Our journey began in Vientiane, the capital of Laos which is situated on the left bank of the mighty Mekong River where the opposite bank belongs to Thailand. Afterwards, we chose to travel from Vientiane, the capital to Luang Prabang, the UNESCO heritage City which is situated about 300 km in the northern region with a sleeper bus. The bus moved uphill on the winding road to Luang Prabang.
Maybe, it is true and not exaggerated to say Kelantanese in specific and Malaysians in general will think twice about visiting Laos. Unlike Vietnam and Thailand Laos is usually out of our radar as we have no or little knowledge about the country. We first came across the said country during our lower secondary school in geography subject. Laos is a landlocked country where unlike Malaysia it is cut off from sea with no coastline that connects it with other countries, so to get there, possible ways are with air and land transportation. Since our previous visit to Cambodia unearthed new knowledge of the similarities between Kelantanese in the habit of eating Etak, our inquisitive minds called for a visit to Laos to see whether Lao people are similar to its neighbour, Cambodians, eating Etak or not. But unlike Cambodians, we believed this result was rather negative. But judging the Mekong River which is rich of Etak also flows there before it reaches Cambodia perhaps there was a possibility. With great interest coupled with an adventurous mindset, we flew with Air Asia to Vientiane via Bangkok. Even though we did not have local Lao to assist us in communicating with Lao people, our modus operandi were similar to our visit to Cambodia; we would observe, take notes and narrate the selling and buying of the said clam at the main market, we would also traverse a few big cities in the said country. No stone is left unturned, to say the least.
Our journey began in Vientiane, the capital of Laos which is situated on the left bank of the mighty Mekong River where the opposite bank belongs to Thailand. The river is the border that parts both countries. It has an average breadth of a mile because we could hardly see someone on the opposite riverbank. In the late afternoon, we strolled at the boulevard by the river which is near to the night market that sells cheap clothes, toys and other merchandise. Wild reeds flourished along the edge of the water flapping in the wings. The same was observed for Laos flags on tall poles. The sun had about an hour to set on the western horizon, the grey sky gradually turned to reddish. Many people came here for recreational purposes either jogging, walking or cycling or for other activities. Under the shade of trees, middle-aged women massaged their clients for 10-dollar fees. Nearby owners of food stalls just about to open their businesses, were busy arranging tables and plastic chairs. A few workers prepared food ingredients for final preparation. After the sunset, many people came to have food and enjoyed their time together by the said river. We saw a few floating houses glowing in the river. Before we went back to the hotel we had dinner at the halal restaurant near the Golden Wat or Buddhist Temple where two big stone elephants guarded the main gate. Unlike Cambodia, in our short stroll along the river, streets and roads in this city we did not see anyone sell Etak. Our hypothesis that people in the ‘North' consumed Etak was not seemingly running true in Laos even though the said clams were available in the Mekong River for them to consume. A visit to the main market would give and provide a true picture of the consumption habits of Etak amongst Lao people. We could not wait to explore.
For many kitchen is the heart and soul of a house. This is because we spend most of our time there. Apart from cooking, eating and drinking, we also comfortably talk in our kitchen, we feel really at home in the kitchen. On the other hand, a wet market is always a heartbeat of local social life including a supply of foods and fresh produce. Everything we eat we can find fresh supplies in wet markets. One indicator to know whether Etak is consumed or not in Laos was through a visit to the central market in Vientiane, the capital city. We visited the bustling market in mid-May to search for Etak. Customers thronged the market in the early morning, and walked shoulder to shoulder, bumping into and rubbing up against each other, in the fish area in particular. We also observed what fruits were available in the market. One thing that caught our attention was Buah Keranji or velvet tamarind in a big plastic bag - our young-age favourite fruit. Fresh fish were in abundance but we found none of the said clams in the market. What made us perplexed and found no answer when we posed the question why Lao don't consume etak even though the clam is in abundance in the riverbed of Mekong? On the other hand, Etak is a favourite snack for Cambodians, its neighbouring country. Judging from our observation we found not all places in North consume Etak. So eating Etak is seemingly unique only for Cambodians, Malay Thais in Pattani and Kelantanese. We planned to visit Luang Prabang, in the North to gather information before we could make reliable deductions pertaining to this exotic snack food.
We chose to travel from Vientiane, the capital to Luang Prabang, the UNESCO heritage City which is situated about 300 km in the northern region with a sleeper bus. In Malaysia, we do not have such a kind of bus. From its name we can easily know this kind of bus is unique because it is purposely designed, consisting of many beds, allowing passengers to lie down on board along the long journey. So passengers could sleep on their journey. As for us we usually take an overnight bus to travel from Kota Bharu to Kuala Lumpur which usually takes 10 hours and to sleep during the journey we just need to adjust and recline our seats. In Laos, Thailand and Cambodia, the sleeper bus is common and favourite for passengers for long-haul journeys. We arrived at the bus station cum the bus depot much earlier than the departure time and we found not a single bus there. Once we bought tickets at the counter and waited for our bus to come. We were elated when we saw a double-decker bus approaching the station, but frustrated when we found the wrong bus. Our bus came to the station after about one and a half hours waiting. Before the departure, the bus driver and his assistant arranged our luggage, which surprisingly, was not stored in the compartment in the belly of the bus but placed on the rooftop. Once it was full, they filled the bus compartment including passengers' luggage and other goods that we could not logically think and imagine for such items in our place, for example, motorcycles as well as chickens and other animals. This was a new experience for us to see how a bus was fully used as a mode of transportation. It carried everything in the journey, nothing left. Experiencing a sleeper bus is a once-in-a-lifetime experience and an opportunity that does not come every day.
