The Phaung Daw U Pagoda is the most famous lake on the Inle Lake. The Pagoda contains five small gilded images of Buddha covered with in gold leaf. In fact the images where originally made from Sandal wood, but have been covered so many times with gold leaf, they now appear rather shapeless objects of pure gold. The images represent Kakkusandra, Kaunagamana, Kasatpa, Gautama and Arainmareya Buddhas of this world.

Every year when the rainy season ends around September time boat races are held on the rivers and lakes throughout Myanmar. The most spectacular festival takes place in October at the Phaung-Daw U Pagoda on Inle Lake near Taunggyi.

During the event, four of the five Buddha images are placed on the Royal Barge. The fifth Buddha image is left to take care of the monastery. The barge takes the shape of a bird, the Karaweik (‘a mythical bird with a sweet voice’), and a procession takes place around the lake, stopping at each large monastery and village to spend the night before moving on the following morning to the next village in a clockwise direction. These visits represent those made by King Alaungsithu several centuries ago. The decorated royal barge is towed by several boats moving by leg-rowers of Inle Lake. The high point of the festival is on the day when the images arrive at the main town of Nyaung Shwe, where most pilgrims from the surrounding region come to pay their respects and veneration by boats. There are hundreds of floating boats from near and far. At Nyaung Shwe they spend three nights and then they return to the Pagoda via the right- hand side of the river.

The festival lasts 18 days and is held according to the Lunar Calendar of Myanmar. It begins on the first Waxing Moon day of Thadingyut and ends a couple of days after the Full Moon.

On the final day of the festival there is a boat race. Each race is between three boats each containing around 100 people each. The actual Inle Lake is located in the heart of the Shan Plateau 900 metres above sea level. It is 22 km long and 10 km wide. Even if not heading to the Inle Lake for the festival, visiting the lake on your travel s to Myanmar is definitely worth it. Spending a day on a scenic boat trip along the lake you will discover many different ethnic people and experience their daily life.

In 2013 the festival takes place between the 05th and 22nd October. So if you are travelling to Myanmar during this period it would definitely be worth trying to co-ordinate your tour to Myanmar to include a stop at the Inle Lake. There is plenty of accommodation to meet a range of budgets but booking early is advised due to the high demand in of Myanmar and the new destination to visit.

A short flight away from Hanoi is the small town of Dong Hoi the capital of Quang Binh Province. It can also be reached by train or a short drive from Imperial city of Hue. It has largely been left as an off the beaten track location. Although there is not much in the town itself the surrounding area is one of limestone karsts, rivers and mountain scenery and of course the local and world famous caves.

Paradise cave known to the locals as Thien Duong Cave was discovered by the British Cave research Association in 2005 and located in the Phong Nha – Ke Bang park’s conservation area and is around 40 km from Dong Hoi airport and the flight takes just over 45 minutes.

Although just 200 metres above sea level, the cave is 31 km long and the longest dry cave in South East Asia. The name paradise cave was chosen due to its spectacular stalactites and stalagmites. With naturally primitive features Thien Duong Cave looks like a landscape painting with a series of white crystal stalactites resembling glass pillars and many other spectacular formations. The cave was thought to have formed over 400 million years ago from the streams flowing through the area and was made a UNESCO world heritage site in 2003.

Paradise cave is not the only cave in the area. Son Doong Cave was discovered in 1991 by local Vietnamese villagers and when the British Cave Research Association conducted a survey in the area in 2009. They concluded the cave was over 5 times as big as paradise cave. The biggest chamber of the cave is over 5 km long, 200 m high and 150 wide. Following their expedition Son Doong Cave has become the world’s largest cave and stretches all the way to the Laos border.

For those worried about accommodation in Dong Hoi there has been more and more hotels and guesthouses opening up to cater to a variety of budgets. The area is seeing more and more tourism and that is great news for the local population. The area has an additional benefit of also being on the coast. There are plenty of resorts just a few minutes from Dong Hoi airport all along the Nhat Le Sea some with private beaches which have not yet seen a mass of tourism. That said there are all the facilities that you would expect if you are looking for some down time at the beach. You can try your hand at windsurfing, canoeing, water skiing or even jet skiing. For those on a romantic getaway there are variety of restaurants serving local and western food.

All in all for something different add Dong Hoi into your travel plans. The area has it all forests, pristine beaches, mountains and two of the most impressive caves in the world. It is also a great idea to visit now when on a tour in Vietnam before the area quickly develops into a mass tourism market.

