LAOS -CENTRAL PROVINCES KHAMMOUANE

KHAMMOUANE

CAPITAL: THAKHEK

TOTAL AREA: 16135 SQUARE KILOMETRES

POPULATION: 375504

Khammouane , meaning “happy gold” is believed to have been named after the gold deposits found in the area hundreds of years ago. The province’s history dates back as early as the 6^th-8^th centuries when the region was part of the Sikhotabong Kingdom.Remnants of the ancient civilization include the Great Wall (Kampeng Nyak), Meuang Phone Stupa and Sikhotabong Stupa- one of the most sacred in Laos.

 The province has many remaining buildings that date to the colonial period; especially in the provincial capital of Thakhek.There is an abandoned railway track that was originally planned to connect Laos with Vietnam but never finished-today the only evidence of this endeavor is an old railway bridge over the Nam Done River.

Khammouane is a land of rugged karst mountains which were once the refuge of a succession of ethnic groups fleeing the Haw invasions in the north during the 19^th century.The famed Mu Gia pass at the end of route 12 was one of the main transit points of the legendary Ho Chi Minh Trail during the Indochina War. 

This dreamlike landscape has served as a sanctuary for a number of wild animals that were unknown to scientists until 1990s.The Kha Nyou, a small rodent –like creature the size of a small squirrel was found in Khammouane in the early 21^st century and possibly will be the last remaining mammalian family to be described on earth.

The Limestone Mountains are honeycombed with countless caves, some of which for ages concealed forgotten treasures. The Buddha Cave ( Tam Pa Fa) was just discovered in 2004 and houses 229 priceless Buddha images . Kong Lo Cave is perhaps the most well known in the province. It is 7.5 km long and as high and wide as 90-100m in some places. 

The province has 3 national protected areas (NPA) that cover an enormous area – 6295 square kilometres in total. Phou Hin Poun NPA encompasses much of the Limesone Forest and has 43 recorded species of bats. The Hin Namno NPA is located in the area where the central Indochina Limestone meets the Annamite Chain and as a result, has prominent limestone escarpments and caves.

 The most important area in terms of biodiversity, however, is the Nakai Nam Theun NPA with its complex range of habitats and newly discovered species of mammals such as the saola , giant muntjac and Indochinese warty pig.

Locally made products include handmade incense sticks, naturally dyed cotton and silk weavings produced in the Kong Lo area.The province’s favorite snack, “Khaonom parn” , is a foft sticky green and black colored sweet wrapped in banana leaves made with yellow soy beans and coconut in the middle. This treat was originally brought to Laos generations ago by Vietnamese settlers.Today, whenever Lao people visit Khammouane they obliged to bring back a bag of “Khaonom parn” to their friends and family.

That Sikhottabong Festival is the most important festival in Khammouane Province and is celebrated at That Sikhottabong on the full moon in February ( or the third lunar month of the Lao calendar) lasting for several days.