11 Amazing Facts About Laos – Country Of A Million Elephants

1. Recently referred to as ‘land-linked’ rather than ‘land-locked’,  Laos is the only landlocked country in the whole of Southeast Asia.

2. There’s a nationwide curfew at midnight. The curfew is mostly enforced on businesses, though but there is still an official curfew across the country that goes into effect from midnight until early morning.

3. Lao-Lao is a potent rice-whiskey made in Laos that sells for less than a dollar per litre! Easily available in any confectionery store, the spirit is the cheapest in the world.

4. Laos is home to a very mysterious and puzzling pottery site on the Xiangkhoang Plateau known as The Plain of Jars. The landscape is strewn with thousands of stone jars and no one knows for sure what they were used for however they date all the way back to the Stone Age (500 BC – AD 500).

5. The oldest modern human fossil in Southeast Asia was found in Laos. An ancient skull was discovered in the Tam PaLing Cave in the Annamite Mountains in the north of Laos along with an even older jawbone which is at least 46, 000 years old.

6. Laos is home to the largest waterfall in Southeast Asia. The Khone Phapheng waterfall, also known as ‘The Niagara of the east’, is located on the Mekong River in southern Laos and is the largest waterfall in Southeast Asia with the highest point being 21 meters.

7. Vang Vieng is home to the ‘cheapest hot air balloon ride in the world’ at around $90 per person. Considering how beautiful the countryside surrounding Vang Vieng is, this is a bargain worth waking up at 4.30am for.

8. A novice monk is a young boy between the age of 8 and 20 who committed to become a monk for at least 3 months. All boys in Laos are expected to spend some time as a monk during which they live in a monastery and adhere to stringent rules.

9. The Laotians are the biggest consumers of sticky rice called ‘niaow khao’ in the world. Peopl of Laos call themselves “luk khao niaow” which means “children of glutinous rice”.

10. Laos is the second largest consumer of solar energy in the world after Luxembourg.

11. Did you know, that there are different kinds of boats in Laos,  which resemble the shape of a missile, called the silver missile boats. Because of their shape, they are also called bomb boats.You can take a ride in one of them, at the Nam Kading National Park

So, that was all for Laos. Do check out the blog on amazing facts and culture of Nepal, you might be able to relate a few things with Laos! We’ll be back soon with another amazing blogs and videos!

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