Rendevous with Ceallaigh in the city of Temples

Trip Start Apr 16, 2008
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Trip End Apr 15, 2009


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Flag of Lao Peoples Dem Rep  ,
Saturday, May 24, 2008

Arrived into Luang Prabang after an ass-numbing 4 hour drive in a crammed pick-up truck from Nang Kio. First impressions were very good and also well founded as Luang Prabang turned out to be a really beautiful and quiet city to spend a few days. Located in the middle of Laos, linked by poor roads to the north and the south, it is a bit of a wonder how Luang Prabang can exist in its almost pristine state. Jammed into a spit of land between the Mekong and the Nam Khan, the city has some 40 or so temples, most of which are in walking distance. But as Scotty has pointed out - enough temples already!
So I did visit a few, but really the effect the temples have on the city is the main thing. The city centre and night market areas are made up of beautiful colonial buildings. The people are really friendly and happy (it seems) and there are lots of nice areas for food and drink. So really you can just spend days strolling around the city.
On day 1 I bumped into Damian and Michael again. Then I met Brett and Candice going up Phou Si hill on the second day. Had a good night out with all of them which included a trip to the Muang Swa disco where we saw how to boogie down Lao style Brett and Candice relax on Phou Si hill.
Brett and Candice relax on Phou Si hill.
 . Basicaly it involves a variety of line-dancing, traditional dancing and formal dancing all to Lao and Thai pop music. Good crack after a few Beerlaos!
On one great day we headed out to the Kuong Xi waterfall which is famous for the multiple blue lagoons for swimming. Just what the doctor ordered on a scorching day.
Met O'Ceallaigh too and caught up on the latest news from home over a few more BeerLao. As he was on a tight schedule he powered on after only 30 hours. I suppose everyone knew he was going to make his move at some stage. 
On my last day I also extricated myself from bed at 5am to going and see the hundreds on Buddhist monks collecting alms on the streets at dawn. An amazing sight but I felt a bit bad snappin photos so I kept my distance.
Altogether Luang Prabang is a bit of a marvel and I can see it becoming a bit of a tourist hotspot pretty soon.
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