Buddha park photoshoot

I was worried we would get lost so I screen shot the directions before we left. The roads near the Buddha Park are covered with pot holes. 

And while Google Maps says it's 30min, it's closer to 50min.

A brief and potentially incorrect history of the Buddha Park (Katie-pedia)

The park was set up in 1958 by this venerable man who the fled the country for Thailand in the 70's and established a sister park across the Mekong. You can see the top of the pumpkin temple from Thailand. 

Even though the statues look ancient, they were made in the last one hundred years. However, they were fashioned by unskilled laborers with concrete and metal, so they started falling apart pretty quickly.

Pumpkin Temple 

From the top of the temple

Apparently the Sleeping Buddha in the park is the largest in Laos? Though to be fair, I didn't even know there were giant Sleeping Buddhas in this country.

From my wikipedia search, Buddhist monks come through pretty regularly. Even though the park is new, it is still considered sacred...

And a mix of Buddhist and Hindu images.