Laos, a land ruled by the Mekong, one of the world’s mightiest rivers. The Mekong is fed by tributaries hidden deep in pathless canyons. It is a whim of history that centuries have passed that hardly a human foot trespassing in this wilderness. And so today Laos can still boast a wealth of natural wonders: uncharted rivers, unclimbed mountains, untouched forests inhabited by mysterious creatures. Laos is a last hideout for some of Asia’s big wild animals, home to dozens of indigenous tribes and cultures, and keeper of a Buddhist tradition long lost elsewhere. So, in the very heart of crowded and buzzing Indochina, there is a wonderland still on the brink of its first discovery.