Another of our "off the beaten path" side trips during our journey to the South was to the small town of Mahaxai in central Laos. The town was described by the guidebooks and local tourist agencies as being nestled next to a river and surrounded by limestone karsts. The short drive to Mahaxai could be broken up by regular stops to numerous caves (assuming you could find them--we found only about half of the caves listed in the guidebooks). Some of the caves contained Buddha statues and others were just natural wonders. Some required a fee, some required a guide. It was a great way to spend a few hours seeing more of Laos. The town of Mahaxai ended up being a bit of a disappointment. After the caves, the road became crowded with cement and logging trucks. We initially missed the turn to Mahaxai and only managed to find the town after successfully guessing which dirt road it was on. The town did indeed sit on the edge of a river though the limestone karsts were just barely visible in the distance. Our five minutes walking in the blazing sun were more than enough and we decided to retreat back to the air-conditioned car.
Tham Nam Aen was the most developed of the caves with a large parking lot, restaurant, and depressing "zoo." The cave had electric lights and concrete paths through the cave and felt a bit like you were walking into an M.C. Escher drawing.
No comments:
Post a Comment