“Laos 🇱🇦 ~Touring in and Around Luang Prabang”

• January 24, 2018
• By Pen
• 0 Comment

Luang Prabang, Laos 🇱🇦 

After our wonderful 2-Day Mekong River Boat trip, which started in Chiang Khong, Thailand, and ended in Luang Probang, Laos, we stayed for several days to check out more of this little country.

Luang Prabang is as cool as its name! We got out on a walk about in town a few times, where there was always something to see. Southeast Asia, does not disappoint in that way!

Luang Prabang’s small streets are lined with funky little restaurants, and shops selling gorgeous handmade silk clothes, silver jewelry, and museums dedicated to the area’s ethnic diversity.

The food night market is a crush of people, smoky barbecues and tantalising smells, while vendors whip up flavoursome meals for a couple of bucks.
Monks wander the streets in groups of two or three. The Mekong River meanders along one side, with the smaller Khan River on the other side, joining the Mekong at the tip of the peninsula.

Cute little side alleys cut through and around elegant French colonial buildings, and looking down on all this is Wat Chomsi, a golden stupa sitting atop of Phousi Hill.

Bamboo Bridge Walk

A long bamboo bridge runs across the turbid waters of the Nam Khan River, near its point of convergence with the Mekong. You can access the bridge via a flight of stairs at the intersection of Khem Khong and Sakkaline Roads.

There’s a fee of 7,000 kip to cross the 300 plus feet bridge. The fee goes to a certain Mr. Bounmee and his family, who rebuild the bridge every dry season, when the water level of the Nam Khan River recedes and becomes too shallow for a boat to navigate.
During the rainy season, the current becomes too strong for the bridge to survive. Without the bridge, people cross to the other side by boat.

So, what’s special about this bamboo bridge and what’s on the other side? A walk over the seemingly rickety but human-enduring footbridge is a unique experience. It’s a bridge that’s been crafted by a local, using locally available materials.

We had refreshing smoothies, and got a two-hour massage for two, and then a delicious lunch, at a darling boutique restaurant.

The Phra Bang

Inside, a statue stands high. A  Buddha with palms facing forward; cast using thong, an alloy of bronze, gold, and silver.

The Royal Palace in Luang Prabang, Laos, is also the Royal Palace Museum.

The site for the Palace was chosen, so that official visitors to Luang Prabang could disembark from their river voyages directly below the Palace and be received there.

Wat Manorom (Manolom, or, Vat Mano) Sattharam is located just outside the remnants of the old city walls south of the city. Most agree that the Monastery is located on the site of one of the earliest Khmer Buddhist missions to the area, although authorities disagree about the date of its founding.

The sim was reconstructed in 1818, but was destroyed by the Haw marauders in 1887. The present sim, rebuilt in 1972, is one of the tallest sims in Luang Prabang. The grounds of an earlier wat, Xieng Kang, are behind the sim.

Tonight, we walked the Night Market, and saw some interesting things for sale, then met our “MeKong” friends for dinner, at another awesome place.

1/26/18

Kuangsi Waterfall 

It was quite a hike, straight up the mountain, but well worth the effort! This place is beautiful!

On our hike up the waterfall, we took a little side trip in a boat. The boat had a leak, so the little fishes swam in, to clean our feet, whilst we floated along.

******

Kuangsi Waterfall Park is also home for rescued bears, indigenous to Southeast Asia.
All these bears were illegally poached and unable to survive in the wild again, after being mistreated, and/or maimed. This is there forever home, now.

History
Tat Kuang Si Bear rescue center is a short walk past the entrance gate, before reaching the pools of the falls.

A number of Asiatic black bears, rescued from poachers and illegal wildlife trade, live in an enclosure with lots of trees, swings and other things to play with. From a viewing platform you can observe the animals as they play or search for food.

There is no separate admission fee to the center. The center is supported by the “Free the Bears Fund,” a charity working to protect bears in several Asian countries, and to save them from the bear bile farms where they are milked for bear bile used in traditional Chinese medicine.

*****
Funny-Not Funny
Our van, fully loaded with 12 people, left our hotel for the Waterfall at 9AM today, as scheduled. When we bought our tickets last night, we were told the driver would wait for us to explore the falls, give us a time to be back to the van, and we would be returned to our hotel. Everything went according to plan, (almost).

We had plenty of time to hike to the falls and be at the falls to enjoy the beauty. We all met our driver for the return to town, at the correct time.  After loading up at the pickup place, the driver started our trip down the mountain, back to Luang Prabang.

BUT, not long after entering the town, the driver abruptly pulled over and told us all to get out; which we did. (I though something was wrong with the van). After we were all out, the driver just drove off and left us there! What?  😳 So we all just stood there for a minute in shock, looking at each other, then we had to figure out where we were at, so we could make our way back to our respective hotels; if we could even find our hotel. We were tired, and it was 100 degrees out 🙄We walked for about a half hour, and finally made our way back to our hotel. It’s not a huge town, but we hadn’t explored anyplace but the center, before this time.

After we got back, I asked the gal who sold us our tickets, why we did not receive a round trip ride today, as that is what we we’re promised, and it’s what we paid for.  ?

