Luang Prabang

The Mekong at Luang Prabang

28th February

After arriving by slow boat from Houay Xai and being taken to my guesthouse I walk back to the riverfront of the Mekong. Luang Prabang is as attractive as the written reports say. The waterfront is heavily geared to tourists, with guesthouses and restaurants everywhere. Our guide on the boat said that only tourists eat here, the prices are high! 

The night market starts around 5:30pm so I head back up to the Main Street and am delighted by the lack of tat and by the profusion of beautiful craft work ... Almost sensory overload. 

I purchased a cotton scarf for which the vendor was asking 40,000kip ... I had no change, nor did the vendor, so she asked 200 baht instead. Nothing like flexibility. I was glad that I had not changed my baht.

A market vendor displays her wares

I find the textiles very hard to resist and another vendor tempts me with a pashmina shawl for 40,000 kip.

I am very tempted by large handwoven silk shawl. "Made by my mother". The lady was asking around $100. I know the work is worth it but do not have that amount in any one currency on me and probably cannot justify spending that much on a shawl. She drops the price than asks me what I am prepared to pay. I am reluctant to bargain these ladies down too much although they drop the price to half the original if I show a little interest mixed with reluctance. 

Enjoying sunset on the Mekong

Many of the traditional skirts are already made; they are worn just like a Kira except they are sewn into a tube. I try one on but the darts etc are not really in the right place for me, I would rather buy an unmade length despite one lady's indication that she could adjust for me (ie, move the hook).

It would have been a good idea to check that the maps app on my phone knew my guesthouse earlier. I spent quite some time getting myself rather lost before I finally found myself on the corner with a familiar Wat opposite and got back to the guesthouse just before 10pm. I'd had some directions from a gentleman on a motorbike who figured I was lost as I was walking down a dark road that, as it turned out, led only to an unpaved lane that was a dead end. He spoke no English but recognised the name of the road I was trying to ask about and pointed me in the general direction. This, combined with a fairly inadequate map from booking.com, finally got me where I needed to be.

29^th  February

Luang Prabang main road at dusk

Markets and motorbikes largely dominated my time, observations and thoughts for the day. I start byvisiting the morning market and was intrigued by some fruits I could not identify along with a range of meat products on display that would not be for the squeamish or faint hearted. There was probably no part of the animals that could not be purchased for consumption, and live fish in basins and buckets also awaited their purchasers. All of these were later on display, cooked, on the street food stalls down an alley from the night handicraft market. I did not notice many tourists purchasing the chicken feet, pigs heads or trotters though.

The Mekong at Luang Prabang

I found the textile section of the market and am very tempted by the traditional silk skirt lengths and eventually do buy one in a delightful shade of blue for 200,000 kip.

Waking back towards my next destination, I am diverted by a park containing a statue of a president. It's a very peaceful park with a very pleasant sitting area overlooking the Mekong and the village opposite.

Back along the main street I start to think about a fresh fruit juice based drink, but a small cafe selling drinking coconuts presents itself and I order. It's an enormous coconut and very refreshing and I enjoy the company of a couple also there.

The cafe is roadside, and presents much opportunity to watch the world go by. Many of The tuk-tuks are very colourful and come either 3 wheels or 4. I am frequently asked if I want to hire a tuk-tuk, but drivers accept a gentle "no thank you" very readily. 

Elegant buildings in Luang Prabang

The motorbikes and their riders present much entertainment. Spotting the maximum number of riders is one of my favourite pastimes. A family of 4 is my maximum so far, although I would not swear that one such family did not also have a baby in a papoose sling. The Lao ladies riding motorbikes with their elegant traditional silk skirts are common, some ride pillion, sidesaddle, in a way that would have authorities in many other countries absolutely horrified, but others hop astride the bike. 

Then there is the social nature of riding, both bicycles and motorbikes, 2 or 3 abreast to chat while travelling is not uncommon. And motorbikes are ridden through the markets. The street markets, which leave about 1 - 1.5 metres max between stalls, still have 2 way motorbike traffic... a bit daunting for pedestrians.

