to volunteer by feeding traumatised bears and other rescued animals I spoke to several wildlife specialists about things that travellers should keep in mind. Here are the words of the experts. They apply anywhere in the world. · Travellers may be tempted to purchase animals like birds or primates in order to free them. Yes, it seems like a good idea, but it’s not. It sends a message that trapping animals makes money. · The wildlife trade is about wealth, not poverty. To the poor, your ethical behaviour is a model that not all rich people (because no matter how poor you might feel, you have enough to travel) want to souvenir wildlife. Bush meat has become fashionable amongst the rich. If you see animals on sale in food markets, take a picture, note the date and location, and send it to one of the conservation groups active the region.
· Having a photo with a chained or caged monkey or loris encourages villagers to think that travellers like that sort of thing. Don’t do it. · No matter how delicious or wicked you feel, do not eat wild animals. Venison on a menu could be wild caught. Ask first. · Travellers should not visit tiger tourist venues at any cost. Not only are tigers treated poorly, but when they are too old for selfies, they are killed and turned into tiger products. Drinking tiger wine does not lead to great sex. Consumer demand for tiger experiences allows wild caught tigers to be laundered as captive-bred tigers. · Do your research before visiting any wildlife tourism operation. Get to know what you might see. Ask to see animals that interest you, but don’t expect that you can. That animal may be location-specific or rare, but it enhances local pride that travellers know about and want to see Lao’s natural riches. · Be wary of elephnat camp operators. Choose ethical places like the Elephant Conservation Center (elephantconservationcenter.com) set on the edge of a spectacular lake in Sayaboury, or Mandalao (mandalaotours.com) in Luang Prabang, where you can take a long walk and spend some great time with fat happy jumbos. Yes, we all know ridingelephants makes you feel like a Maharaja, but for the elephants, it’s painful and debilitating. Enjoy just being with them. Or, for a ‘let’s see what we can see’ experience, try a night safari on the Nam Nern (namet. org/wp/nam-nern-night-safari). · If it looks like ivory or protected rosewood, it probably is. Don’t be tempted to buy, even if you can’t get these things in your home country. Not only do you risk arrest on arrival back home, but you contribute to the destruction of wildlife and habitats. The reality is that one of the most intelligent animals on the planet dies when a tusk is taken.
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1. Lao Elephants. Photo: Paul Wager (image courtesy of Manda Elephant Sanctuary) 2. A Moon Bear (image courtesy of Free the Bears Fund)
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· Spend time. A one-day trek may not reveal anything. The best time to see animals and birds is very early in the morning, so ask your tour leader to get you out of bed. He or she may be far too polite to wake you up. · Be a wildlife Sherlock. Look for signs, for prints or scat. Ask for a local guide along with the company guide. The local guide will know the ecosystem. · Bring a pair of binoculars. Animals are not going to hang around to meet you. Along with eyes, listen for the chattering of gibbons, or the whistling of birds · Come for the big but love the small. Laos had some exquisite beetles, butterflies, lizards; keep an eye out for them. Note their habitat and lifestyle choices. · And most importantly, fall in love every day. It’s magical.
LaosWildlifeRescue freethebears.org
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Wondrous
KOREA
They are consummate professionals who work hard keeping our passengers comfortable and safe. So no one can deny that flight attendants deserve to enjoy their stopover breaks between long flights! As you can see from this selection of glamorous Instagram photos, these five Lao Airlines flight staff make the most of a recent stop-off in Korea, soaking up the atmosphere and ensuring it’s a trip to remember‌
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1. Public Park 2. Gamcheon Culture Village 3. Seoul Tower 4. Cherry Blossom Festival At Yeouido park 5. Central park, Inchon 6. Oryukdo Skywalk, Busan 7. Busan Tower 6
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8. Gamcheon Culture Village 9. Gyeongbokgung palace 10. Gyeongbokgung palace 11. Haeundae Beach 12. Selfie on the plane 13. Nami Island 14. Seoul grand park rose garden festival 15. Haedong Yonggungsa Temple
Photos by: Vinada Bandavong, Sounaly Xayyavong Okaen Phanphouvong, Thienxay Phiathep Lina Savanhvong SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2017
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Singing through the microphone Tai Dam Traditional Music and Modernity in Laos By Marie-Pierre Lissoir