A lot has happened in 20 years, the level of development has been unprecedented. On first arriving in 1993 the immediate impression was lack of services available to the tourist. Certainly there was still the tuk tuk drivers eager to drive you on a tour of the temples of Angkor for the day. Hotels were popping up but other services were limited. There were no ATMs and not much else to do if one wanted to take a break from visiting the temples. Fast forward 20 years and the situation has completely changed through a great deal of investment, knowledge and innovation. This has been possible through development aid. The tenacity of the local people who despite all the atrocities they have been through are keen to show off their wonderful country and take the opportunities they have. It has also been possible as many Khmers who escaped during the Khmer Rouge era are returning with the knowledge they have gained abroad bringing positive change to the local community.
With many local businesses getting ready for the new tourist season starting in October don’t just think about a tour to Siem Reap as just a quick temple visit. That a moment to have a look at what else is on offer and how it adds to the local economy.

Horse-riding in Siem Reap is one such tour, for those with a little adventure in mind why not take a horse riding tour for 1-3 hours through rural countryside passing streams, rice fields and local villages. The tours are suitable for beginners and children and are a fun way to break up visiting the temples or just for experiencing something different on a tour to Cambodia.
For those with a head for heights and wanting to catch some aerial views and photographs of the majestic Angkor Wat try a balloon ride over Angkor. The German made helium balloon doesn’t actually move as it is attached to a rope but ascends around 200 metres for a 10 minute trip which allows you to get some great photographs and an aerial view of the eighth wonder of the world!

If you find yourself in Siem Reap on a Sunday evening a great experience is a traditional Khmer dance show with live traditional music put on by the Cambodian Children’s House of Peace, an orphanage in Siem Reap. The show is held every Sunday during the school term without fail at 7pm. It is completely free but do make a donation to their worthy cause if visiting. If you are visiting during rainy season there is a rain cover so don’t let that put you off. It is well worth the visit.

There are of course many other attractions and activities to choose from on your short trip to Siem Reap and Cambodia. Keep your mind open and don’t forget how far Cambodia has come in the last 20 years!

Traveling through rural Laos is quite an exhilarating experience. Driving through small quiet roads and passing rural villages you will certainly feel like you have stepped back in time. Things haven’t changed much in rural Laos; a country that has kept a similar culture and tradition for many hundreds of years. You are likely to pass ethnic villages each with their own unique traditions. One thing to keep an eye out for is the Dok Champa flower!

Its botanic name is the Plumeria or better known by its common name the frangipani. In Laos Dok actually means flower and Champa is the Laos name of the frangipani in Laos.

The Dok Champa is the national flower and official symbol of Lao PDR. It is a waxy flower with a sweet scent and represents sincerity and joy to the Laos people. It is found in many colours but in Laos you will see it as a white flower with a distinctive yellow centre with 5 petals. The trees are relatively short growing to only a few metres of the ground so look out for them while traveling across Laos

The trees are often planted around the country especially in gardens and monasteries. It is used for decoration in ceremonies or made into garland to welcome guests. One traditional ceremony that you will see the Dok Champa flower at is a Baci ceremony. This is a traditional ceremony held in local communities to wish a person good luck on their travels or for taking a new direction in life. That may be getting married, starting a new school, the birth of a child or recovering from an illness. The ceremony is performed by a village elder that has previous experience as a monk. Look out for the Dok Champa in a prepared flower tray which is placed at centrally in the room for people to gather round. There will also likely be young ladies performing a traditional dance in traditional dress with a Dok Champa flower in their hair.

During the Baci ceremony, a white thread of silk or cotton is tied on the right hand wrist of the individual who the Baci is being held for. The string is blessed by the people attending the baci before it is tied onto the individual. The thread is worn by an individual normally for a minimum of three days before it is removed.

Another common practice is to use the name Dok Champa when starting a new venture or naming a place. So when traveling through Laos you will often see a variety of restaurants, guesthouse, hotels and even traditional massage establishments with the name Dok Champa associated with them. This is common practice for good luck.

So keep an eye out for this wonderful flower whether on a long drive on mountain roads or just strolling through one of the lovely towns or villages across Laos including the world heritage site of Luang Prabang or by one of the magnificent waterfalls.

Indochina has come through years of war and emerged as an ideal travel destination. Stunning landscapes will surround you from the moment you land, charming people at ever