The Morning Market

Groups of 3 young ladies or 3 young men (or girls and boys, I swear that some of the drivers do not look old enough to to be driving a motorbike) are not uncommon.

I am bemused by one man who is riding with his motorbike helmet, but the small boy in front of him is wearing only a cloth cap!

Motorbike hire is quite popular with tourists and I see one couple with a young baby get in the swing of local practice.

And then there are the bicycles. Kids double dinking is not uncommon, but 3 on a bicycle was pretty good.

Shelter from the sun and its heat is easily achieved by riding your motorbike or bicycle with and umbrella shading you!

And of course motorbikes are used to transport goods. While some motorbikes have side-carts other are just laden with baskets or bags or assorted stuff tied or balanced on them.

Colourful Tuk Tuk

At some of the roadside stalls, and in the handicraft market, many of the ladies have their babies or small children. School aged children are sometimes doing their homework during this time but I am rather amused at the behaviour of some of the toddlers and younger children who, modelling the actions of their mother, pick up some of the merchandise and show me. 

The previous evening I had only looked at half of the handicraft market and returned to look at the other half. I succumb to another length of silk for a skirt (bargained down to 160,000 kip) and an embroidered bag for 150,000. To my great amusement, when I told one lady I could not buy her goods as I had run out of money, she said I can pay in dollars. Again I am impressed by the ability of these ladies to switch between currencies, I am often asked in what currency I would like the price quoted. 

An e-bus.  A delightful public transport alternative

I climb the small hill to visit That Chomsi (Phu Si) and look at the many Buddha statues, and at Buddha's footprint as I descend the other side of the hill. My phone battery is running dangerously low, considering I am using my maps app to find my way around, so I head back to the guesthouse to get my battery pack and manage to get lost again on the way... It helps to remember the correct wat that is on the corner near the guest house!

I break the traveller food hygiene rules again by choosing, from a street vendor, the uncooked spring rolls - and very delicious there were too.

A toddler shows her mother's wares
on the roadside

I return earlier to my guest house and am pleased that I largely manage it without my maps app, my sense of direction is improving.

A chat with the night staff on reception results in him requesting that I help him learn English and in doing so, by listening to and correcting his reading and answering his questions about English usage, I learn much more about this young Hmong man. He is one of a family of 8 children, from a small northern village; his 2 older sisters (25 and 23) did not go to school and have 5 and 3 children respectively already. His ambition is to improve his English and become a tour guide. His parents are farmers and work very hard in the fields. He has a girlfriend (I am shown her photograph in full Hmong traditional dress) and he hopes to marry once he has a good job. My guess is that night reception does not pay that well!

I suspect his story is representative of many of the young people working in this town. 

1st March. 

I try to book to go to the Kueng Si waterfall today. As I suspected a phone conversation was too difficult and I needed to race out to ask the man on reception to talk to the tour operators on my behalf. All seemed well organised and I would be picked up by a minivan around 11:30am.

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So, I walk to the Wat Manorom on the corner and wander around but this is locked so all I can do is admire the exterior, which does have a great number of murals picturing the life and deeds of Buddha. I recognise the four disciples.

The minivan that was supposed to pick me up was late, and when it arrived, I hopped in.  Around 20 minutes later I had a phone call from the booking company to say that the minivan could not find me, it seems that I had got into the wrong van…

Kung Si waterfall is absolutely stunning. A series of cascades over limestone have resulted in wonderful formations of flowstone, and the water was a milky blue. Very beautiful - especially since most of the rivers I have seen are brown with silt.

Bamboo bridge 

Despite the fact that there were hundreds of people there, it was incredibly peaceful. One only needed to walk a few metres from the swimming places to enjoy the beauty of nature and feel a degree of solitude. There were informative signs educating visitors about the importance of forest and nature and about individual tree species in particular.

I walked to the top of the waterfall and would have liked to do the extra walk to the spring, but time prohibited it. The minivan driver had said a 3pm departure. I did not even really have time for a swim.

Riding Side Saddle

Bamboo Bridge

In retrospect, choosing the full day trip, which was advertised as including hiking and swimming, might have been a better choice. 

The park area also included a bear rescue centre, housing bears that had been confiscated from people keeping them for various nefarious pursuits.

