Days 39 & 40 - Luang Prabang

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The last two days of our trip, both traveling days. Having negotiated a private boat to take us from Muang Ngoi back to Nong Khiaw, we six (including Frank, Joanne, Julie & Alan) breakfast together on banana pancakes, baguettes, eggs, fruit and plentiful Laos Coffee before sailing from the jetty at 8.30am.

The cloud is very low and all those spectacular views are hidden, so not too many photo opportunities. We were fascinated to watch villagers wading up to their waists collecting river weed, which is a local delicacy, hard cold work on this day!

The plan on arrival at NK is that Frank and Joanne check into their new accommodation for one night, whilst us four head the one and a half kilometre route to the Bus Station to bag seats on the 11.00am minivan back to Luang Prabang, a three hour road trip away. As the regular ferry arrives a full hour after ours, we are pretty confident.

Tickets purchased with allocated seats we wait 30 minutes for our bus, we should be seated behind Julie and Alan, but the driver advises that their set of three seats must accommodate 4 passengers. Alan points out this is impossible, but the driver then explains, 4 Laos people, small, so they move forward to the front with the driver then 4 diminutive Laotians sit fairly comfortably in the three seats.

The Driver is careful, but we still manage to arrive 15 minutes earlier than schedule. We say our farewells to J and A but agree to meet later for a drink in Town, at a beautiful bar/restaurant called Villa Santi, French Colonial style with period mahogany and marble furnishings, elaborate fretwork windows and frescoes.

A 10minute Tuk Tuk drive later and we are back at our Chitadara 2 Guest House. Nothing really to unpack. We shower. And go out in search of last minute shopping and a late light lunch.

A couple of Happy Hour cocktails with our friends, a last visit to the night market, where we seem to have lost the power of bargaining and come away with very little. Needing a little more sustenance before retiring for the night, we make our way closer to home and opt for La Rosa, a nice Italian restaurant where we share a light salad and pizza, washed down with a glass of red, then last night's sleep in Laos.

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