Laos is a place that I have wanted to visit for quite awhile. For some reason it has intrigued me as a mysterious and photogenic place. Perhaps I was influenced by an early Anthony Bourdain show on Laos. Perhaps it was because until the 1990’s, Laos was difficult for foreign travelers to access. During the Vietnam War, Laos was one of the most heavily bombed countries in history. In 1975, the Pathet Lao assumed control of the country, creating a socialist state and naming the country Lao People’s Democratic Republic, yet another country that is younger than I am.
While access may have previously been difficult, the eVisa system now in place provides a convenient and simple way of obtaining the documents necessary for entry. Laos is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia … heavily influenced by the French, Vietnamese, Cambodians, and Thai. Located along the shores of the Mekong river and surrounded by lush tropical forests and hills, the city of Luang Prabang is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. This designation has always been an indicator of a great destination for us as witnessed in other recent visits to Valletta, Hoi An, Riga, and Bergen.
An Unspoiled Corner of Asia
We visited Luang Prabang in hopes of finding a corner of Asia, still relatively unspoiled. We found just that, although technically it is not in a corner but rather smack in the middle of Southeast Asia. Luang Prabang seems to be in the midst of a transition from an off-the-beaten destination for the ‘backpacker’ crowds looking for the next Vietnam or Thailand … to a destination also attractive to independent travelers looking to get away from mass commercial tourism.
As most readers of this blog know, we often seek out hotels that are aligned with the group Small Luxury Hotels or SLH. In Luang Prabang we opted for the Luang Say Residence. The French colonial styled buildings are arranged comfortably around a lush tropical property just outside of town. In combination with an incredibly helpful and friendly staff, the Luang Say Residence represented one of the finest SLH properties at which we have stayed.
In early January, the weather was about as perfect as you can find in Asia. Cool mornings, warm afternoons, and during our stay there was not a drop of rain. An omen of a great visit … as we walked off the plane onto the tarmac, we were greeted with the most amazing sunset over the hills surrounding Luang Prabang. Luggage circled the conveyor uncollected as most passengers had mobile phones out capturing the view.
BS … Life ‘Before Starbucks’
Luang Prabang is easy to navigate and there are lots of cheap and efficient tuk-tuks throughout the city. A local market provides a glimpse into daily life in Laos and a night market takes over the main street at night because, well that is why it is called a night market. During our entire stay … we saw no McDonalds, Starbucks, Marriott hotels, or even the ubiquitous KFC. It was awesome. Somehow an entire culture has managed to survive without any of them. There were no big tourist buses … just a few small mini-vans. There were very few kitschy souvenir shops. Not a single buddha shaped cheese slicer in view. There were a lot of handmade crafts including some exquisite silks at Khinthong Lao Silk shop, where the owners travel up to 10 hours into the northern hill villages to acquire some quite remarkable products. Molly did her own acquisition from them with much less effort.
We Were Not Paid for this Endorsement by Beerlao
As any good foreign traveler will confirm, the first order of business in a new country is learning the local beverage of choice. Clearing customs is probably a close second. Beerlao is the national beer. It is tasty and served very cold. A large bottle will set you back about $1 USD. As such, a couple bottles of Beerlao, two plates of larb (more on that later), and a tuk-tuk to get around town for the evening will cost about $10 USD. Needless to say, that Laos provides an extremely good value for your travel dollar, which by the way is the predominant form of currency. The Laotian Kip is not a valid currency outside of Laos so plan on exchanging money only after entering Laos … although it is not mandatory since most everyone will accept US Dollars.
What’s a Wat … Who’s on First ?
Buddhism is a significant part of the Lao culture and is on full display in Luang Prabang. Buddhist temples or Wats are found throughout the city. There are wats, and wats, of wats. Sorry. I couldn’t resist that. A daily ritual for the Buddhist monks is the morning giving of alms. The Buddhist monasteries in Luang Prabang do not contain kitchens, and the only food the monks eat is food provided by the local community.
Very early every morning, throughout the city, silent processions of monks dressed in orange robes leave their monasteries, walk along the roads and collect alms from people sitting along the sides of the street. This is an amazing event to witness. Unfortunately, along the main road it has been over-run by groups of very disrespectful tourists … almost always from one particular unnamed country. On many occasions I witnessed tourists walking backwards with cell phones in the face of the monks, taking flash photography, and selfies. It is very sad and I expect it will not change until the tour guides that facilitate such behavior make changes.
As an alternative, I recommend spending a few hours with an ex-novice on the Orange Robe Tours. A novice is between 10 and 19 years of age and is sort of a ‘monk in training’. Orange Robe Tours gives you an intimate and amazingly educational opportunity to learn what life is like as a Buddhist novice or monk in Laos without having to wear an orange robe or stroll your neighborhood in the early morning hoping to score a blueberry scone. We learned a tremendous amount during our 2-hour visit with Sunti, giving us a newfound respect for the rigor and education that these individuals undertake. It was the highlight of our visit to Luang Prabang.
