For travelers interested in experiencing the rich ethnic minority diversity of Laos’ northernmost Phongsali province but are put-off by the long, rough drive Road #1B all the way up to Phongsali town, Bountai is a good alternative.
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Bountai (also known as Muang Boun Tai or Muang Tai) is a village-like small town that lies on Road #1B near the confluence of the Nam Leng and Nam Boun Rivers in northern Laos’ Phongsali province, which is located between China’s Yunnan province and Vietnam’s Dien Bien province. From Luang Prabang, Bountai is reached by car via Road #13 to Oudomxay, then up Road #2E towards Muang Khua and finally left onto Road #1B. A faster route is to take the China-Lao Railway’s Higher Speed Rail line from Luang Prabang direct to Oudomxay then up Road #2E as above. It is also possible to flight from Vientiane to a regional airport in Boun Neua, and then drive south on Road #1B to Bountai. Not much history on Bountai is found online. The town does contain an old French fort compound near the bus station and tourist office across the river from the central market, likely dating to around the conclusion the 1893 Franco-Siamese Crisis when Lao territory east of the Mekong River controlled by Siam was ceded to France, becoming first part of the French Protectorate of Laos and later fully integrated the French Indochina union in 1898. Phongsali province is home to 13 minority ethnic groups (often referred to as ‘hill-tribes’) including White Hmong, Akha, Phounoi, Tai Lue & Khmu, with independent languages/sub-dialects and cultures. A number of the ethnic groups (White Hmong and 3 Akha subgroups) have villages in the vicinity of Bountai along Road #1 that conveniently can be visited from town. Some of the ethnic minorities can be seen at the town’s central market (particularly in the morning hours), often wearing some elements of their traditional ethnic/tribal attire such as a headscarf, jewelry or perhaps a garment with embroidered with a tribal pattern. The province is also famous for its Phongsali green lao-lao (‘country liquor’) sticky rice whiskey, a ‘must-try’ item when visiting the region.
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| Favourite spots: |
The Bountai general market, located on Road #1B along the bank of the Nam Leng River with the entrance on the right just beyond the bend in the road after crossing the bridge, was my favorite spot during the overnight stay in town. The fascinating market’s customers reflected the diversity of the region, with some of the women wearing elements of their tribe’s traditional attire. It was memorable in that it was where I first got to sample the region’s famous green lao-lao sticky rice whiskey, the color of the otherwise clear or white spirit owing to boiled blackberry leaves added to the sticky rice late in the fermentation process, which changes only the color and has no effect on taste or potency. My guide borrowed my phone and shot some video as I sipped my inaugural shot. The market also had some interesting local ‘bushmeat’ protein offerings.
https://youtu.be/reXq2AKalmk
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| What's really great: |
The highlight was visiting the four ethnic minority tribal villages (3 Akha tribe, 1 White Hmong tribe) located on the outskirts of Bountai. Three of the rustic villages visited had structures that fronted Road #1B, with the village boundaries extending back along the cleared contours of the sometimes hilly terrain. The final Akha village visited, located in a more mountainous region that required a steep 5-minute hike up a reddish rocky outcropping to enter, was the most photogenic of the day & included a lunch featuring Akha cuisine with the village’s chief. Links to my videos below:
The Akha Loma Village of Ban Kok Phao
https://youtu.be/oWdkBA0buAQ
The Akha Chupia Village of Ban Sanomai
https://youtu.be/u8PZe1YbnhI
The White Hmong Village of Ban Aya
https://youtu.be/FxVlz3wlFJk
The Akha Puli Village of Ban Tu Lau Sen Kau
https://youtu.be/7ke6xbESEW4
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| Sights: |
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Given my fairly brief time in Bountai, my exploring of the town’s sights was limited to the central market and the quaint neighborhood around Phoxai Guesthouse including stroll around the nearby Wat. The drive up Road #2E which follows the course of the Nam Phak River out the right-side window (with some strategically-located wide dirt shoulders allowing for some nice ‘vista point’ stops, and the tall bushes along the perimeter allowing for the discreet & timely ‘answering of nature calls’) was quite scenic, offering views of the river in addition to stands of both teak and rubber trees. The T-intersection junction with Road #1B that we turned onto, near the confluence of the Nam Noy and Nam Phak Rivers, was memorable in that we were able to see a sizable group of ethnic Akha Loma women wearing their distinctive conic red headdress standing near the corner, with Road #1B following the course of the Nam Noy River and occasionally providing brief glimpses of it.
