Luang Prabang Day 1: Sunset scenes and Night Market eats.

Only ten days behind here...totally going to catch up soon.

Luang Prabang is definitely going to be a highlight of my time in South East Asia. It has romantic, red-and-gold temples on every street corner, the colours of which are only outdone by the saffron swaddling of monks, and the ruby-red of the sky at sunset as the sun slips beneath the Mekong. Nearby are aquamarine waterfalls nestled in vivid, emerald jungle, whilst upriver lonely bronze Buddha images glow in the gloom of river caves. The city’s streets are vaulted by palm and bougainvillea trees, and lined with delicately-aged, French-colonial villas in shades of ochre and limewash, from the shuttered doors of which every evening tumble tables and chairs onto the street, where they jostle for space between night market stalls bedecked with lanterns, filled with fruits, clothes and souvenirs in neat, little rows.

To put it simply, Luang Prabang is stunningly beautiful, and is reason enough alone to journey to Laos.

The beautiful streets of Luang Prabang.

The city is full of these great trees which provide shade (and good photos).

I couldn’t wait to spend several days in this small, riverine city, and I practically ran out of the guesthouse as soon as I had checked in, with a bemused Niko trailing in my wake.

As it was the late afternoon by the time we had disembarked from the boat, been ferried into town, and found berth in a guesthouse, we decided not to attempt any major attractions that day, but rather just walk around the city, taking photos as the sun slowly set and the sky darkened.

(We also wanted to find another hostel, as the owner of our current choice was surly and rude, and his Western helper had ‘jokingly’ offered us hookers).

Soon enough, we had found a more hospitable hostel, and booked in for the next night. We also stumbled upon a neighbourhood temple, Wat Mahathat.

The chedi at Wat Mahathat glowing at sunset.

Some fierce nagas :)

We continued exploring until darkness fell, when we headed to the city’s night market, laid out along the main street outside the Royal Palace.

The night market was stuffed full of stalls selling more than the standard, cookie-cutter souvenirs that can be found anywhere in Thailand. There were beautiful, embroidered bags and shoes; silver brooches and amulets; hand-painted lanterns & strings of smaller, multi-coloured lights; and locally-printed T-Shirts of all designs. Of course there was still the ubiquitous Rayban sunglasses, Beer Lao vests, and an indeterminable number of fruit-shake stands vying for custom.

The beautiful night market at Luang Prabang.

Whilst the night market was lovely to walk around, food was our first priority by now, as we had not eaten a proper meal since the evening previous. There were plenty of food options, but most of them could be described as ‘faux-French’ (calling yourself Café Coissant does not make you french) and ‘overpriced’. We however soon sniffed out the food section of the night market down a narrow side alley shaded by tarpaulins overhead. There, amongst the spring-rolls stalls, the sausage shops and technicolour Thai jelly pudding touts, was a buffet stall ran by an adorable Lao lady. It was 10000K (£0.80) for as much as you could wedge into a bowl, which she then threw into a wok and stir-fried for you.

Our buffet goddess with her wonderful mounds of food.

As I didn’t realise it was stir-fried together, I made a rookie’s error by including pineapple and papaya with my green beans and sweet potato.

Not keen on cooked papaya-pineapple.

It was an interesting combination, and delicious in it’s own way...but I perhaps wouldn’t have it again.

Ever.

On the plus side at least I had chance to rescue the prawn crackers and fortune-cookie-flavoured-crackers before they were thrown in the wok as well.

After our meal, Niko and I were too tired, full and lazy to go out or do anything energetic, so we decided on trying out a Lao massage from the shop a few doors down from our hostel.

Is it always slightly nerve wracking going into a massage parlour for a massage, as you can never be sure your massage won’t be of the ‘happy’ kind. Massage chairs in the street or in a market stall I see as fairly safe - there’s only so much paid-groping you can do in public. But going to a shop means you’re away from prying eyes, and much more like to wander into an….unfortunate situation.

They signalled for us to go upstairs. Niko and I looked at each other, laughed nervously, and followed the ladies upstairs.

Upstairs, they gave us clothes and told us to change. More nervous laughter, and while we were waiting, nerves jangling, we took a selfie to distract ourselves from our anxieties.

Two anxious guys.

As it turns out, we need not have worried ourselves. Lao massage differs from Thai massage in that stationary pressure is applied, with either hand, elbow or leg, meaning loose-fitting clothes are needed, and you need to lie down to allow sufficient pressure to be applied.

I feel that perhaps when the Lao women was kneeling with all her weight on my upper arm, that might have been applying too much pressure.

Putting her knee in my groin was not the highlight it could have been either.

It was one of those massages where you feel better afterwards, when you leave and don’t have to be tenderised massaged any longer.

Feeling sore but strangely, I grabbed a fruit shake and went to sleep early, to be ready for a full day of temple touring the following day.

We all know I will start tomorrow’s blog by saying I overslept…

DSP

Useful information:

Getting to Luang Prabang:

• by Slowboat from Huay Xai: 220000K (c.£18), 2 days, with an overnight stop in Pakbeng (not included).
• by Bus from Vientaine: c.120000K (c.£10), 10-13h
• by Bus from Vang Vieng: c.50000K (£4), 4-5h

Accomodation:

• (1st N) Sokdee Guesthouse, 80000K for private twin room with AC. Cheap but unhelpful, surly staff.
• (2-4th N) Central Backpackers: AC Dorm with (good) breakfast included for 35000K. Staff can be hit and miss, but overall a brilliant hostel. Dorm was freezing.

Eating out:

• Eating out at restaurants can be an expensive option, due to numbers of package tourists flying in and inflating prices.
• Night Market stalls are a cheaper option. To find the side alley with food stalls, start at crossroads near Post Office and Slow Boat dropoff point. Walk into night market road, and look for a narrow, unassuming alleyway on your left (heading N). There’s a small sweet/doughnut stall by the entrance. Keep walking down to find the cheap buffet stalls. Most are 15000, but those further on are 10000K and just as good.

Massages:

• Laos as a whole isn’t a great place for cheap massages, especially if you’re coming from Thailand. The lowest we found was 50000K (£4) for an hour, and both massages are that price were distinctly amateur compared to Thai quality. Potentially pay a little more to get actual trained masseuses.

Prices will change as Lao Kip values fluctuate wildly.