Hi everyone, I hope you are all well and happy :)

I first visited Laos six years ago and every summer I have wanted to go back, this year I did!  I just returned from Vientiane and it has changed heaps!  I was especially amazed at the changes along the Mekong.   

One thing that fascinates me is the river boats or canoes, I have always had canoes but the Lao long canoes really look lovely.   I don't know what they're called, but there's an old one in front of the "Mixay - Art of Mekong" shop in Nokeokhuman Street in Vientiane with some orchids growing in it.

In the past my father has made a few wooden canoes and I showed him a picture of this one and he fell in love with it and said he'd like to build one.  I would really like seeing one of these on the Swan River in Perth, Western Australia where I live - I can imagine it would make a few people stop and stare!   The thing is I didn't think about this while I was there and he's really excited and wants to make one soon.

I've made 3 models from my memory of them and they all look good but my father being a retired engineer also wants to make an 'authentic' shaped one..  but I can't find any plans for these boats.

I hope I'm not being rude asking this but if anyone could help I'd appreciate it.  If anyone knows what these boats are actually called I'd love to know, also if anyone know where I could find plans I'd love to know that too!  And if someone is feeling bored one day while they are in Vientiane and it's not too much trouble to take a tape measure and a protractor down to this boat and pull as many measurements off it as they can I'll buy them a beer  ;D

thankyou and take care !

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I don't think there's a specific name for this type of boat, but you can call it:

[list bull-bluesq]

"Hea mai" meaning "wooden boat"

"Hea yaow" meaning "long boat"

"Hea pai" meaning "row boat"

Hea pai (row boat) is the best name for it.

thanks for that information - I appreciate the reply and will contine my search for more details on this boat style.  I hope to visit Laos again maybe next year and hopefully I'll know a little more of the Lao lanuage then, maybe enough to ask some boat builders about the art of building these boats  :)

They're the style of row boats used for the annual boat racing competition. I wouldn't hop on one even if someone paid me, they're narrow and might roll over.

Enjoy your Lao trip if you come over next year.

They have a boat rowing contest in Lowell  Massachusetts I think every year.  If your from the States you should check it out.