Eating our way round Luang Prabang

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We weren’t sure if we were going to visit Laos on this trip or not, as we had been before in 2010 and while we liked it, the country didn’t ‘wow’ us. However, we wanted to experience the slow boat from the Thai border and as we were in Northern Thailand with our visa about to expire, we thought ‘why not give it another chance?’. After 2 days on the slow boat we found ourselves in the UNESCO town of Luang Prabang in North-West Laos, and as the sun was setting over the Mekong we wondered around to find a guesthouse for a few nights. We couldn’t really remember where we had stayed before but soon found a nice place close to the main market street which had a friendly owner and was quite cheap so we took it, plus Dale and Alan (the musicians we met on the boat over) were set to be playing there tonight in the attached jazz café which we were looking forward to.

There is much talk on the travelling circuit about how cheap Laos is compared to other SE Asian countries, as it is the poorest country in the region and has the least amount of tourism, so you supposedly get real value for money here. We were surprised to find this to be extremely untrue – it was packed with tourists and in fact we thought it was more expensive than both Vietnam and Thailand! A few examples – laundry in Luang Prabang (LP) cost 10,000 Kip per KG, approx 80p. In Thailand (Bangkok esp), laundry is 30 Baht per KG, approx. 60p. A can of coke here in a shop is 6,000 Kip, approx. 50p – in Thailand, it would be 20 Baht, approx. 40p (and less in a 7/11). A bag of crisps cost 10,000 Kip (80p), in Thailand they cost 20 Baht (40p). A banana pancake from a street stall in LP cost 10,000 Kip, approx. 80p; in Thailand the same pancake would cost 30 Baht, approx. 60p. The only exception was a big bottle of the national brew, Beer Lao, cost just 10,000 Kip (80p), whereas in Thailand a big bottle of Chang or Singha beer would cost a bit more. The biggest shock was hiring a motorbike, something which we like to do to explore the surrounds of a place, would cost over 100,000 Kip for one day (£8). In Pai in Thailand last week, we were hiring bikes for just £2 a day! Now these may seem like minor differences, and for people on a short holiday here they probably wouldn’t matter, but in a country which is said to be poorer and much cheaper to travel in than Thailand, these price increases surprised us and in truth, frustrated us. However Luang Prabang is said to be the most expensive place in Laos, so hopefully as we move further south things will be a bit more reasonable. Anyway…

We were looking forward to a nice bit of dinner that night and a few drinks, but like everything else in LP, it was all so expensive (relatively speaking - of course compared to Europe it's cheap but not compared to Thailand or Vietnam). Restaurants lining the main street wouldn’t look out of place in trendy European cities with pricey menus and high drink prices to match, but we soon realised why this pretty town seems so upmarket when we saw the main tourists it now attracts; predominantly American and Chinese families on short vacations. Now for them it seems like great value for money compared to what they would pay for a meal in their home countries or indeed in Europe, but for people like us who have been travelling on a budget in Asia for a while, it just seemed expensive and unrealistic – after all, this is still Laos. Even the day trips on offer to the waterfalls and nearby caves were in the region of 180,000 Kip/£15 each, which is just too much we felt. We soon found a small side 'food' street which offered freshly grilled chicken, pork and fish for a much more reasonable 10,000 kip a piece, along with plenty of noodle/rice/vegetable buffet type places where you could fill your plate for 10,000 Kip, so both had a bit of a feast for 30,000 Kip (£2.50). It was really nice but we still can’t help but compare both the quality and the price to what we have been eating in Thailand – better food for less money. Anyway, we headed back to our guesthouse afterwards in time to catch Alan & Dale’s set, which consisted of Dale singing and playing guitar and Alan on the harmonica and also mini-sax, which was brilliant, followed by a big jam session with other musicians, including two people on the Double Bass, the owner of the guesthouse on an electric guitar, and another guy on a big Sax. We loved listening to all the live music and when it ended at midnight (in line with the town’s curfew) we still could have listened to more!

Our first full day in LP started with a stroll through the town in the sunshine to the baguette and fruit shake stalls near the main street. Now these we came to love during our time here, as they were tasty and cheap! We both had a nice brunch here and we had planned to have a bit of a relaxing day with no real plans, when we bumped into a group of Canadian girls looking for 2 more people to share their Tuk-Tuk to the Kuang Si waterfalls, 30 km out of town. We had planned to visit these waterfalls while we were here, as when we went before the weather wasn’t great so we wanted to see them properly, but hadn’t planned on seeing them today. However after finding out that if we were to get our own Tuk another day, the round trip would cost us over £15, a trip with an agency even more, and renting an overpriced bike was out of the question, and here we were being offered a shared Tuk for just £2.50 each, we decided to go with the girls today instead. The Tuk kindly dropped us back to our Guesthouse so we could grab some bits and change, and then we were on the way.

