Where Have All the Elephants Gone?
Jun 17, 2019 | 0 comments
Historically, Laos was known as the land of a "Million Elephants" or literally "Lan Xang" in the Lao language. Obviously, that was a bit of an exaggeration for a country that small, much like the "Emerald Buddha" that the Thais plundered in Laos. The conquering Thais evidenced their "compassionate" Buddhist faith by building the Temple of the Emerald Buddha in Bangkok to enshrine the stolen image which was in fact, jadeite, and not carved from a giant emerald. Interestingly, the "Emerald Buddha" was much like the holy grail to the Thai people and the people of Lan Xang. For 214...