Kaysone

We recently visited the Kaysone Memorial Museum and Home on the outskirts of Vientiane. The Museum, which opened in 1994, honors Kayson Phomvihane who served as the Prime Minister of Laos from 1975 to until his death in 1992. For the 30 year prior to 1975, Kaysone served as one of the (some say THE) leading members of the Pathet Lao. The Museum was clearly modeled on the Ho Chi Minh's Museum in Hanoi though without the crowds and interpretive art. There is also a nice sprinkling of North Korean leadership cult flair mixed in. Our arrival caused a bit of a stir for the seven staff lazily passing the hot afternoon. One of the staff politely followed us through the Museum and turned on fans in each section to keep the heat from becoming too overbearing. I have to say that it was probably the best and most interesting historical museum we have visited in Laos so far even if the concession stand was closed because the employee in charge of that part of the Museum decided to go home early.

Solid gold for a founding father

Near the Museum is the home that Kaysone lived in from 1975 to 1992. A visit to the home is a trip back in time as the home sits on the compound where most of the Americans in Vientiane lived prior to 1975--the infamous KM6. Kaysone clearly inherited the furnishings (the guide told us they were leftover after the Americans departed) and the home still contains green shag carpets, striped couches and wooden beds (Alas, they did not allow pictures to be taken inside the house). The neighborhood still feels a bit like a quiet suburban street in America and stepping into the house is truly eerie, reminding me of the kind of items you would find in your grandparents' basement, especially if your grandparents happened to be Buddhist or Communist. The polite Lao tour guide was grateful when we told her she could give the tour in Lao. Kaysone's last name, which when pronounced quickly by the tour guide sounded a bit like saying "there is no food" in Lao, left my spouse a bit confused about why the lack of food would come up so much during the tour. The tour consists of work spaces, a conference room, and even Kaysone's small bedroom plus lots of personal items. The man certainly liked to read and had books in Lao, Vietnamese, French, Russian and English. After the quick tour, we were tempted to sneak into the more restricted parts of KM6 where some of the Lao leadership still lives but thought better of it.