Laos' National Day

Lao National Day (Lao: ວັນຊາດ) is held in Laos on December 2. The public holiday marks the end of the monarchy and the establishment of the Lao People's Democratic Republic in 1975.

Lao National Day is widely celebrated throughout the country! The day is marked with official speeches, solemn ceremonies, and parades with hundreds of spectators holding red flags, hammers, and sickles.

The versatile national staple, sticky rice, is consumed in Laos more than anywhere else on planet earth. Eaten traditionally with their hands, served sweet, fermented or sour, 155 kilograms of this national dish is consumed per Laotian every year. By contrast, the average European or American consumes only around 9 kilograms of rice per annum. In fact, Laotians commonly refer to themselves as “luk khao niaow” which aptly translates to “children or descendants of sticky rice”. Seems appropriate.