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t was the second day of the New Year in Houay Yong, a village in northern Laos. It was also the first time the village had access to electricity, and, to celebrate, had hired a live band, complete with amplifiers and electric keyboards. The excitement in the village square was palpable as the band set up the oversized speakers that have become so ubiquitous throughout the country. But, as the festivities kicked off, the mood quickly dissipated. The usual early performance by traditional
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Tai Dam singers, so often a source of joy for locals, had been hijacked uncomfortably by the unorthodox use of a microphone - distorting the voices and removing the intimate quality of the merging voices. The town square was now empty, and it was only early evening. The live band tried its best to liven the mood, with a singer and keyboard player performing pop songs through the massive speakers, but locals were put off by the noise. And then, a noisy group approached in the distance. As it drew closer to the plaza, it became clear they were singing and dancing. At its centre, musicians sang and played drums, cymbals and the mouth organ, performing a traditional lam salavan – a common sight throughout the country for any kind of celebration. Surrounded by dancing and shouting men, women and kids, the
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rambunctious group settled in the middle of the village square, silencing the electric keyboard. The crackling distortion of the speakers was now replaced by human voices and the quavering mouth organ, mixed with the shouting and clapping of party-goers. Several women, dancing, dragged onlookers into the group, and the gathering grew steadily bigger, reappropriating the social space of the village square. The Tai Dam ethnic group belongs to the Tai Kadai ethno-linguistic family, with the largest portion of the community settled in the northern part of the country, close to Vietnam. The group’s traditional singing, called khap, is performed by a soloist, with a chorus sung by the audience. Khap Tai Dam is usually performed during celebrations, with singers sitting among the other guests, eating and drinking alcohol, and singing whenever they feel like it. It’s as informal a setting you can get, with the audience drinking, shouting and clapping with the music. Most of them, however, sing the chorus, and encourage the singer with shouting and clapping. In the Tai Dam community, singing is used for entertainment, to give advice or express personal feelings, and plays
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an important role in the construction of social relations. But with the arrival of electricity comes a new setting for the performance of khap, now using sound installations with speakers and microphones. This modern set-up has had an interesting influence on the singing itself and its community role. The soloist is now isolated from the audience, holding a microphone on a stage or in front of a big banner. The audience is far removed from the singer and no longer joins with the chorus. This formal setting, usually linked to official celebrations, is now more and more frequent in the villages of Laos. When performed in this context, the songs have a reduced role in community cohesion, as the audience no longer participates. The setting also influences the topic of the songs, as people are unlikely to express personal feelings in this new context. Morphs in culture occur constantly in Lao villages, just as they do in all human societies, and results can be mixed. For example, traditional cultural practices, such as music and handicrafts, are often strongly influenced by the arrival of electricity and new media.
While microphones and speakers modify some of the roles fulfilled by music and could, in some cases, dampen creativity, the newly amplified voices can now be heard by a wider audience, and captured on video and voice recordings by young people leaving for the city, allowing them to maintain cultural links with their home villages. Change can be scary and discombobulating, but it is integral to any human experience. Nothing is black or white. But when changes are rapid and uncontrolled, they can be destructive. In these cases, local organisations like museums or handicraft associations play an important role in the preservation of changing traditions. Without impeding dramatic cultural shifts, they can keep track of traditional knowledge. It will then be up to future generations to find some interest in the richness of the traditional practices of Laos, and grasp the tools that are left at their disposal. To learn more about the culture of minority groups in Laos, please visit the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre in Luang Prabang.
