January 29, 2006
Off the Plane in Vientiane
Now I'm in Laos.
I've only been here for half a day, but I can see already that this is a strange country. I mean, it's still officially Communist, and it's very poor. But there's all this... stuff.
Things about Laos that are totally Communist:
Opaque, sluggish bureacracy. To get a visa costs $30 and about half an hour of filling out forms. I ran to be in the front of the line and so got done in well under an hour. There was one (1) desk for perhaps 100 people, so the ones at the end of the line were looking at a 2+ hour wait.
Hideous modern architecture.
Attractive pre-Communist architecture that's been allowed to go unpainted, get covered with mold, and slowly fall apart.
Tiny, slow elevators.
Low-pressure, variable temperature showers.
Lots of guys in uniforms wandering around, many carrying automatic weapons.
Crumbling sidewalks
No construction cranes in sight anywhere. (Go a few stories up in a building in the center of town and scan the skyline. Voila, the construction crane index: a crude first measure of economic vigor.)
Frickin' huge Palace of Culture.
National Museum of the Revolution (closed).
Dust
Things in Laos that don't seem very Communist:
Hotels with Executive Suites
Hotels with friendly, helpful staff
Markets overflowing with fresh fruits and vegetables
Lots of little shops, especially tailors and beauty salons
Buddhism. Not as obvious as in Thailand, but we passed a huge (and obviously active) temple complex coming in from the airport, smaller shrines are everywhere, and I've seen at least half a dozen yellow-robed, shaven-headed monks wandering around doing their thing.
Loud music playing on the streets.
Lots of Western backpackers looking for eco-tourist adventures and white-water rafting, along with all the standard infrastructure that goes with Western backpackers (internet cafes, 10$ a night guesthouses, cheap restaurants, etc.)
Huge National Palace of Culture is not actually eye-poppingly hideous.
So what does it all mean? Hey, I just got here.
Consider this an open thread for things Southeast Asian. (Or Rugova. I'll do the Rugova thing soon, honest.)
Happy New Year!
Posted by: Carlos at January 29, 2006 06:38 PMOne down, twentyseven to go.
[Sigh]
Good morning, you.
Posted by: claudia at January 30, 2006 07:12 AMWhatcha doin' in Laos, anyway? Say, let me know if you run into any Swedes. I know one of my wife's old buddies is doing some sort of development work there. Anne-louise Becktorp, I think.
Posted by: Bernard Guerrero at January 30, 2006 02:51 PMDoug,
Seems from your description of Laos that the regime has given up on the ideology of communism (religion is opium, no western music, all merchants and entrepreneurs are bloodsuckers) and just kept the side-effects of communism (bureaucracy, repressive and omnipresent police, bad infrastructure and lack of large scale capital formation).
What's the chance Laos will go the way of Burma and just become an outright military dictatorship with no real ideology?
Posted by: Oskar L. at January 30, 2006 04:16 PMAnd speaking of development, any comments on the following?
http://neweconomist.blogs.com/new_economist/2006/01/rodrik_on_the_a.html
Posted by: Bernard Guerrero at January 30, 2006 09:12 PMRandom Vientiane News:
Wed Apr 26, 7:28 PM ET
VIENTIANE, Laos - The remains of a centuries-old temple, along with thousands of historical artifacts, have been uncovered in and around the Lao capital during excavations for the upgrade of a major road
Lao archaeologists believe the temple Vat Yotkeo dates back to the 1548-1571 rule of King Sai Setthathirat, the Vientiane Times said. Fittingly, the ruins have been found on what is now called Setthathirat road. The temple was destroyed by the Thais, who burned and pillaged Vientiane in 1828.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060426/ap_on_sc/laos_temple_uncovered;_ylt=AnD169zIY26o_hw4fKBbfxJvieAA;_ylu=X3oDMTA5aHJvMDdwBHNlYwN5bmNhdA--