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| Accommodations: |
I stayed at the Phoxai Guesthouse located in on Road #1B. Despite the guesthouse being the most rustic of those I stayed in during my 13 days in northern Laos (featuring a bail-flush squat toilet & a room door with an external latch & padlock vs. a locking doorknob), it more than met my needs, and I really enjoyed the surrounding village-like environs particularly when exploring the neighborhood on foot around sunset and into early evening (video clips: https://youtu.be/dA-5bEF9Yts ). Admittedly I hadn’t assumed the bend-knee position on an Asian squatty-potty since Kyoto back in the summer of 1987, but my knees held up just fine. My second story room balcony offered a view of the Nam Leng River and the surrounding countryside, plus a high-voltage electrical cable within arm’s reach.
Address: Road #1B (690 m NW of the bridge)
Boun Tai (Boontay), Laos
Phone: +856 20 54 400 016
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| Nightlife: |
Outside of walking around in the vicinity of our guesthouse with my guide and driver to find a restaurant for dinner, I didn’t get a chance explore Bountai in the evening hours to see what it had to offer in the way of nightlife. The rather lively vibe and ambiance of the restaurant & beer bar we ended up at near the guesthouse (whose sound system playing Lao and Thai pop songs could be heard from my second floor room’s river view balcony), with its decor of neon lights and hanging strings of blinking mini Christmas lights as wall accents, large screen LCD TV playing Thai or Lao music videos, and a lively group of ‘twenty-something’-aged locals seated around a large table in the corner of a raised pedestal seating area cluttered with Beerlao bottles conversing and laughing loudly over the music (one girls’ distinctive high-pitched laughter often prefaced with a piercing joyful squeal) can be considered as one data point for baseline expectations of nightlife in Bountai.
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| Restaurants: |
Both lunch & breakfast were had at the one sit-down restaurant (I didn’t catch the name of it) at the Bountai Market, whose menu was limit to noodle soups. Both meals consisted of an order of khao piak, the Lao version of pho with pork as the protein of choice, & were eaten at the same table on the cantilevered patio portion of the restaurant. Breakfast afforded a view of the Nam Leng River and the Road #1B bridge backed by wooded hills shrouded in a veil of fog, with the morning meal accompanied by the sounds of passing morning traffic, crowing roosters and Lao pop music playing in the background, with my steaming bowl of khao piak and mug of hot green tea very satisfying (video below). For dinner in the vicinity of our guesthouse, we opted for a restaurant & beer bar a few doors down vs. a place next door with 2 tables in the garage and a grill next to a electric fan with skewered chicken feet & sausages out front.
https://youtu.be/d9k0C2fgpY4
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| Other recommendations: |
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Continuing the journey up Road #1B beyond Boun Neua (south of which being the road’s closest approach to the China border) and up into the increasingly windy and rough route through the mountains to Phongsali town is highly recommended, with the scenery becomes increasingly scenic and the picturesque roadside vistas widening with the gain in altitude into northern Laos’ famous tea-growing region. Phongsali is an old city with a distinctively Chinese feel owing to the Yunnan-style architecture seen, and has a wealth of cultural diversity given its large population of ethnic minority peoples. During my overnight stay in Phongsali, the city was hosting a State visit of Vietnamese dignitaries (many staying at my hotel), and many of the villages passed along Road #1B were displaying both the flag of Vietnam and yellow hammer & sickle symbol on red background flag of the Communist Party.
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Published on Wednesday October 2th, 2024
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