4. Vientiane – Laos
You may be surprised when reading some brochures or travel guides saying that Vientiane is an ideal place for eco-tourism with relaxed atmosphere to cure anyone bored of the hustle and bustle of city life, since it is the capital city of a country. However, this French influenced city is indeed a truly peaceful place like its descriptions.
The city’s architecture is a subtle combination between colonial French buildings and ancient temples along with colorful markets characterizes Lao’s capital. Here, the strong influence of Western culture can explored through the odd beret-wearing local and the French-infused food at countless restaurants, bakeries and cafes you may pass by. The food is especially noticeable since you might not help craving for croissants and baguettes being sold on Vientiane streets.
French tourists may have a feeling of going along the Champs-Elysees Avenue in their hometown when seeing the Patuxai victory gate in Vientiane. The magnificent untouched relic was erected as a resemblance to the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, but used as a war monument dedicated to those who fought in the struggle for independence from France and decorated with a Buddhist principles of “thoughtful amiability, flexibility, honesty, honour and prosperity”.
5. Yangon – Myanmar
Yangon, formerly named as Rangoon is the biggest city in Myanmar. The city was situated on an ancient land aged over 2000 years old Mon City of Dragon on the sides of Yangon River – one of the country’s major port.
Since the country was opened up in mid 1990s, there is a number of modern office and residential towers and hotels have been constructed in the city center, Yangon still seems to be much more leisurely than other big cities in Asia, Here, ones may not see any real skyscrapers like in Bangkok, not so many crowded streets filled with cars while most of constructions of the city are dated back to 50 years ago.
However, the interesting point here is the city possesses more colonial-era buildings than any other city in Southeast Asia. The metropolis of Myanmar still bears strongly the influence of the former colonial era in the layout, which is designed like a chess board and is highlighted by a number of old Victorian buildings surviving in many states of preservation. The result of architectural ambiance of a cosmopolitan 19th century in Yagon is clearer when looking at the city’s automobile traffic and congestion and wide, tree-lined avenues that was constructed on a British colonial grid.
