Love for trees and snakes…

We have left the winter season behind. Today is March 1st. I pay my respects to the members of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey (TBMM) of that era who did not allow the March 1st memorandum to pass. Today, we understand and appreciate even more how appropriate Atatürk's slogan "Peace at Home, Peace in the World" is. The war has begun. I hope the Iran-America (Israel) war does not lead to World War III. I do not know where this war will end. I hope it does not spill over into our country.

The Iranian leader Khamenei was killed in his residence. For one human to torture, inflict pain, maim, or even kill another human shows that their animalistic instincts have not been sufficiently tempered. But the attacks by the insatiable, greedy leaders of states against other societies are an expression of the instinct to destroy; that is war. Wars are the greatest cruelty, evil, and even the instinct for destruction that mankind inflicts upon man. Therefore, to me, peace is more sacred than worship.

The agenda in the world and in our country is changing very rapidly. For that reason, I will conclude my articles about our Indochina trip today.

Laos is governed by a socialist government. Entry and exit to the country are under strict control. They make you feel this meticulousness as soon as you enter and leave the country at the airports. Even after passing through customs and security checks, I was called back by announcements. Suitcases were opened and closed one by one.

The people of Laos are quite poor and humble. But their smiles and happiness never leave their faces. They are calm people. They are helpful to tourists. They are respectful.

We were in Laos on February 7-8-9, 2026. We did not see any rain in Laos, the land of rain. It is said that the best time for tourists, when it does not rain, is December, January, and February.

Luang Prabang, in the north of the country, was the capital of the Lan Xang Kingdom between the 13th and 16th centuries. Since 1995, the region has been included among the UNESCO World Heritage Cities due to its unique beauty, architectural, religious, and cultural heritage. It captivated us with its interesting architecture, history, and authentic structures. It is a place that must be visited and seen.

Özgür Özel says, "Take off your pajamas, come out to the squares." Movement, both domestic and international, within and outside the city, is important.

Begüm and Ali Rıza Günbek, a couple who spend 3-4 months of the year in Thailand, joined us for 3 days just to see this mysterious city and the beauties of Laos. Our group grew to 27 people.

The slogan of the Lao People's Democratic Republic is; "Peace, independence, democracy, and prosperity." Peace is a slogan we must hold onto tightly. As long as there are megalomaniac leaders like Trump in the world, the world is in trouble. The Middle East has already been turned into a sieve.

As far as I could see, the snake holds an important place in the lives of the Laotians. "Snake water," obtained from snakes and other reptiles, is said to be a cure for everything. It is especially recommended for men over 50. Except for Dr. Sinan Kılıç, we men were all over 50. I don't know if anyone bought snake water? My hand went to it and came back, went and came back, I couldn't buy it. I couldn't even ask Osman Aydın from Bursa, who joined us from İzmir.

Meanwhile, Yaşar Acar, the husband of Dr. Ümmühan Acar from Antalya, said to change the subject, "We are in the minority as the roosters of the group. Let's take a photo of the 5 men together." Thus, we left a record in history.

The Lao language and the Abugida writing system of the Lao alphabet interested me a lot. It is said that Lao is written from left to right. Consonants form the main pillar of syllables and words. Vowels are placed like dependents above, in front of, behind, or below the consonants. In fact, most of the letters in their writing resemble the various postures of a snake. Lao is in the Kra-Dai language family and is a tonal language. That is why their speech sounds interesting to us.

Our local tour guides, including Valmira and Micky, were all wonderful. They did everything they could to introduce their country and their people. I applaud them.

The Mekong River gives life to the country like an aorta from the north of Laos to the south, feeding it. Since there are no monsoon rains, the water in the rivers has decreased, and the water level has dropped, one has to go down about 25-30 steps to reach the river and the boats.

Our trip on the Mekong River was interesting. It was fascinating that thousands of Buddha statues were together in the Pak Ou (Small Buddhas) cave. The Buddhas, which have stood side by side in peace for years, impressed my colleague Dr. Sevgi Kiremitçi so much that she was one of the people in our group who took the most photos.

We can call Laos the land of waterfalls. We felt like we were in paradise at the Kuang Si Waterfalls. The houris? Our girls were no less than the houris. Dr. Esen Demir, Dr. Füsun Kırbaş, Özgül Öztürk, Sevgi Başpınar, Suna, and Sema Kaynar turned back again and again to take photos in front of the waterfalls and by the pools formed by the waterfalls. It did not escape my attention.

On February 9th, we left the Laos airport with Vietnam Airlines. If I were to try to describe our trip to Cambodia, the other mysterious, historical country of Indochina, I would have to write several books.

In one of my previous articles, I wrote that Indochina was a geographical region. My son, Far East expert Dr. Emre Demir, objected. He warned, "The peoples living in the Indochina region are called 'Indochinese' because they have been influenced by Chinese and Indian cultures and lifestyles for years." After seeing Cambodia, I agreed with him very much. I saw that Hindu traditions, customs, and culture were more effective in Cambodia. That's how it seemed to me.

Our administrators, as in the Akbelen region of Muğla, are very eager and skilled at cutting down olive trees, pines, trees, and forests. The Cambodians, on the other hand, have even taken under protection the trees growing on the roofs and tops of historical buildings and historical artifacts in ancient ruins (as in the Angkor temples).

The harmony, solidarity, and discipline on the trip were perfect. Even though Dr. Semra Bozfakıoğlu, Arzu A. Döker, Canan Vergin, Cavidan İnan, and Emine A. Aksoy were sick to varying degrees, they did not miss a single moment of our trip. When Leyla Cingöz did not come for one day due to illness, Oya Izmirli's husband, Aydın İzmirli, even acted as an interpreter on her behalf. In fact, Ayşe Karahasanoğlu headed straight for the hospital in a wheelchair as soon as she landed in Istanbul.

On February 12th, we returned to Istanbul via Singapore Airlines, first to Singapore airport from Siem Reap airport, and then from there.

Hülya Güvenir said, "I will take you somewhere" shortly before our plane took off. "It's not a dream world, but the most beautiful (artificially made) and largest waterfall in the world!.. Colorful."

Reminiscent of school days, under the guidance of H. Güvenir, 13 travelers, led by Fügen Türkay and Behice Öz, went to the Singapore Changi Jewel Waterfall and the butterfly garden. It was magnificent...

I think I have rambled on a bit, forgive me if I have made any slips of the tongue.

Stay in health and peace.