Now let us narrate to you in more detail about our experience of the Sleeper Bus that we boarded and headed to Luang Prabang, the UNESCO traditional town. We could choose to travel by plane which comfortably takes about 45 minutes, but we preferred a sleeper bus to experience it as well as it cost us less. Unlike a conventional bus in our place, a sleeper bus is a retrofitted kind that offers flatbed seats to passengers for a long journey especially for night travelling where the sight of panorama is impossible due to the darkness of the night, so passengers can sleep as they sleep on beds at homes or hotels. Instead of ordinary beds that we sleep in at home, it was only a thin carpet that covered its base usually plank of plywood. Once everything was done, passengers' ticket inspection goods or luggage properly stored and those on the rooftop were fastened and covered with waterproof sheets, the bus left the station. Once we chose our slots or seats according to our tickets, each and every one of us was supplied with a blanket but no pillow. Each slot could occupy two persons so if you travelled alone you did not know who would be next to you. If someone is petite the slot seems large enough for two, but if someone big occupies it, both of you would be crammed like fish in a small sardine can. In the first hour of the journey, we sat cross-legged and looked at urban views on the left and right. Street lights, shops with neon lights, bright advertisement boards with local alphabets and pictures of smiling beautiful women and related products seemingly attractive enough and shuttered shops because it was already late hours at night. Soon we lied on our beds and put our jackets as pillows to sleep. But due to the continuous whining sound of the bus engine, the bumpy ride caused by potholes twisted left and right of winding roads as well as the constant application of brake and accelerator hardly we could sleep. Although the AC was functioning. We had a sleepless night on the sleeper bus to say the least. Even the idea of such a bus to ensure passengers can sleep along the journey, experience told us a different story. Anyway, such an experience was one of the journey highlights.
The bus moved uphill on the winding road to Luang Prabang. In the darkness of the night, we saw trees silhouette under the moonlight and we looked at the sky, thinking of its wondrous make. Halfway of the journey we stopped by a lake where we saw dried freshwater of various species overhanging tiny sheds made of bamboo and thatched roofs. The same with our place where bamboos thrive in abundance, local folks use them as materials and a variety tools for their needs. Approaching the dawn, the bus stopped at the hillside, bringing traffic to a standstill. The breaking of the dawn reveals the surroundings and the overhanging clouds were gradually disappearing. Deep below was a gushing river and top of the small hill were big whiteboards in Chinese characters, perhaps the name of the company involved in the construction. Wild daisy flowers in full bloom by the roadside and spring water tricked and created a small creek at the hillside under the shade of trees. Impatient passengers off the bus, as well as those from other vehicles, some smoking and a few had morning coffee from local folks who came from the village nearby. After about more than one and half our waiting, many were impatient and restless. One of our bus passengers asked the driver and his assistant to take away his motorcycle under the belly of the bus. Once the front tyre was assembled he just rode away uphill to reach home. A guy who looks like a Korean artist took and checked a small box and placed it next to him, inside was a rooster, a previous item that he carried on his journey. Either just for show or to fight purpose of course we did not know. Our sleeper bus not only carried humans but also animals and small vehicles. What we saw was only the tip of the iceberg of what items travelled together with us. A lorry behind us carried full of motorcycle, hardly we can imagine when they put them above the driver. A small lorry full load of fresh pick pumpkins to supply to Luang Prabang.
The morning light streamed through the windows and illuminated the sleeper bus, everybody was awakened. On the left and the right of the bus, we saw greenery. Grey rolling hills were visible in the distance. We passed villages and saw concrete houses on stilts. After about 2 hours we arrived at the bus terminal on the outskirts of Luang Prabang. It was a bus terminal where people sitting and chatting while waiting for buses. We took a white van to carry us to the hotel where we made a prior reservation. Luang Prabang is a laidback charm that attracts many to visit. It is due to its uniqueness as well as its serenity. We saw many European tourists, one guy wearing black sunglasses, shorts and t-shirt walking on the streets. A couple of tourists rode bicycles in front of an old temple or wat which was first built more than 400 hundred years ago. Carefree and no worries and little they needed to bother traffic. Travelling no better than this! No high-rise buildings, no big buildings, all buildings more or less alike and in a proper arrangement along the main roads. The streets were clean enough, they seemed rather deserted and empty, and hardly we saw vehicles. Amongst fruit trees, mango trees were in preponderance. We arrived at our hotel and after check-in, we went to our rooms on the second floor. We couldn't help to explore this UNESCO status city. We came across this place from reading of France naturalist and explorer Henry Mouhot who explored Indochina a hundred years ago. We hoped our stay here offered a unique and rare experience that we would cherish and remember.
