"Laos?", a friend said, when we told him where we wanted to go, "Is it a city or a country?" Truely, the "Land of a Million Elephants" hardly ever captures international headlines and little does the government to encourage individual travellers. 

As a result, the officially proclaimed "Visit Laos Year 1999/ 2000" will probably go unnoticed outside Laos. Those, however, who follow the invitation, will discover a land of rugged natural beauty, where the pace seems to be slower than in the rest of Asia.