Photo credit: all photos by Cindy Fan The Lao Elephant Festival takes places every February in Sayabouly (also spelled Xayaboury, Sainyabuli, Sayaboury) in northern Laos. The festival celebrates the important historical, cultural and symbolic significance of Asian elephants in Laos. Over 40 elephants and their mahouts make the journey from throughout the province and beyond to… Read more »
Posts Tagged: THE BIZARRE
KHAO SAN ROAD, BANGKOK, THAILAND
TUBING, VANG VIENG
SOMETHING’S A-FOUL WITH LAO FISH SAUCE
You may already be familiar with fish sauce, but in Laos, they take fish sauce to a whole other level. Lao fish sauce, called padek, is thicker and has a more pungent aroma than regular fish sauce. It is opaque, dark brown and often still contains chunks of fish. Padek is made by fermenting (in… Read more »
“DR. FISH”, KHAO SAN ROAD, BANGKOK
KHAI PENE – LAO SNACK FOOD WITH A SURPRISING INGREDIENT
Khai is a riverweed that is harvested by hand and made into khai pene, a surprisingly tasty Lao snack. From December until the end of February, khai is collected from the Mekong’s many tributaries, then washed, sun-dried, flattened into sheets and seasoned with sesame seeds, garlic, tomato and spring onions. Khai pene is flash-fried or grilled until… Read more »
ADVENTURES IN FRUITLAND: 5 WACKY FRUITS OF SOUTHEAST ASIA
My blog post on Durian, the “king of fruits,” got me thinking: what other wacky fruits of Southeast Asia should travellers try? Here’s a list of 5 that shouldn’t be missed. 1. Mangosteen Mangosteens look like something out a cartoon: plump, purple and round with a funny looking four-leaf top “hat”. A very thick peel encases… Read more »
DURIAN: THE FORBIDDEN FRUIT
Ah, the fruit that will forever live in infamy. Durian – both hero and anti-hero outcast of the fruit world! The fruit that launched a thousand ships! This fruit is more controversial than Janet Jackson’s nip-slip at the Superbowl. Durian has rightfully earned the title as “The King of Fruits.” Its notoriety stems from its… Read more »
