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December 21st 2010

Published: December 21st 2010

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Chris and Lisa

Oh you're gonna

burn in hell for that one

Well that’s something we said we’d never do. Fly Lao Airways. Yep we had heard all the stories about planes dropping out of the air and the worst safety record in the world but that’s the wonder of the internet. As it’s turns out, due to a link up with Air France (the French theme will continue), the airline now has a very good safety and engineering record, a new fleet and European standards.

We turned up at Pakxe’s tiny airport 90 minutes before our flight and they said “Oh good you’re here, you’re the last passengers”, well that hadn’t happened before. Turns out our plane was already there so we all boarded and took off an hour early. Wow, that doesn’t happen on BA. Most of the flight was fairly uneventful but coming in to land at Luang Prabang was exciting. You fly over a small mountain range and then drop down swiftly into a small valley nestled in the base of the mountains, and as you are making your final approach you can almost reach out and touch the tourists on a large hill in the centre of town, waiting for the sunset.

A first

Beware the Mafia

of the Tuk Tuk variety

glance Luang Prabang seems charming and luckily retains this feeling until the last glance. It was once the capital of Laos and is still considered to be its spiritual heart. As you wander slowly through its streets it’s a curious mix of French, Indochinese and Buddhist architecture and atmosphere.

We checked in to our guesthouse and set about exploring; immediately Lisa’s eyes lit up as a huge night market stretched out in front of us and to make things even better a large number of food stalls, selling BBQ’d everything, were there to satisfy the hungry backpackers and to be honest, once we’d tasted this fresh food the need for restaurant recommendations just disappeared. The next day we set out to explore. (I must point out at this juncture that this blog will probably cover about 3 weeks as we are now travelling at a Laos pace of life, i.e. very, very, slowly. You could probably see everything you’d normally want to in 7-10 days but we do have the luxury of time.)

LP (see how Laos laziness evens spreads to the typing) is on a peninsula created by the Mekong and the Nam Khan rivers.

Cheeky Monky

something has amused him

Being nestled in a mountain valley it sometimes seems untouched by time and then you open your eyes and realise the huge amount of building work and renovation that is being done but, thanks to its status as a UNESCO World Heritage site, most of the work seems sympathetic and designed to enhance rather than being simply driven by the rush for profit. Over the next couple of days we simply wandered through the town and surrounding villages. Each small segment of the town has its own character and when you walk out to the villages you see the handicrafts being made that are sold in the night market; makes a change to the imported Chinese traditional handicrafts available elsewhere. The Wats are, as a whole, quite average. Nice from a distance but fairly poor when viewed up close. This reflects many years of neglect as the closed years of Laos recent history dominated. The exceptions are Wat Xiang Thong, at the end of the peninsula, which was built in 1560 by King Setthathilat. Whereas other sims (the main building in a temple) have been garishly restored (or simply repainted) the renovations here are being undertaken with the care and

Wat Xiang Thong

not sure about the purple

sympathy appropriate for a building of its importance. Although there is still much to do, as the large gaping holes in its roof bear testimony to its lengthy neglect, hopefully the importance of tourism will provide the means and impetus for what is left of Laos history to be restored to its former grandeur. Some of the other temples within the monastery compound provide a stark contrast to the aged intricate detail of the main sim, with their purple sparkling mosaics depicting all manner of figures and animals, which glitter as the sun touches their mirrored surfaces. Here in Laos, more than in any other Buddhist monasteries we have visited throughout Asia, there is a feeling of reverence and harmony and religious importance which is not just linked to making a swift buck.

The major building in the city (which is Laos’ second largest) is the former Royal Palace, now a museum carefully preserving (rather curiously) some of the curios and trappings of Laos recently extinguished monarchy. It is a relatively new building, dating from 1904, mainly European in design and is crowned by a very Asian stupa-like spire creating a lovely fusion of styles. An impressive building

Elaborate Shed

home to the Pha Bang Barge

greets you as you enter the compound, large Nagas guard the stairway and inside is placed the Royal Barge, used to carry the Pha Bang, the most sacred Buddha image in Laos, during the Lao New Year celebrations. As you wander through the palace you are struck (as in other Asian countries) by the lack of grandeur and simplicity of the rooms, even of the monarch (or ex) as a whole.

From here, just before sunset, we headed up the large, thickly forested hill in the centre of the city to the small Buddhist stupa at the top. The Phou Si can be seen for miles around and it’s from this hill that you watch the planes, at eye level, coming in to land. The reason for the masses of tourists making the 500 step trek to the summit is not only the wonderful views it offers of the city but the amazing views of the sunset. From here, the sun sinks between two of the major peaks on the nearby mountain range and offers a beautiful, serene vista at the end of the day. Be warned, you won’t be alone.