I was pleased that I was wearing my sports shoes for the walk, there were many people in sandals or rubber thongs (flip flops) that did not provide much traction on some sections of the steep and dry path. 

Upon returning to town, I visited the Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre. I was very impressed by the work that is being done to maintain the local culture, traditions and crafts. 

Dara Market, which was on a corner of the intersection with my route home, gave the appearance of being a bit of a trashy market but had really nice silks.... But I arrived there late and they were closing. I did take a quick look at one particularly nice one, but it was expensive, $400 for a lovely silk skirt length with trim and sash.

One of the many beautiful temples (Wats or Vats)

Since lunch was a packet of potato chips (Laos can do potato chips most creatively, these were locally made from every colour potato conceivable, so not only white but also yellow, orange and purple. Eating these I can almost convince myself they are not that bad for me!) I decided I was particularly hungry and was tempted by an Indian restaurant offering paneer dishes. However the translation and the reality is that paneer is actually tofu..... I choose pakora instead.

Returning to my guest house, from the opposite direction, I passed a local cafe with a menu on display that offers some brief English interpretations ... I decide that I would like to try the frog soup, but having only recently eaten the pakora, I needed s break first. I came back a couple of hours later and ordered. Observing the preparation, which was done in the tiny kitchen area right at the front of the restaurant, it was reassuring to notice that the broth passed the cooks taste test, as she sipped from the ladle to check it. Food preparation hygiene rules....they are in the same book as the workplace health and safety rules....

Luang Prabang and the Mekong from Mount Phu Si

The frog soup was delicious. I had only eaten frogs legs once or twice before, and that was years ago in a French restaurant. It's a delicate flavoured meat and was complimented by the spicy broth and assortment of vegetables in which it was served. A clean plate was provided for the bones and presumably the slices of galangal and lengths of lemongrass which provide lovely flavour but are not particularly edible, and I chose to leave some of the skin ... I was a bit undecided about its texture and flavour. 

2nd March 

Sunset

The start to my morning was delayed as Mack, on reception, had disappeared when I went out to order my breakfast and there appeared to be no other staff member in the guest house. He eventually returned, but had disappeared again when I was ready to go out, which was a nuisance as I wanted my documents and money from the safe... I had deposited them there the previous day when I went to the waterfall. When he was eventually found (by one of the cleaning staff who ran up the street looking for him) he did not seem to do any complex unlocking but just reached below the reception counter somewhere for it....

I decided to visit the Tourist Information Centre to see if there was anything there that I might want to do. There was little that I did not already know

Only 3 on this bike

about but I did get a street map, which was a little bit useful.

A visit to the Royal Palace Museum was interesting. The building itself is beautiful and I realise I know little of the specifics of Laotian history. I ask about the fate of the royal family after the communist takeover in 1975 and am told that they were sent to a reeducation camp (although I initially thought he said eradication camp...) and no one quite knows what happened to them.... (along with a substantial number of others, I later found out) 

I found it Interesting that in the process of the revolution, the communists did not destroy the temples and palace buildings and contents. However, there had been plenty of others who had contributed to destruction in Laos' historic buildings.

Bear at the rescue centre

I visited Ock Pop Tok, a private centre which is dedicated to the preservation of weaving skills and one which is continuing to providing village women with a fair price for good work. I found it fascinating, watching the use of the template patterns on the looms to create intricate designs. I needed to wait for the free tour and enjoyed an iced latte overlooking the Mekong River while I waited. 

Their shop was full of fabulous textiles, but at a price of $US1600 for one I particularly admired, I was not tempted, although the shop did have the nicest pair of silver earrings I had seen for 132000 kip. Although they were made in Vientiane, not Luang Prabang, I decided to buy them.

Flowstone pools at Kung Si

My next destination was Ban Xang Thong a craft village which is accessed via bamboo bridge from the tip of the peninsula. Despite what was shown on the map and by my maps app, the bridge not there! Ok, no visit to Ban Xang Thong.

I visited Wat Xieng Thong, which was much decorated with black and gold painting and was rather lovely and very peaceful.

