More than two dozen villages presented their handicrafts at the Luang Namtha Night Market during a trial run of the “Local Product Exhibition” on 25-26 August. Various ethnic groups offered everything from silk sins (women’s skirts), cotton handbags, and traditional clothing to wicker purses, bamboo flutes, and ornate silver-colored buttons at their village’s booth.
The Lao National Tourism Authority (LNTA) initiative, supported by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), aimed to display products from as many villages as possible, with the hopes of making the exhibition an annual event. Top national and provincial officials attended the closing ceremony, which attracted some 400 people to a stage performance featuring more that 20 short traditional dances.
For more information on Luang Namtha
handicrafts, click here.
Visit: www.luangnamtha-tourism.org. |
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The LNTA-ADB Sustainable Tourism Development Project (STDP) has added “The Savannakhet Historic Trail” to its growing list of Lao provincial guidebooks to responsible tourism. Savannakhet - located in southern Laos and one of the nation’s most-visited provinces - hosts numerous historic, natural, and cultural attractions, which the 54-page booklet presents in six, mostly one-day self-guided and guided circuits.
“The Savannakhet Historic Trail” also offers a section on one- or multi-day community-based tourism (CBT) trekking and cycling programs that provide a deeper insight into the lifestyle of the province’s people and its history, from dinosaurs to ancient That Ing Hang Stupa to the Ho Chi Minh Trail with much more in between.
To download “The Savannakhet Historic Trail”, click here. |
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“Food from Northern Laos: The Boat Landing Cookbook” hits the shelf in September, and presents 88 recipes for dishes from various ethnic groups. Penned by Dorothy Culloty, who has been documenting food preparation, ingredients and food anthropology in northwestern Laos since 2002, the 200-page “Lao food reference manual” targets health-conscious home cooks and professional chefs interested in Lao herbs, fresh ingredients, and cooking techniques, as well as those looking for a wider cultural understanding of Laos through the people and their food. The book also features 400 color pictures by longtime photographer of Laos, Kees Sprengers, and is available from Amazon Books for US$29.95.
For more information on purchasing the cookbook, and to learn more about northern Lao food, visit: www.foodfromnorthernlaos.com. |
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