Savannakhet
Savannakhet is Laos’s most populated province, with a population of more than eight hundred thousand people. Even so, more than 60% of its territory is forested. In the C7th-C10th, these were the realms of the Chenla Kingdom of the Khmer people. From the C10th to the C13th this gave way to the Khmer Kingdom, and then from the C14th onwards these lands became part of the Kingdom of Lan Xang. The province saw rapid development during the French colonialisation, and became an administrative and business centre.
At the banks of the Mekong River we find the Wat Xayaphoum – a complex dating back to the C16th, and one of the oldest in Savannakhet.
The congregation hall, which houses a large image of Buddha, is royally decorated with intricate carvings and paintings.
Local craftsmen make Buddha statues here – but using modern materials and methods these days.
The city of Savannakhet is the capital of the province of the same name – the third-largest city in Laos. It’s situated on the banks of the Mekong River. The opposite bank of the Mekong Riveis the territory of Thailand. Visitors who come across, mainly as tourists, are met by figures of dinosaurs – whose remains are found hereabouts.
There’s a Dinosaur Museum in town. The most interesting thing you come away with are the mind-boggling statistics. Most of the dinosaur remains found in this reason date back to 150250 thousand years ago.
The That Inghang stupa was build in the C16th, and today is one of the most greatly revered Buddhist sites in the country. Legend has it that the Gautama Buddha found rest here under a tree, when he was feeling sick. He gave sermons under the tree. The Indian king Ashoka heard the story, and is said to have built a monument in 225 BC on the site of the tree.
