Seems I’m falling into my old habits . . . namely, procrastination. Yes, it has been quite awhile since we have updated our blog. I could blame it on the extremely slow internet connections here in Laos, or on how we’ve been hectically exploring the country, but all of that would be a lie. (Although the connections truly are slow!) It is now May 11th and I am finally writing about our wonderful time in Luang Prabang. The first adventure was getting there. First we spent one day on a bus from Luang Nam Tha to Huay Xai, back where we had originally crossed the border from Thailand. The ride was hot and dusty as usual, but largely uneventful. Our bus did get a flat tire, but luckily they had a spare and were surprisingly speedy at getting up and running again. After a night in Huay Xai, we took a two day slow boat ride down the Mekong, with a stop overnight in a town called Pak Beng. You’ll notice there are no photos of Pak Beng . . . there is truly nothing there. The boat ride itself was lovely, if long. The air was cool and not dusty which was refreshing. However, the benches were tiny and they packed at least 120 people onto the boat. It was shocking as tourists with huge backpacks just kept coming and coming, long after all of the seats were filled. The floor turned out to be more comfy half the time anyhow though. Many of the falang on board spent the days boozing and playing cards. The first day we avoided drinking anything in an attempt not to use the facilities on board, but the second day we caved and joined the party. The whole experience was fun, and definitely preferable to bus travel.
Luang Prabang is the second largest city in Laos, and a very quaint place. After our time up north “roughing it” we were happy to embrace city life. The first night we checked into the Lonely Planet recommended accommodations, which consisted of a bed and a shower. There was absolutely nowhere to stand or move around in our room. After calculating that that we were only paying about $5 per night, we decided to upgrade to something a little more spacious. After some looking around and some very impressive bargaining on my part (if I do say so myself . . .) we ended up with a room at Villa Lao Deum. It was such a cute place, run by a really, really nice family. Ah, now it was time to enjoy the charm of Luang Prabang.
Luang Prabang has some fantastic western style (i.e. French) restaurants. I had the best salmon pasta I think I’ve ever had in a little French Bistro called “Dao Fa”. We thoroughly enjoyed sampling the many tasty bakeries, coffee shops, etc. We also had really delicious traditional Lao Food one night at a restaurant called "Tamarind". We checked out a couple of the most famous temples, rented bicycles to explore the city, and generally just kicked back for a few days. It was great! We are definitely past the point now where we feel the need to see every sight in the book . . . “wat fatigue” has set in. That said, the walk up to Wat Phou Si was well worth the view of the city.
We also spent some time attempting to educate ourselves about the local people and their traditions. This was not too difficult, as there seems to be many organizations designed to help travelers do just that. We found the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre very interesting. They had great exhibits describing the various different ethnic groups in Laos and some of their customs and traditions. Another organization we discovered was called Stay Another Day (www.stayanotherday.org), which attempts to help travelers to be more culturally sensitive and informed. I.e. to leave a positive effect rather than a negative one on the countries we visit.
Of course, I loved the Luang Prabang night market. The food was not so inviting as Thailand, except for a $3 grilled fish stuffed with lemongrass we had one night (yum!), but the products for sale were gorgeous. The market had a feel similar to Chiang Mai, only on a smaller scale, with less imported, mass produced products and more handmade items. When asked, the sellers all insisted that they had actually made each item themselves and I tended to believe them. There were so many beautiful handicrafts on sale, and so many endearing sellers, that I found it very hard not to fill a second backpack. So, I filled a box destined for home instead. Here’s hoping the Laos postal service won’t let us down!
Once we felt nice and relaxed again, we decided to do a day of mountain biking in the area around Luang Prabang. It was great to be on a proper bike again, i.e. one with gears and suspension. Due to our initially slow pace, we at first assumed we were in for an easy day. However, on the 10th steep uphill, I was only hoping I would make it back to town before drowning in my own sweat. It was tough, but the views were great and it felt good to get some real exercise. Our guide “Geer” was lots of fun. I’ve no idea how he made it through the day in his jeans and on a bike that was obviously way too large for him.
On our last day in Luang Prabang, we made the effort to drag ourselves out of bed early enough to observe the morning alms giving to the monks. There are many temples in Luang Prabang and consequently many monks, as well as a large number of young novices studying in the temples around the city centre. It truly was a colorful sight to see, all of them in their bright orange robes taking to the streets. We didn’t partake in any offering, as we are not Buddhist. We merely watched from a distance. Of course the day we chose it poured rain, but that seemed to add to the experience. It was interesting to see all of the young monks hiding under their umbrellas. They looked truly freezing! Watching them, I realized that many of them were really just kids, laughing and joking with their friends.
After the charm of Luang Prabang, we headed for the absurd craziness that is Vang Vieng. I’ll let Perry tell you all about that.
We have put up three albums from Luang Prabang (journey, 1, and 2) at
http://gallery.me.com/adamschen
Love to everybody at home. We miss you!
Jen
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