LAOS: Streetart Don Det – Graffiti and Urban Art Collection on the 4000 Islands

Don Det is a little island in the Mekong River and part of the Si Phan Don archipelago or also called “4000 Islands”. Basically those are not real islands on the open sea, but large sandbanks in the river, which becomes very wide on the way to the Khon Phapheng Waterfalls further south. In addition to the interview with local artist BASILE MORIN and the interesting collection of Toilet Graffiti, there are a lot of other beautiful works of art on the island. Many visitors from all over the world leave great creations on the huts and bungalows with the permission of the locals.

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LAOS: Majestic Buddha Park – Xieng Khuan

After leaving Vientiane on our way to the 4000 Islands in the South of Laos we passed a monumental and historic treasure site you shouldn´t miss if you are around. The local name is Xieng Khuan, but the English words for this area make it self-explanatory for what it’s about. The Buddha Park is a park filled up with over 200 Hindu and Buddhist statues. There are several Buddhas spread across the square, as well scenes from ancient legends and numerous gods and goddesses.

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LAOS: Basile Morin – Ambigrams on the 4000 Islands

During our Laos Trip last year we didn´t only come across the wonderful toilet graffitis, we encountered as well several other mysteries in the jungle and the Mekong scenery. The river island Don Det is only accessable by boat, there are no cars, but therefore bicycles and scooters. And as well there is the Baba Guesthouse. This nice lodge was our accommodation on the idyllic place, a perfect little paradise for relaxing. Above all it turned out that the owner is a French artist who is occupied with poems, pixel photography and ambigrams. And what´s this now again? We didn´t know the word either, but you could describe it as some kind of geometrical writing art.

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LAOS: Toilet Streetart and Loo Graffiti – 4000 Islands

Actually I wanted to call it crapper-graffitis, the word is a bit too vulgar for the headline, but I just can´t get it out of my head and during the whole journey we really called this awesome artwork crapper graffitis all the time. In fact it was graffiti on crappers. Toilet graffiti sounded too western and too functioning, it were more some lavatory rooms far away from modern society on some islands without streets and with farmers, who rent some rooms to travelers and backpackers. Two-holer, outhouse or privy isn´t the right word as well, neither shithouse, because they all have some flush and lavation system. So let it be crapper. But in the end it isn´t important what you do at these places, much more what you can see on the outside walls…

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LAOS: LaLaLand Bar & Tours

While we passed the beautiful village Vang Vieng during our Laos trip we visited the Karst Mountains, heaps of nice lagoons and caves and took as well part at the tubing of course. But the real good offers and choices we unfortunately found only in the end of our stay. Like always, you get to the best things just in the end. We didn´t experience the tours ourselves, but still we brought you a lot of amazing photographs and interesting interviews. Just in case if you should be around there one day. An insider tip: Lala and his tours!

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LAOS: Sae Lao Project & Equal Education For All (EEFA)

We found again something interesting, good and worth-to-write-about in the middle of the jungle. It was next to the karst mountains while we were passing with our modified go-karts to a lagoon. We jetted past a sign, but after the short look we had to go back to that place the next day for sure. There was written: „Buy a cocktail and send with your purchase a child to school”. There was as well something about „Need Volunteers”. That sounded interesting. What are they doing there and who is doing what and are they really doing what they wrote? And if yes, how can you support? A lot of questions, so let´s go and check it out…

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LAOS: Photographer Adri Berger & The Big Tree Café

During our Laos tour we had a stop in the idylic little city Luang Prabang next to the Mekong River and found by accident the Big Tree Café of the Dutch photographer Adri Berger and his wife Mija Son. The place is a café and a restaurant, but as well a gallery and a cultural meeting place at the same time. If you are around one day, you should have a visit, it´s worth it….

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