Day 162 – Phonsavan
Plain of Jars
Today we, went on a tour of the historic Plain of Jars. Our tour would be starting with the Tourist Information Centre and then Sites 1, 2 and 3. The gentleman from Mini Van Station Company, where we purchased the tour yesterday, was the driver for the day. The tour did not include a guide. The cost of the tour was 90,000 LAK / $14.89 AUD per person. We only got this price after a lot of haggling and the fact that we found 4 other tourists looking to go on the same tour.
Just along the main road
The first stop was the Tourist Information Centre. There was a room dedicated to information on Laos, and the main highlight is the vast military stockpile of old bombs that were dropped during the “Secret War” a.k.a. Vietnam War. There wasn’t too much information on the Jars themselves, as the purpose is not known, but some think it was part of a burial ceremony, with bodies left in the jars as preparation before burial. Other theories state that the jars may have been used as water storage.
There are only 3 main sites that tourists visit. One of the main reasons is that Unexploded Ordinates (UO) litter the country side. Only the main 3 sites have been cleared of all bombs. A good reason to stick to the path in my opinion!
Plain of Jars Site 1 includes another information Centre that is worth having a quick look at. From the information centre, you can either walk, or get on one of the free electric buggies that transport you to the site. The entrance fee is 15,000 LAK / $2.48 AUD per person. There are several intact jars to see, and some are massive. There is also a cave, that was used by the Viet Cong as a military hideout. This is the largest Plain of Jars sites.
The only jar with the lid Bomb Crater The cave
Next we went to Plain of Jars Site 2. The entry cost is only 10,000 LAK / $1.65 AUD per person. Site 2 is located amongst some trees, which makes the site look nice. There is only a handful of jars here.
Plain of Jars Site 3, is the final site with an entrance fee of 10,000 LAK again per person. To get to the site, we must walk through some farm lands with no signs, but you are rewarded with more mysterious Jars (more than Site 2 but less than Site 1).
Sites 2 and 3 did not really add anything to the experience for us. In retrospect, it would be nicer to do the other sites in Phonsavan, instead of just the jars. However, I would not skip Site 1.
After getting dropped off back at Mini Van Station Company, we decided to purchase bus tickets for tomorrow before grabbing dinner with the group of people we had just met during the tour.