Slow life in Laos: Luang Prabang

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On the first evening in Luang Prabang, Shaun wanted to go to a nice bar some people at the hostel had recommended. We looked on our map and there were two ways there: a path through what we thought was a park, and a way via the road that looked much longer. We decided to cross through the park... It ended up being a 300 steps walk to a temple - and then we had to go down on the other side! We had to walk another kilometre to get to the bar, which wasn't what we were expecting and we didn't even go there! It was very busy with loud music. We had dinner somewhere else.
On the next day, we had a walk around the town - which is small and quite nice. It was very hot! The day after, it was much colder and grey but we decided to take a scooter and see the Kuang Si waterfalls. There was a rescue centre for bears so we saw lots of them! There were a lot in small enclosures so, even if the Bears are better off than in tiny cages where they were kept and used for their bile, it doesn't seem like a great life for them! The waterfalls were very nice, the water was very blue. We did a hike up to the caves where they keep damaged statues of Buddha.
On the next day, we had met three French people (there are so many French tourists in Laos!!) and we went for a hike on the other side of the Mekong river with them. They were walking very quickly, not taking in the views nor anything, which annoyed us. We walked for about 12 kilometres up and down hills before taking a boat back to the other side of the river. We then had a rest and went for dinner to a cheap street buffet place.
On the next day, we had a quiet day, planning the rest of our trip and booking flights! It is still very cold (13 degrees) and we need to buy warmer clothes! Our bodies aren't apparently used to the cold anymore!

Pictures to come when we get better WiFi.

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