SE Asia 2014 Day 15

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Breakfast at the resort. A very nice spread of local and western dishes. The fruit table is lovely, and sitting among the other fruits is–wait for it–red dragon fruit! Our quest is at an end.

We board our vans and are transported down through the city to the banks of the Mekong, where we board a "long-tail" boat. These are long, narrow boats with bows and sterns that rise just slightly above the water. The family actually lives on the boat in the area at the rear. Our vessel is specifically set up for tourists and is nicely appointed, with mahoganey flooring and panelling, and even with decent washrooms. There are many long-tail boats on the river, both longer and shorter. Some are being used to haul tourists and some to haul various types of freight, such as river sand or foodstuffs.

We head upstream, fighting the significant current. Even though the long-tail boats draw little water, it's clear that the river is fraught with perils for the inexperienced. There are rocks and deadheads aplenty, announcing themselves with turbulent waves generated by the current flowing past them. A variety of activities can be observed taking place on the sandy shores, primarily fishing and construction. At several points, we spy workers laboriously shovelling sand into boats for construction projects. Along the shore are both rickety shacks, where locals dwell, and expansive villas, owned by foreigners–summarizing in a nutshell the vast disparities in this country, one of the poorest in the world.

Our destination is the Pak Ou Caves, about 25 km upstream. When we are almost there, the boat stops to let off a group who are going to hike through the forest and meet the rest of the group at the caves. That party includes myself, three others, plus Seng. For landing, the boat is driven up onto the sandy shore (remember it rises at the front), and the assistant leaps to the ground, quickly drives a large iron stake into the sand as far as he can, then ties the boat to it.

The trek through the forest is great. It's hot and humid, but not as overbearing as on some previous days. A short distance into our hike, we encounter a local village. People live here much as they have for centuries, although of course there are many traces of modern technology, notably satellite dishes on the thatched roofs. The huts are simple but nicely kept, practical for this climate. What's great about this episode for me is that the village is authentic, not some artificial creation intended for tourists. There are kids and dogs playing in the dusty pathways and many activities under way, including textile dying and rice-wine distillation. They have just finished making a batch and we are invited to sample. It's mighty powerful, probably about 50% alcohol, but virtually ordourless and tasteless, and completely drinkable. On the way out, we pass a small elementary school.

We leave the village and continue through the forest along a well-worn but occasionally treacherous path. It goes uphill and downhill, and several times we ford small creeks by stepping on rocks or logs. At one point, we have to clamber over a fence erected across the path, apparently to contain water buffalos. Immense dried leaves from teak trees crackle beneath our feet. The air is heavy and sweet with the fragrance of flowers. Calls from mostly invisible birds and squirrels provide a pleasant sonic backdrop.

Seng points out different plants and their local uses: food, medicine, dyes. He invites me to sample a pretty yellow flower that is used in preparing dishes. It is minty, with a hint of jasmine. Here's a plant whose leaves are used to make a tea that helps diagnose malaria. If it tastes bitter, you're OK; if it tastes sweet, you've got trouble.

Seng also explains the differences between the 20 types of bananas grown here, not all suitable for direct consumption. We examine an ant mound (the tiny ants are harvested as chicken food) and some spectacular funnel-shaped spider webs. An amazing variety of butterflies flit about, from small to quite large, in a huge range of colours. Dragon flies are also abundant.

A sticky rice field suddenly emerges in the centre of the forest. The rice has been cut and is drying in the sun. A woman is making her way through the field, turning the sheaves over.

There are mahogany and teak trees growing wild and also planted in groves. It takes 30-40 years before they can be harvested for furniture, although young trees are used to make panelling. Laos is becoming a major exporter of timber, especially to the insatiable Chinese market.

At one point in our trek, we follow the base of a formidable mountain. Seng explains that the cave we are headed for is on the opposite (river) side, but we have to go around the mountain to reach it. Eventually, hot and sweaty, we rejoin the rest of the crew, who have climbed the steep steps to the cave from the water.

The Pak Ou Caves are set into limestone cliffs overlooking the Mekong. They are crammed with hundreds of buddhas. There are actually two caves, one higher than the other. We join the gang from the boat at the second level; they have visited the first cave on the way up. There is no interior lighting and the mini-flashlights on our utility belts prove handy. When I say hundreds of buddhas, I am not kidding. They are perched everywhere there is even a slightly horizontal surface. The caves are 200 to 300 metres deep. Steep, slippery, roughly fashioned stairs spiral off into mysterious dark places. It is an eerie feeling to walk by these serene figures, many of them human-sized or larger, standing silent and seemingly impervious to human concerns. On the way back down the stairs to the river, the four forest trekkers get to visit the lower cave, which is perhaps slightly larger than the upper one and which, curiously, contains a wooden boat in one of the hidden corners.

We reboard our boat and go almost directly across the river to a restaurant on the opposite bank. We struggle a bit through the sand and up the bank to reach the Manivahn Restaurant. A meal similar to others; I particularly like the spring rolls with peanut sauce.

After lunch we regain our boat for the return trip down the Mekong to Luang Prabang. It's about an hour, half the time of the upstream trip because we are not fighting the current. Most of us doze off, lulled to sleep by the motion of the boat and the welcome breeze.

Back in the city, our vans deliver us to a paper-making facility. Here paper is made using traditional methods thousands of years old. Bark is taken from various types of trees, principally the mulberry, cut into thin strips, soaked to a mush, then pounded by hand on a sieve in water to form a thin sheet. Sometimes flowers and leaves are pressed into it as decoration. Once dry, the sheets are pulled off the sieve and we have paper. There is, of course, a gift shop where various items made of this paper are offered for sale.

Supper is at the Mekong Fish Restaurant, a lovely location on the banks of the Mekong, with several levels of terraces. On one of the terraces just above us, a group of Laotians, one with a guitar, are drinking and singing away. Fortunately the guitar and the voices are mostly in tune. At the end of the meal, the lights dim and a surprise birthday cake appears for one member of our party. Our friends on the next patio immediately strike up "Happy Birthday" and sing along with gusto.

The evening is rounded off by a visit to the night market. At 7 pm, the main street of the city is closed to vehicles and a long tent structure is erected, spanning perhaps 5 contiguous city blocks. One of Luang Prabang's signature buildings, the Phusi Temple, sits at the midway point. We traverse the market from east to west. To my eyes, it is mostly endless displays of essentially the same items. The entire structure is incompatible with my height, so I spend more time watching my head than the merchandise. Violet buys a commemorative magnet.

As we exit the market, there are hordes of tuk-tuks (3-wheeled vehicles with small noisy engines that can carry about 4-6 people) waiting to take tired tourists home. They are decorated with multi-coloured lights and present a most attractive spectacle. However, we have our vans waiting to transport us back to the resort.

An excellent day, but we are happy to reach our room, fold up the remaining laundry, and hit the hay.

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