Serene SURRENDER

Finding spirituality and sanctuary in Amantaka.

- CRYSTAL WOO

Cinema and travel share a common luminal space...therein imagination and bewilderment. As a little girl, going to the cinema was the window to seeing many worlds. Now as a grown woman and a solo traveller, the world opens up to infinite cinematic moments in real life. You just need to know where to look.

Some places are special, imbued with everlasting spiritual vibrations and energising wisdom. Amantaka at Luang Prabang is precisely such a place. Despite being the only landlocked country in South East Asia, the legendary Mekong river and wild mountains here are superior guardians, sheltering and providing abundance to the people.

ANCIENT HISTORY

Merely ten minutes away from the airport, Amantaka is right smack in the heritage town of Luang Prabang; not a tall building in sight, this old part of town is UNESCO-protected and quick in gaining favours from intrepid travellers seeking experiences away from the predictable path of demanding cities.

To a casual observer, they'll see a high degree of authentic Lao traditional architecture standing next to 19th and 20th century European colonial structures, with down-to-earth local folks mingling near the exteriors.

But look deeper, and Luang Prabang begins to reveal its inner workings.

A small cultural town built on a peninsula where the Mekong and Kam Khan river meet, and with richer history than most (including its relations to the Silk Route, influences from Siam, China's Black Flag Army, and France), Luang Prabang lives on to tell the tales of many battles and glory from the ancient days.