Mount Phousi Luang Prabang

After two days on the slow boat we arrived in Luang Prabang. Faye and I left the others to sharpen their elbows and fight their way through the bag collection free-for-all whilst we went off to check out some accommodation options.

In order to quell my "I hope we don't end up in a roach infested fleahole" fear, I'd done my customary online …

The title alludes to what all the locals and travellers say, I wish someone would teach them the word "similar!"

Luang Prabang is beautiful. I wish I came here sooner and missed out Vientiane and Pakse. the whole of the old town is a UNESCO heritage site, and you can see why. It's full of tourists and locals trying to sell to them. There …

So we finished the final leg of our slow boat trip. Though it was a great experience we were getting cabin fever by the end and glad to get off. When we finally found a guesthouse with a room and dropped off our bags we went to check out the local market and food stalls.

The second day we went to Kouang Si waterfall on a tuk tuk. We were …

We very quickly warmed to Luang Prabang and ended up enjoying a full week there much longer that the usual 2-3 days of most travellers we met before they invariably moved on to the infamous Vang Vieng. Our guesthouse Hoxieng was a nice family run place to stay and we were soon being taken care of by the family matriarch a delightful old lady who …

Luang Prabang was already more touristic as it has its own international airport and is also easily accessible from the capital Vientiane. The good location between the mighty Mekong river and Khan river in addition to the temples and monasteries attracts a lot of people – which in return is visible in the amount of guesthouses, restaurants …

We entered Laos via Huay Xai, getting our visa on arrival was an experience to say the least! Basically there's a scrum at the windows and you have to get yourself to the front to hand in your passport, forms and picture then wait a random amount of time (quicker if you've slipped the officials $5) at the other window for your passport to be …

... the top. We started up the steps and paid the 10,000kip admission fee and reached the top to stunning views of Luang Prabang and the surrounding mountainous countryside. You could see the wide Mekong River snake into the distance and the fishermen ...

Well we arrived in Laos today, and flew into Luang Prabang...which was an experience!  We were coming down to land, wheels out and all and then all of a sudden we shot back up in the air!  The wheels went back in and we definitely flew ...

... to get back on the boat and head to some of the parts of Laos I'd head such good things about. Our destination was Luang Prabang, a small city with World Heritage status. This place was the kind of friendly, laid-back place that we expected of Laos. ...

... was certainly a colourful spectacle and well worth getting up for. One day we walked up 340 steps to the top of mount phousi which is the main temple landmark in Luang, on the way up i was persuaded to buy a sparrow in a little wicker cage and told to ...

... rainstorms couldn't put us off and we stayed for 5 days. On our first day we climbed up the 400 steps up Mount Phousi, in the heart of Luang Prabang, to see the fantastic views of the city and the Mekong, and the 25m golden chedi, That Chomsi at the ...

... but we had to explore so we headed into 'town' and grabbed some food. Paul and I decided to head up Mount Phousi, the hill at the top of Luang Prabang, to watch the sunset over the Mekong. One thing that you can't miss as soon as you arrive here are all ...

... That whilst the others went on a bike ride to some of the nearby caves. Wat That is found at the top of Mount Phousi which is in the centre of Luang Prabang and is a 25 metre tall gold chedi. We walked up the steps up one side of the hill, stopping as ...

... We've spent the past few days swatting up on our Wats, including: Wat Xieng Thong: the 'Temple of the Golden City', Luang Prabang's most significant and ornate temple. Built in 1560 it sits overlooking the Mekong. the various temples in the complex are ...

... stir fry, then a few hours of competitive volleyball with no injuries and no balls going into the river or neighbor's yard. That about wraps up a day in the life here in Luang Prabang, plus a few little stories tied in there... 4:51PM August 4th, ...

... room did not smell like pee and I was a million times happier). We all congregated once again in the evening, first to climb Mount Phousi - 100m high hill, in the centre of LPB with a temple on the top. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Iybfx9k_Z0   ...