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1. Traditional Tai Dam house 2. Ma River, Houaphan province 3. Tai Dam singers during a celebration 4. Oversized speakers in the village square 5. Young singer with a musician 6. Tai Dam women during New Year celebrations 7. Tai Dam singers and a mouth organ player Images: Marie-Pierre Lissoir. taeclaos.org SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2017
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On the air
LAO AIRLINES NEWS
ໃນວັນທີ 17/07/2017 ທີ່ຜ�ານມາ, ທີ່ຫ�ອງປະຊຸມ 410 ສ�ານັກງານໃຫຍ� ລັດວິສາຫະ ກິດການບິນລາວ ໄດ�ມີການເປີດກອງປະຊຸມສະຫລຸບຜົນງານ ການມາກວດກາ ແລະ ຕ�່ໃບຢັ້ງ ຢືນມາດຕະຖານຄວາມປອດໄພການບິນຕາມມາດຖານຂອງສະມາຄົມຂົນສົງ່ ທາງອາກາດສາກົນ IOSA (IATA-International Air Transport Association Operational Safety Audit) ຂອງອົງການກວດສອບສາກົນ AO-Audit Organization Quality Audit ຈາກ ປະເທດ ຝຣັ່ງ, ພາຍໃຕ�ການເປັນປະທານຂອງທ�ານ ດຣ ບຸນຈັນ ສິນທະວົງ, ລັດຖະມົນຕີ
Lao Airlines receives international safety certification On June 17th, a meeting was held to confirm the results of an International Air Transport Association (IATA) Operational Safety Audit, in the presence of HE Dr Bounchan Sinthavong, Minister of Public Works and Transport, and Dr Somphone Douangdara, President of Lao Airlines State Enterprise. The event was also attended by employees of Lao Airlines. Safety is an important task for Lao Airlines, and we hold it in the utmost regard and offer services with international safety standards. Since receiving IOSA certification in May of 2015, we have been audited again, and have had our certification extended. Lao Airlines guarantees excellent safety in technical training, ground services, and goods and materials transportation. Lao Airlines Vice President Somsamay Visounnarath, who is heading up the IOSA certification, said that the safety audit covered three areas: 1. Guidance and Support; 2. Implementation; 3. Preparedness for Audit by the Relevant Departments and a Check List covering 958 items (ISARP/ISM10 IATA Standards and Recommended Practices). The results of this audit are a huge achievement, brought about by the IOSA team under the guidance of the Lao Airlines board of directors. Lao Airlines is now one of 406 airlines around the world to have received the IOSA certification, and become a full IATA member.
ກະຊວງໂຍທາທິການ ແລະ ຂົນສົ່ງ ພ�ອມດ�ວຍທ�ານ ປອ ສົມພອນ ດວງດາລາ, ຜູ�ອ�ານວຍ ການໃຫຍ� ແລະ ຄະນະພັກຄະນະອ�ານວຍການ ບັນດາພະນັກງານພາຍໃນລັດວິສາຫະກິດ ການບິນລາວເຂົ້າຮ�ວມ. ວຽກງານຄວາມປອດໄພການບິນຖືເປັນວຽກງານໜຶ່ງທີ່ ລັດວິສາຫະກິດການບິນລາວ ໄດ� ໃຫ�ຄວາມສ�າຄັນເປັນອັນດັບໜຶ່ງ ເນື່ອງຈາກພວກເຮົາໄດ�ເນັ້ນໃສ�ຄວາມປອດໄພມາດຕະຖານ ສາກົນເປັນຫຼັກ ແລະ ບ�ລິການລະດັບດຽວກັບສາກົນ. ພາຍຫຼັງທີ່ ການບິນລາວ ໄດ�ຮັບການຂື້ນ ທະບຽນ ແລະ ໃບຢັ້ງຢືນ IOSA Registration ໃນເດືອນພຶດສະພາ 2015 ເຊິ່ງມີອາຍຸການ ພຽງ 02 ປີ, ມາຮອດປັດຈຸບັນແມ�ນໄດ�ຮັບຜ�ານການກວດສອບເພື່ອສືບຕ�່ໃບຢັ້ງຢືນ ທີ່ສາມາດ ຮັກສາລະດັບຄວາມປອດໄພທາງດ�ານການປະຕິບັດການບິນ ການຝຶກອົບຮົມ ດ�ານເຕັກນິກ ດ�ານບ�ລິການພາກພື້ນດິນ ແລະ ດ�ານການຂົນສົ່ງສິນຄ�າ ວັດສະດຸພັນ ໄດ�ດີເລີດ. ໃນກອງປະຊຸມ ທ�ານ ສົມສະໄໝ ວິຊນ ຸ ນະຣາດ ຮອງຜູ�ອ�ານວຍການໃຫຍ� ຜູ�ຊນ ີ້ �າວຽກງານ ດ�ານ IOSA ໄດ�ສະຫລຸບຜົນງານການຕ�່ໃບຢັ້ງຢືນ IOSA ເຊິ່ງດ�າເນີນໄປດ�ວຍຄວາມຮຽບຮ�ອຍ ແລະ ສາມາດສະຫລຸບສັງລວມໄດ� 3 ດ�ານຄື : 1. ດ�ານການຊີນ ້ �າ ນ�າພາ ແລະ ສະໜັບສະໜູນ; 2. ດ�ານການຈັດຕັ້ງປະຕິບັດ; 3. ດ�ານການກະກຽມ ກວດກາ ຂອງພະແນກທີ່ກ�ຽວຂ�ອງ ແລະ Check List ຈ�ານວນ 958 ຄ�າຖາມ (Check list or ISARP/ISM10 IATA Standard and Recomendation Practice). ຜົນຈາກການກວດສອບຄັງ້ ນີ້ ສາມາດຜ�ານໄດ� 99 ເປີເຊັນ ຖືວ�າເປັນຜົນສ�າເລັດອັນໃຫຍ�ຫຼວງ ແລະ ລ�້າຄ�າຂອງທີມງານ IOSA ພາຍໃຕ�ການຊີ້ນ�າຂອງ ຄະນະພັກອ�ານວຍການ ກ�່ຄື ລັດວິສາຫະກິດການບິນລາວ ທີ່ບ�່ແມ�ນເລື່ອງງ�າຍໃນການທີ່ຈະໄດ� ເປັນ 1 ໃນ 406 ສະມາຊິກສາຍການບິນທີ່ໄດ�ຮັບ IOSA ໃນທົ່ວໂລກ ແລະ ເອື້ອອ�ານວຍໃຫ� ລັດວິສາຫະກິດການບິນລາວໄດ�ກາຍເປັນສະມາຊິກສົມບູນ ຂອງ IATA (Full IATA Member).