Do Tinker-Toys Float?
Luang Prabang is situated where the Nam Khan river joins with the Mekong, with ample vistas and views of both. There are a variety of bridges crossing the Nam Khan, including an old French colonial bridge and two bamboo bridges. At least one of the bamboo bridges is disassembled during the heavy rainy season and then re-assembled … explaining the rather simple, wobbly, yet effective tinker-toy/twine construction. I always had one hand on the railing which in retrospect, wasn’t any more rigid. At least it would give me something to float on down river.
Where Wishes Come True ?
There are several groups offering more comfortable ways to cruise along the Mekong. We opted for an evening sunset cruise because, well an afternoon sunset cruise would just not work would it? A gorgeous sunset over the hills of Laos while reclining on deck chairs drinking Beerlao was a very good ‘happy place’. The obviously ex-hippie family running the cruise boat felt it necessary to interrupt our Beerlao. They wanted all of us to participate in a tradition of writing a note of something positive that you want in your life and something negative you want out of it. The positive notes were all tied together and thrown in the Mekong … the negative notes tied to a rock and sunk to the bottom. Our cynicism already peaked by our warming Beerlao … good health and a return visit to Laos was floated on the waves of the Mekong from us, adding to the accumulating flotilla of trash. To the bottom of the Mekong sank a note with only one word … Trump.
Tranquility Base
About 45 minutes outside of Luang Prabang are the Kuang Si waterfalls. There are multiple ways to get to the falls and it is well worth a visit. The falls consist of a variety of different levels of beautiful aqua colored pools with various cascading waterfalls and an occasional tourist in a speedo. The falls are located in a national park, surrounded by forested hills. It is a peaceful and tranquil setting.
Access to the waterfalls is along an easy path which actually meanders through a bear sanctuary … none of whom wore a speedo. The bears are originally from the Lao countryside (of course they are not from the city) but because of poachers, have been rescued and are now cared for at the sanctuary.
You Scream Laab, I Scream Larb, We All Scream for a Meat Salad
OK. More about Larb. Larb is regarded as the unofficial dish of Laos. It is a ground meat mixed with various spices, herbs, and greens … cooked and served on a salad. I had it the first night with duck and after that, nearly every remaining meal in Laos. The water-buffalo larb was also quite tasty, but duck was my favorite. For some reason, it is sometimes listed as laap, lahb, or laab. I have no idea why. It doesn’t matter … they are all good.
Our favorite meals are those experiences were great food is combined in an unpretentious way in a memorable setting. Luang Prabang provided just such experiences; whether sitting outside a small café in town with a mango squash, breakfast on the porch of our French colonial hotel with a steaming bowl of noodles and a croissant (don’t laugh … it works), a lunch of Lao sausages while overlooking the Mekong river, or dinner next to a pond eating water buffalo lao-lao, larb balls, and duck. The best meal was at Khaiphaen, a training restaurant doing some great things for the local community. We had some perfectly cooked Laos sausages, crispy pork belly, and tasty green beans with lime and cashews. Hey Molly … proof that I didn’t have larb “at every meal”.
Stuff it Where ?
The meal at Khaiphaen was just slightly better than the one we cooked at the Tamarind Cooking Class. Sit was our leader, chef, tour guide, game-show host, and comedian. After touring the back alleys deep inside the central market, we fled to their cooking school located outside of town in a tropical forest near a river. Quite an amazing location and based on Molly’s critical assessment … one of the best cooking classes ever. She was most impressed with our ability to actually make stuffed lemongrass (yep) and that I succeeded in doing so with almost all 10 fingers still in place. I was far more excited about making and eating the buffalo larb. Does anyone know where we can order water-buffalo in Seattle? I’ll check Amazon.
Don’t Tell Anyone
Laos exceeded all of my expectations. The country is beautiful, the weather is great, the food is tasty, and the people are incredibly friendly. If Luang Prabang sounds like an idyllic destination for you, go soon. There is a Chinese funded railway under construction that will connect China to Laos. The inevitable swarm of tourists from China is certain to have an impact. As seen in the morning Alms ceremony, unfortunately it has already started. I do not know what the future holds in store for Laos and Luang Prabang. I believe that what exists today is what Vietnam was like 10 years ago, Cambodia 20 years ago, or 30 years ago in Thailand. If you never had a chance to experience any of these, Laos might be your last opportunity.
For more images, check out my gallery of photos from Laos and other countries in Asia at https://turnrightat50.com/photography/nggallery/travel-asia. We were sad to pack our bags and leave, but are already contemplating a return trip to Luang Prabang. Molly is worried that if we tell anyone how nice Luang Prabang is, we will accelerate it’s demise before we go back. So … don’t tell anyone I wrote this. Especially Molly.