The countryside scenery along the way was gorgeous and we were enjoying the ride, until the Tuk got a flat tyre! Luckily he had a spare one so he quickly changed it and after another 10 minutes we had arrived at Kuang Si National Park which housed the waterfalls. After paying the entrance fee and following the path in, we passed a bear rehabilitation sanctuary, which had rescued abused and illegal bears and was preparing them for release back into the wild. The bears had big enclosures but were mainly sleeping so we carried on the trail until we got to the start of the waterfalls, which were a stunning blue-turquoise colour. It was quite busy but that didn’t stop Scott jumping into the (freezing) water via a rope swing, Tarzan style! There were several pools so after a while at the main one we walked up to the rest which were nice and quiet, until we reached the main start of the waterfall which must have been at least 100 metres high and was cascading down the rocks into another aqua blue pool. It was really pretty and made for some great photo’s, and we were happy we had come to Kuang Si again, as last time due to bad weather we didn’t even make it to see the main waterfall.

We got back to LP in the afternoon and I just relaxed at our guesthouse while Scott went for a long run along the river, then we went out to the food market again that evening and again stuffed ourselves with chicken, noodles, rice and veg, before being extra greedy and having some freshly baked coconut cakes – these were soo good, all warm and sticky, like little bundles of deliciousness in one mouthful. I had a real sweet tooth on so even though I was full I still got a chocolate pancake after! We had a couple of happy hour drinks at Hive bar which was nice as it was set in a tropical garden, before calling it a night and heading to bed just before curfew time.

The next day we felt we wanted to do something different with our time, so after our usual baguette and fruit shake brunch, and a treat of a cappuccino in one of the many coffee shops for Scott, we headed to the local Library. We had heard that local children and young Monks come here every day in the afternoons to do their homework, practice their English or just read, so popped in to see if we could help in any way. We were greeted with 3 cheeky but shy faced kids who after we said ‘Saibadee’ to, thrust all types of books in our hands and we spent the next 2 hours reading to them, helping them with their English, singing songs and playing games. In just a couple of hours they got very confident around us and we could tell their English was improving just by speaking with them about every day topics – colours, names, numbers, animals etc. I think they really enjoyed a bit of attention as well, and we loved spending time with them and if we helped just a little bit and made a difference to their day, then we would be happy. It was a good experience for us as well, as teaching whilst we are away was something we both wanted to do but as yet haven’t had the chance. Who knows where this might lead now…

On the way back to our guesthouse we saw a cool ‘Floating Buddha’ art exhibition inside the national museum, as well as an attractive Wat in town; later that day Scott had a Lao massage which he didn’t enjoy as much as the ones he has in Thailand, then we decided to climb to the top of Mt Phusi to catch the sunset. The climb up was steep with around 300 steps and once we reached the top it seemed most of the town had the same idea as us as it was really busy, but the views over the city as the sun was setting were lovely and we stayed up there for a good hour or so.

Again we went back to the market for dinner, and again we over-indulged on desert afterwards, with our usual coconut cakes and a mango and honey pancake! Although eating in restaurants is pricey, we have actually been more than happy to eat at the markets and the sweet treats in Luang Prabang are delicious. We finished off the night with a few drinks in Hive bar where they were holding a type of talent contest with singers, dancers and other acts each performing on stage and the audience would vote for who they liked best. It was a bit bizarre but fun and rounded off our time here nicely.

Although much more expensive than we expected, we still had a really nice few days in Luang Prabang and are glad we came here again. It is a lovely place to spend a few days even if it doesn't feel like 'the real Laos'; it's very quaint and the French influences are clear to see in the many bakeries and cafes. We enjoyed it much more than on our last visit, probably in part due to the weather being great this time and taking it a bit slower. We had decided to leave early the next morning and head down to Vang Vieng, a town 6 hours away which used to be known for its wild partying and tubing but apparently not any more…we’ll soon find out…



S&V's Travel Info & Tips:

General Info: Approx 12,500 Kip to £1.

Transportation: Walking is easy around Luang Prabang; to get to the Kuang Si waterfalls it is cheapest if you can share a Tuk Tuk - a group of 6 will pay 30,000 Kip each return, or book with an agency for a shared trip for 50,000 each. A day trip to the falls including caves will set you back around 180,000 Kip.

Food: Best value for money in our opinon were the many food stalls and meat grill vendors just off the main street, with fill-your-plates for 10,000 Kip. The pancake, fruit shake and baguette stalls along the main street are good for a snack or desert!

Accomodation: We were lucky to find Mojo Guesthouse for 70,000 Kip a night for a double room with bathroom - it was basic but did the job and the owner was lovely. We looked at several other rooms around town which were around 100,000 Kip a night and they weren't any nicer.

Other observations:

x) Many, many Chinese tourists in LP compared to 2 years ago - perhaps this is why prices have increased??

xx) Lots of live jazz music around the town which was great to see, despite the midnight curfew.

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Comments

[Donna and Neil]

Flat tyres!
Ha, Lao tuk tuks must have very flimsy tyres - we remember getting a flat tyre doing the same journey to the falls back in 2007! We are quite shocked at the prices you are quoting, it did used to be a lot cheaper than that - especially the restaurants. Huge groups of Chinese tourists seem to now be the norm for the whole of SE Asia and is a possible explanation for increasing prices. If we remember correctly though, most things in Laos are imported from Thailand, so as prices for things there have increased it has probably had a knock-on effect on Laos.

[Home and Away]

Ahhhh...kanom kroque
one of my favorite treats. We have the iron skillet thing to make them at home.