Where's my T.V.?
Trip Start
Dec 28, 2007
1
12
27
Trip End
Dec 01, 2008
Luang Prabang,
Lao Peoples Dem Rep
Monday, February 25, 2008
HI all,
We arrived in Luang Prabang after a bit of a layover in Bangkok. I was in absentia for the Coit and Dean adventure in Thailand, so I will leave the tales to them. As for Laos, I was in for a surprise. Having never been to Laos, mostly due to the stories of kidnaps and thievery, I was tentative but more secure having two swarthy American males escorting me through the rough and tumble streets. Little did I know I would actually outweigh the average Loation male by 2 stones ( I will not convert to pounds - for those fluent in stones as a measure of weight, just keep quiet.)
Our arrival was uneventful, except for the apparent shanghiing of my carry on luggage
Is that Brad Pitt and Ben Affleck?
. In a twist of ironic justice, and certainly to the horrified surprise of my sticky fingered friends, I was carrying only my dirty laundry and some size 10 shoes. Good luck finding a Loation those will fit. Nonetheless, the bag did not turn up anywhere in the huge one room airport, despite the fact we were the only plane to have landed in the last hour. But the Loation boys were very helpful in the search. It did give an excuse to buy some new clothes on REI on-line and send them to Andrew's mom to bring. (There is a happy ending to this story, - I found the clothes when we returned for our flight out.)As for Laos in general, I had an extremely unrealistic ideas of what to expect. The country is not dusty nor piled high with "government officials" ready to hand down judgment on the "visa on arrival" application. The country is beautiful - lush, green, full of smiling adults and children, and not the least bit frightenting. It probably did not hurt that the city we chose as our first stop was world heritage site, whose main source of income is tourism. (we are now in Phnom Penh where life is EXTREMELY different, but more on that later). Luang Probang is a mecca for novice monks - those in training to become monks. The chant/pray each evening from 5 to 6, an event open to the public which is an experience that no one will ever forget. Some of the novices are quite young, and have a rather cute tendency to check their text messages during the ritual
And then there was dinner....
. We watched three nights running. I was moved to tears - There are very strick rituals that must be followed in a buddhist monestary - the most important of which is that you NEVER sit with your feet pointing at a buddha statue. Why are we one of the only people who know this? The rude frenchies who kept running into us at the monestary refused to obey this sign of respect/Our second day in Loas was full of adventure. First the kayak trip down the lesser known sister of the Mekong (little kong?) and then the elephant rides. Pictures are included for your amusement. Andrew and I had a elephant that weighed in at least two times that of those ridden by our mates. And still Adam was scared on his little old elelphant. But he was alone, whilst Andrew had me to protect him. We went through the river on this elephant trip. Why? good question. Safe and sound, yet freezing (again, why?) we went back to seek solace with the monks.
We stayed at a guesthouse, the real only available alternative form of lodging in town, called LeCaloa. Adam got locked out one night and had to climb the back fence to get in. Think it may have been safer to sleep in the park. Luang Prabang is fantastically gorgeous, the food is delicious, and it is well worth a trip there
Adam is not so happy with dinner
. However, I do not really think this is a true indication of Loation living. All in all, we had a wonderful time. The markets were heaven for Andrew. He is the best bargainer I have seen. Adam and I had "sucker" written on our forheads. We saw the royal museum and the buddha mountain. On the down side, there was no TV in my room so we had no idea what was happening with Hillary and Barrack. Geez, talk about isolated! We will return to Laos a bit later now that we have more time and see more of the country. We did make a valiant attempt to do some good at the orphanage, but they did not allow visitors for fear of "sexual predators." That is a direct quote. And sadly, that is not seen as being overprotective there. So I made my (and Rebecca's) donations to help the orphange get their roof built, and tried to find satisfaction in that small bit of help. The temples, the palaces, the buddhas - beyond description. However, I do not think we have yet to see the real Laos. We will. Entry number 15 perhaps. More to you all later. Love, Andrea and Andrew