Next on my plan was a visit to Santi Chedi and on to Ban Phanom (another weaving village). Again the maps app on my phone failed me, there was a bridge under reconstruction on the route that it gave me and the detour looks much longer so I headed back to guest house via the back streets.

At Kung Si

I rather enjoy walking the back streets; it gives me glimpses into people's living areas and lives. For many houses and businesses the entire front of the building is open. Cooking is often done over an open fire or clay firepot filled with charcoal, out the front of the house or business. Ladies having their hair washed, their nails manicured, etc is all happening in full view and in the early evening families lounging, watching television, children playing is all semi open air. I sometimes feel I would like to photograph some of these scenes but feel it might seem a bit intrusive.

Kung Si

Since the local restaurant close to my hotel had provided such a nice dinner the previous evening, I opted to return and sample more from their menu, a choice that obviously pleased the cook. I chose beef lap, which was quite nice but the beef could have been a little more tender. I decided not to eat the second whole tiny chilli that was part of the seasoning.

I was tired, probably from the amount of walking in the heat, so I retired to the guest house.

3rd March.

It was quite a chilly start to the morning and I returned to my room to grab my merino jacket for while I was sitting and eating my breakfast. 

I'm not sure how long my soft boiled eggs were cooked for that morning but it was well past 3 minutes. The baguette and banana were good though and I promised myself I would eat lunch at a sensible time so as not to be thoroughly famished and exhausted and tempted by foods I would subsequently regret...

Hmong Du Women's outfit at the
Traditional Arts and Ethnology Centre

I had decided the previous evening I that would like to spend the morning doing a silk weaving class, and had tried to phone, but once again, my attempts at phone conversation are not overly successful. I try again in the morning and the conversion is similar. I had also sent an email, but there was no response. Subsequent attempts to phone were unsuccessful, I was getting a recorded message which I first thought was telling me that the number was unavailable, but eventually I worked out that it was telling me I had no credit left. Interesting, 3 brief phone calls had used all my call credit. 

The young man on reception had disappeared, and I am not sure that this particular young man's English could cope with my requests for him to call and book my class, so I decided to walk there and find out. It's about a 25 minute walk and yes, they were expecting me and the complementary tuk tuk could not find me (I was not sure where it was looking for me as neither phone calls nor emails had been returned).

Silk dyed with natural dyes

Anyway, after a short time and a complementary cup of forgettable herbal tea we were taken to start our class. We would weave a silk placemat. The scarf is a 3 day course involving all processes. 

We chose our pattern (one of 2 were on offer) and our colours. I chose the very traditional Naga design. The Naga is a protective snake. Then we needed to wind the skeins onto bobbins using a hand operated mechanical spinning device. My skein kept tangling and I needed much assistance. While I continued to wind for a while, my mentor started the weaving on the loom, which was already set up with the template strings that control the warp threads to make the pattern. There are 720 warp threads for our weaving today.

Weaving in progress at Ock Pop Tok

My bobbins keep catching on the fibres but my mentor winds some fresh bobbins and these work much better and I get the hang of using the 2 wooden foot rods to control the warp threads and keeping my edges more even and virtually fly through the rest of the 22cm of plain weaving before the pattern starts. The process of throw the shuttle with the bobbins, change the warp threads with the foot rods, thump the weft threads with the comb becomes quite hypnotic.

The starting of the pattern becomes more complex. Stripes are easy enough but then we start the real pattern. A template string is used to separate the pattern strings that control the warp. Once these are separated, the pattern string is taken from below the warp and relocated on the frame above the warp. The forward strings are then pulled up to lift the required warp threads and a wooden separator, which I'm sure has a correct name, is placed to separate the warp threads and twisted to raise those that need to be raised ready for the shuttle to be passed. There is a template string for each line of pattern.

A fairly complex loom set up

Complex, and I am not left to do the pattern completely on my own (I think this is a risk management against students messing up the template strings, as well as making sure we do make our lovely patterns correctly).

In due course my pattern is finished and I am back to the easy 22cm of plain on the other side. Once this is done, I hand over to my mentor for finishing off. The finishing off is not only about finishing my place mat but also about preparing the warp threads ready for the next person. I had wondered if all the setting up had to be repeated each time a new student comes to weave, but clearly not. From where I sat, the warp threads continued over my head and were contained in a bag behind me.

