Pine Trees, Jars and Bombs

After six idyllic days in Luang Prabang, a seven hour drive along a winding mountain highway transported us to another world. The distance from Luang Prabang to Phonsovan and the Plain of Jars was only about 130 miles, but it could easily have been much more, considering how long it took us to get there and how different the two regions are from each other in their landscape, climate, culture and history.

The drive itself was an unexpected treat. Several guidebooks and websites had warned of possible “incidents” along a portion of the road by rural bandits and a local rebel group. But when we asked our guide about this, she laughed and assured us that government forces had secured the highway and that there had been no incidents for at least a year or so. The scenery was beautiful as we made our way slowly through the green mountains and the simple but orderly hill tribe villages, past open fields and rice paddies, and across picturesque river gorges.

As we approached the central part of Xieng Khuang Province, where Phonsovan is located, the landscape and climate changed markedly. The area is on a high plateau at an altitude of almost 4000 feet, so the air is cool and dry, and instead of jungles there are pine trees and open, arid fields. The town of Phonsovan was not the reason for our visit. Except for the lodge, the town itself is unremarkable – few tourists, no upscale restaurants or shopping, and the slowest Internet connection I have experienced in years.

The few tourists in the area come for two very different reasons. First, it is where the enigmatic Plain of Jars is located. The Plain of Jars is actually made up of several meadows and wooded areas dotted with hundreds of large stone jars estimated to be around 2000 years old. The jars are about 5' high and 3 - 4 feet wide. Many have fallen over, others are damaged, but a surprising number are upright and relatively intact. The purpose of the jars is still subject to debate, but the majority view is that they are above ground stone coffins. The jars themselves are quite impressive. One can only marvel at the skill and effort required by the early inhabitants to carve rocks with primitive tools and transform them into symmetrical, well shaped jars.