I told her about all of getting dumped off in a part of town we had not been in before, and we had to “guess” which way to start walking. ?

Answer:
She told me that when the cops are in town, sometimes the drivers have to do this kind of thing. It doesn’t happen often, but once in awhile.What? Apparently, today was that day! I can only assume the driver did not have proper licensing? Who knows.

*****

1/28/18

Back From the Waterfall Visit

I just had to hike to the top of this, too! Well, you know, because it’s there. There is a small, ancient Temple at the top. The view was worth the sweat, 😓 in 89% humidity!

Mount Phou Si, also written Mount Phusi is 300 steps, on a hill about about a 330 feet high. in the center of the old town of Luang Prabang in Laos. It lies in the heart of the old town peninsula and is bordered on one side by the Mekong River and on the other side by the Nam Khan River.

Folklore History
Phousi Supa was build in the early 1800’s by King Anourat, though the mountain is much older.
The Lao folklore, with deep roots in the Ramayana culture, claim Mount Phousi was moved by the Monkey King named Hanuman from Sri Lanka to where it is today in Laos.

Walking to and through the Night Market in Luang Prabang one more time, we make our way to the Sanctuary Hotel to watch a free “movie!”

We met up with our Mekong Boat travelers; those who were still in town, to watch this black and white movie, called Chang.

(Chang means Elephants in Thai) 

It was shot in 1925 by M. Cooper and E. Schoedsack, the filmmakers, who made the King Kong movie in 1933,

Chang is set in the jungle outside of Luang Prabang. The movie follows a Lao family and their encounters with wildlife including Tigers, Leopards and Elephants. Chang is one of the first films to document Lao life in the jungle and, indeed, one of the first documentaries made in Southeast Asia. The movie offers an intriguing glimpse into what Laos was like in the past, and a must for any vintage film enthusiasts.
The free nightly screening of Chang starts at 6.30PM. The movie is screened outside (with mosquito repelling lamps to deter unwanted bugs) and in the case of rain, is shown indoors.

The movie is free to watch, but it is expected that you buy a drink or two (at the super-cheap price of 10,000 Kip or just over USD $1.00.

What a very unique thing to do! 

1/24/18

A Little Story Time, Before I End This Blog

So after our Mekong River boat trip ended, our guide gets us all loaded up in a van to drop us off at our respective hotels in Luang Prabang.

One by one we get “delivered” (all different hotels), until its just Daryl and I and the couple from Norway. Next, the driver stopped at “our” hotel, and we all piled out, but I read the hotel sign and it was not our hotel. The sign read “Merry Riverside Hotel.”  Our hotel is called “Luang Prabang Hotel Merry Villa III-Swiss.”

Back in the van, I ask our friends from Norway; “btw, what’s the name of your  hotel?” She answered “Luang Prabang Hotel. She showed me the paper. The English name of hotel with an address in Lao language, just like my info.
Hmmm?

We tried another hotel, and I had to tell the driver that was not it, either. The sign said something different, again. But, like before, one of the words WAS the same.
At this point, I ask Daryl; if a local taxi driver can’t find our hotel, who can?

Finally, third try, and bingo, it’s our hotel! I went into reception and made certain, before unloading luggage again!🙄
We then said our thank you’s and goodbyes to our Norway friends, then waited in reception to check in, as four travelers were ahead of us at reception.

Lo and behold, within 10 minutes, here comes our Norway friends, walking into our hotel with their luggage.  Their paperwork said a different name Hotel; just… “Luang Prabang Hotel,” (without the other name attached that we had), but the address was apparently the same. We had a good laugh over that!

Just so you know, many Taxi, and Tuk Tuk drivers do not read or speak English in Asia.  A photo goes a long way when asking to be taken somewhere. I always take a photo of the hotel we are in, as well as find a business card from the front desk (as soon as we arrive anywhere) as the cards are usually in their country’s language. This practice is a life saver, when needing to find your hotel again, after a big day of sightseeing!

Prior to arriving at the correct hotel, I had the address in the Lao language, but the Hotel name was in English. This has been the case all through Thailand, but no issue. Here in Laos, for some reason, neither the guide, nor the driver could figure it out. I even had the guides’ phone and googled the name of the hotel, using a phone in Lao language.  THAT was like reading brail, but it helped a little, because there was a different phone number to try, than what my paperwork offered (guide said my phone number I had for hotel did not work) ?
Also, there are three different languages spoken in Lao. One of those spoken is Thai.

Gotta love traveling!

As you can see from the picture of the hotel sign, the Laos letters meant something.

*****

1/29/18

We have enjoyed this town of Luang Prabang a lot! Laos is a bit more primitive, and the people are very shy, compared to Thailand. Such an experience!
So, in the morning, we depart by plane, to return to Thailand 🇹🇭 

*****

Click on this link to to see all the photos mentioned in this blog post:

Luang Si Waterfall 

https://picsbypen.smugmug.com/Places/AsiaLife-SouthEast/LaosLife/Kuangi-Waterfall/

Luang Prabang

https://picsbypen.smugmug.com/Places/AsiaLife-SouthEast/LaosLife/Luang-Prabang/