Maybe my favorite part of Laos is the presence of spirit houses found outside almost every home or business. They are erected to house the protective spirit of the land and are decorated with offerings like fruit, drink (opened and with straw), candles, incense, strings of flowers, ribbons, and figurines of people and animals, which are apparently for the spirits to play with. I guess the installation of a spirit house involves a large ceremony and a Brahman priest must come to bless the house.
I’m not sure if this is related to spirit houses, but I’ve noticed sometimes stalls at a market will have little shrines placed modestly behind the glass of a dusty shelf. They’ll contain something like some dirty rice, old fruit, and a decorated bowl containing crumpled money.