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Published: March 25th 2005
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That Luang
Kris and Clayton at the That Luang Last night we caught a plane from Luang Phrabang to Vientiane, the capital of Laos. We are flying Lao Airlines and of course we didn't get off on time. That is probably the only down side to using this airline in Laos. The flights are fine and the service is friendly, and the price was not bad at all.
I (Kris) got to sit with a Lao lady who just loved that we spoke Lao. Of course it wasn't long before her friends across the way got into the conversation and before the inevitable questions were posed....Do you have a girlfriend and why don't you marry a Lao girl. It wasn't the first time and I'm sure it won't be the last as long as we are here. Today at the market a girl used her cell phone to take a picture of Clayton, I think she thought he was cute ... (what do ya think Brooke?). Her friend told her she shouldn't take his picture without asking and then we started talking in Lao and I think she was a little embarrassed. Oh well. Oh yeah and I have a new girlfriend too, just until we left the market
Temple North and Outside That Luang
Clayton and Benny eating some sweet rice cakes and trying to stay dry. Doesn't Ben look like an elf? anyways... such short term meaningless relationships are getting old...
Last night we got a taxi to a guest house we read about in the Lonely Planet that claimed to have rooms for 3 and 4 people...not true anymore they are remodeling. We stayed there anyways and each of us had our own room for $12 a person. It is a beautiful place with gorgeous hard wood floors and woodwork. The rooms are very clean and the bathrooms are very spacious and clean. The showers are the electric heated kind and the water temperature changes every few minutes but its not bad. For tonight we traded in two single rooms for a Double at $15. It is very spacious and has two beds. There are wardrobes and desks and everything...top notch accomadations. And it is within walking distance from the river, the morning market (which actually runs all day unlike the banks around here). The banks all seem to close for lunch around 11:30 and then close for the day around 3:30. Not so convenient. The staff is very friendly, in fact one of my favorite things to do here is to talk go the front desk guys and the
Dinner on the Mekong
Ben and Clayton having dinner along side the Mekong River. The air was clean and fresh. You have to watch out for the killer ants though, Clayton sat with his foot in ther nest until they bit him multiple times...we finally decided to move. cleaning ladies. They love that we speak Lao, it is very rewarding.
So we went to the That Luang which is a rebuilt structure that is a religious symbol of Laos. I think it used to house holy relics, now it is really just a tourist attraction. The building is not as impressive as we had expected but still pretty, and the surrounding temples are very ornate and beautiful. It rained all morning so we ended up buying umbrellas and ponchos. By afternoon the rain stopped but the air stayed fresh and cool. It is a very comfortable temperature here. We stopped by the victory arch, patterned after the Arch de Triumph or whatever it is called in France.
One of the highlights of the day was eating a very late lunch, 5:00 overlooking the Mekong River. The food was incredible, we had huge shrimp...Clayton wants to call them prauns, barbecued chicken, shishkabobs, fried sticky rice on a stick, and a barbecued fish that tasted just like heaven. The way they prepare fish here is amazing, I could eat a whole school...Clayton loves my jokes. One downside to the meal was a number of children and women would
Shrimp?
Kris playing with his food on the Mekong River walk from table to table begging for food by standing next to you and staring or right out asking for some of your shrimp. I'm not sure how we felt about that. It was awkward.
After dinner we were walking home and were asked by some college age students if they could interview us for an assignment. Soon we were surrounded by 6 or 7 students practicing their English. It was a lot of fun to talk to them and answer their questions. The most rewarding part of the trip in Laos is how open and friendly the people are. Personally I would prefer interacting with the people to seeing the sites. Probably one of the reasons we have spent so much time "Asian Malling" wandering the markets gives CLayton and I a chance to speak the language and approach people.
Tonight we are going to try to catch a late dinner and a traditional Lao dancing show.
Tomorrow we plan on taking a taxi or bus back into Thailand and flying from Udon Thani back to Bangkok so Clayton can catch his plane home tor the States...and Brooke and Co.
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