ລັດວິສາຫະກິດການບິນລາວ ໄດ�ມອບທຶນການສຶກສາໃຫ�ກັບນັກຮຽນຈ�ານວນ 9 ຄົນ ທີ່ ໄດ�ຜ�ານການສອບເສັງ, ສ�າພາດ ແລະ ກວດສຸຂະພາບຂັ້ນໜຶ່ງ (Medical Class 1). ເຊິ່ງການ ສ�າພາດມີທັງສ�າພາດຈາກຄະນະກ�າມະການ ກບລ ແລະ ຈາກທີມງານຄູອາຈານຈາກໂຮງຮຽນ ການບິນ ປະເທດໄທ.ນັກຮຽນທີ່ເຂົ້າຮຽນໄດ�ແບ�ງອອກເປັນ 2 ຊຸດ ເພື່ອເຂົ້າຮຽນການບິນທີ່ ວິທະຍາໄລການບິນນານາຊາດ ມະຫາວິທະຍາໄລ ນະຄອນພະນົມ IAC (International Aviation Collage), ເຊິ່ງມີລາຍຊື່ດັ່ງຂ�າງລຸ�ມ:
Lao Airlines sees nine new pilots graduate Lao Airlines State Enterprise has offered scholarships to nine students who have passed examinations, interviews, and physical exams. The interviews included conversations with the board of directors of Lao Airlines, as well as instructors at an aviation college in Thailand. Trainee pilots were divided into two groups and sent to study at the International Aviation College, Nakhon Phanom University. The students graduated with a Commercial Pilot License (CPL) and received their certification on 27/06/2017. Lao Airlines will then send the graduates for further study to learn how to fly ATR 72-500 at the Asian Aviation Training Centre in Bangkok, Thailand. The graduates will begin flying for Lao Airlines in October this year.
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ກຸ�ມທີ 1 ມີ 5 ຄົນ
ກຸ�ມທີ 2 ມີ 4 ຄົນ
02/11/2015 (GROUP1)
23/02/2016 (GROUP2)
Ms. Natkanhya MONECHANDY
Mr. Xaysana DARANOUVONG
Mr. Anouvong PHETSIRISENG
Mr. Souksavanh MOUNIVONG
Mr. Kaisone OULAISENG
Mr. Tommany LATSAVONG
Mr. Souksavanh FONGSIKHAM
Ms. Thanyalak XEUATVONGSA
Mr. Synouan KHANSYLA ຫລັກສູດທີ່ຮຽນແມ�ນ Commercial Pilot License (CPL) ນັກບິນພານິດຕຣີ ວັນທີ ຈົບ ແລະ ຮັບໃບປະກາດໃນວັນທີ 27/06/2017. ເຊິ່ງພາຍຫຼັງຈົບຈາກນະຄອນພະນົມແລ�ວ ທາງລັດວິສາຫະກິດການບິນລາວຈະສົ່ງໄປຮຽນຕ�່ຊະນິດເຮືອບິນ ATR72 500 ທີ່ AATC ບາງກອກປະເທດໄທ ເຊິ່ງຈະຈົບ ແລະ ມາບິນໃຫ�ການບິນລາວໃນເດືອນ ຕຸລາ 2017 ນີ້.
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