The next day we decided

Another beautiful sunset

to head out to the Pak Ou Buddha Caves. The best way of doing these trips is to walk around the market and ask the other tourists if they are heading for the same destination. Once 4 or 5 of you have found each other then the Tuk-Tuk negotiation becomes much easier and you have the power (for once). The caves are a bumpy 45 minute ride from the city, followed by a boat ride across the river to the caves. Once across you pay the $3 entrance fee (up from $1 12 months ago!!) and enter a couple of small caves that are chock full of old unwanted Buddha images. This collection became a pilgrimage destination of its own once a critical mass had been achieved. To be honest, we felt it was a bit disappointing. On our return across the river the boat driver demanded $3 each for the quick trip; we had left the negotiation for the boat ride to a young Dutch chap who thought it was $3 for the boat. As per mile that price would be up there with a New York cab we decided to give the boatman what we thought was fair

Do they look happy?

To be playing the dating game

and walked off, accompanied by his disgruntled comments (lucky we couldn’t understand). Nice to win one for a change.

On our return to town we were again wandering when an Israeli chap on a bike stopped us and said “Have you been to the Hmong Lady Market, it’s amazing” and proceeded to show us some pictures. We were sceptical at first but it turns out he was just being helpful not trying to sell a tour. Following his directions we headed out of town and through a small village then in a field in the centre was what appeared to be a village fair, a few stalls with cuddly toy prizes and the obligatory BBQ snack stall. We then spied the main event; over on the far side of the field was a whole host of girls & ladies dressed up in traditional costume, lined up in 2 rows throwing tennis balls to each other. Turns out it was the Hmong dating fortnight and this is the Hmong dating game. As the last smooch and farewell snog at the local disco has yet to reach Laos this is the time where the two sexes can get together and

On the pull

at least the girls have made an effort to dress up

chose a potential mate. Amazing. Even some of the boys managed to get dressed up in their finest. It all seemed quite sweet at first until you spot that there are a lot of older men there, at least one seemed to be going through a wedding ceremony with a girl 40 years younger. Then a young chap came up to Chris offering an ‘introduction’ to a girlfriend, even with Lisa stood right beside him, whilst the offer of a new husband/boyfriend for Lisa only briefly tempted she tells me but could she take a few home for her friends!! So it seems an innocent, traditional dating game until you look a bit closer, well it’s not our place to judge, but something didn’t seem quite right. Having said that, the costumes were wonderful and most seemed to be having a great time.

After another evening at the BBQ market tables chatting with loads of people from all around the world, sharing stories and being constantly amazed at the type of great conversations you can have with people you’ve known for 5 minutes, the following morning we headed out to see one of the best day trips you

Kouang Si

great waterfall

can do from Luang Prabang. We collected some fellow travellers, negotiated a price and headed out to the Kouang Si Waterfall; a lovely, picturesque spot whose main feature plunges 60m then spirals on down creating a series of crystal blue pools. We climbed up one side of the main falls, well Chris did, Lisa being far smarter realised the best view of the falls was from the bottom. At the top the only way of crossing to return down the other side of the falls was to climb over a fence, take off the footwear and wade through the water. Once in the middle, a branch that Chris had used to get this far shifted, floated off and plunged over the falls, reminding him that this may not have been his smartest idea; so unable to go back, wading through the deepening and quickening river was the only option. Once the other bank was safely reached Chris made a note to adjust his waterfall risk assessment parameters in the future. Lisa would like to point out at this stage that Chris was the only person who felt this was necessary, everyone else managed more than happily to come back down

Happy Xmas

Yep more silly hats and water

the way they had come!

Back at the bottom it was time for safer fun and frolics, we both donned bathing costumes and took the plunge into the ‘refreshing’ waters. It’s a funny feeling, swimming in a waterfall in December but definitely good. This seemed a good spot as well to don the silly hats and take the Xmas piccie. The hats were so popular, in fact, that our fellow tuk-tuk sharers also decided that some festive snaps were necessary to send home to the folks. When walking back through to the transport we suddenly came across a number of animal enclosures with wooden structures in them and as you look closer you realise they are climbing frames with hammocks and in them are socking great Asiatic Black bears. Yep there is a bear sanctuary that’s not really promoted and is very easy to miss if you take the wrong path. These bears are a very endangered species with the good old Chinese demanding their slaughter so their gall bladders can be used to cure their impotence or the tip of their nose to cure some baldness. The Japs with their wanton destruction of whales and the Chinese

Basking Bears

like the Laos, these beautiful creatures like to relax ... a lot

happy to see these bears slain, what is it with the Asians? Quite shocking really when you see the pictures. Having said that these lovelies seemed very content with stacks to eat, a shady place to lie on a warm afternoon and lady bears in the next compound ready to pop over and play ball!! Who wouldn’t be. Funny really because I think they are almost as endangered as Pandas who people travel for miles to see at Chengdu but here they are tucked away, at least they are safe. It’s a lovely spot to spend a few hours and a definite must if you are in LP.

An easy indulgence in Laos is the local hooch. BeerLao is famous all over the world, Lao Lao, mentioned before, is getting quite common but Chris discovered Lion2000, a whisky made in one of the villages from rice. At 7000 kip or 60p a bottle it was going to be bad but guess what, it was really smooth. It certainly stands up against Bells or Teachers in the tasting stakes and at that price blows them away in the value stakes. Could catch on if they ever decide to export!!