Post by Laoupdate travel on Apr 7, 2005 10:02:33 GMT -5
Soudalath Phonpachith
THAM Pha (Buddha Cave) in Tha Khek district, Khammuan province, plans to attract more tourists to a celebration to mark its first anniversary.
"We plan to put on celebrations during Pi Mai Lao. The Buddha statues were first discovered in April last year, and we are hoping that tourists will come to enjoy them during Lao New Year," said Bounnong, who was among the discoverers and is now part of the cave administration.
He said that they planned to celebrate for as much as a week, starting on April 10, with lots of activities, since this is time when Lao people let their hair down. The Buddha statues will also be removed so they can be ceremonially washed.
A new wooden ladder to the cave is being built. "We are putting in a new ladder because the old ladder is no longer safe enough. The old one was also not easy to climb for people with mobility problems, who were thus denied access," said Bounnong, adding that eventually there will be a concrete ladder, which will be more permanent.
Last April, Tham Pha cave was found to contain 229 Buddha statues, dating from at least 460 years ago. There were also two cases with old palm leaf scripts.
Nearby, later, an old boat was found, which one villager claimed to have seen drop from the cave during an earthquake December 26, 2004. It too is now a tourist attraction.
Tham Pha is in Ban Na Khangxang, Thakhek district, about 300 km south of Vientiane, and over 100 people visit every day.
"Over New Year we are planning some great activities and we would like lots of people to visit the cave," said Bounnong.
Source: vientianetimes.org.la
Photo: destinationlaos.free.fr/pakse/carte1.jpg