Feeling very proud of my efforts, I treated myself to a lunch of vegetable stuffed bamboo shoots in the cafe, overlooking the river.

Maps said that it is a 23-minute walk to Ban Phaenon, the weaving village I was going to visit the previous day, with a 2-minute detour to my guest house so I can deposit my morning's work. It lied. It took me more than an hour but it did take me past Santi Chedi, which I had tried to visit the previous day, so I diverted up the hill to this stupa; the sign said that it was open from 1:30pm until 4:30pm. It also lied.

I continued walking along the edge of the dusty, busy road, trusting that the drivers of most of the vehicles really would want to avoid me, and eventually I reached the outskirts of the village. Everything seemed pretty quiet and closed up, although there were looms set up in front of some houses. I walked a little further and was rewarded with a sign indicating a couple of craft centres and a shop displaying some traditional skirts.
I perused the goods in one shop but nothing demanded my immediate purchase, so I crossed to another. The lady instantly started to show me skirt lengths, picking up my interest in silk and showed me a wonderful grey and another lovely purple, suggesting that I could buy 2 and get a discount. I eventually dismissed the idea of the purple, as the border that had been put with it actually had a different shade of purple and mixed it with magenta, a colour combination I suspected I might later regret.

My handiwork from a morning's class

I indicated that I wanted to look at another shop before buying and she dropped the price to 200,000 kip each. Even if this is not the pure silk she says it is, it's less than $40 for a very beautiful skirt length.

I go across to the main craft centre and am instantly told that my previous purchase is cotton, not silk and here are some silk products (at much higher prices). I dally a little, admiring the colours and patterns before deciding that I do not need to spend $100 on a scarf and wandered on. I am half tempted by a pure silk ICAT scarf, yarn died pattern. A price is given and discounted then I am given the calculator to make my bid. I offer 100,000 kip, she asks me to raise it a little. I am not that committed to buying this scarf, although it is nice, and when I decline to raise my offer, she agrees to the 100,000 kip.

Hard at work at the loom

Maps said it was a 45-minute walk back to the main town, so I set off, taking my life into my hands with the "peak hour" traffic. I would have taken a tuk tuk, had there been one on offer in Ban Phaenon, but there were none until I was more than half way back, at which point I declined. I was glad when I finally got back to the waterfront and selected a restaurant with a view to enjoy some food and a glass of wine while I watched the sun set. I chose the Luang Prabang sausage, which is a slightly spicy cabana like sausage, served cold. Quite tasty, but I probably would not order it again.

I am again quite tired after the walking in the heat and decide on an early return to my guest house.

4th March

WHS Guidelines being followed?

I’d had some qualms about getting up and going to view the alms giving process. This is something that is traditionally done on a daily basis. The monks leave the temples and monasteries around dawn and walk along the streets in their orange robes. Local people bring offerings to the monks: their daily food. There are guidelines for visitors who want to participate or observe, but there are a lot of badly behaved tourists who flout these guidelines about respect for this ancient tradition, thus my uncertainty about going.

However, I did go, and found a place to stand on the other side of the street to observe some of the monks from the temples further away from the main centre of the town, and I am glad I did. Though there were a sufficient number of tourists who were trying to get up close and take photos with flash for me to feel a little embarrassed about being a tourist observing.

Monks collecting alms

I returned to the guest house for breakfast & get the reception staff to book a minivan for the airport. I had plenty of time to sort and pack, but I needed to pretend that the contents of my backpack (carry on luggage) is light.

I waited for the minivan … and waited … … and waited …. It went past in the wrong direction and disappeared out of sight. I had just negotiated a fare with a tuk tuk driver when the minivan reappeared, with apologies from the driver. I transfer to the minivan since that would be more comfortable; the tuk tuk driver seemed pretty philosophical about it.

When I checked in my suitcase was 22kg, slightly overweight, but no issues were raised.

The flight was quick and uneventful. The flight hostess’ uniform is stunningly beautiful: royal blue in the traditional Lao design.