Luang Prabang 3/25/13 - 3/26/13

We made it to Luang Prabang by 6 in the morning which gave us plenty of time to go out and see a bit of the town.  Matt walked around for a couple hours in the morning while Kristin took a nap and then joined him after breakfast.  It was a quaint town at the junction of two rivers, the Mekong and Nam Khan.  Many of the buildings were what you would imagine from a small village somewhere in the French countryside.  The French actually controlled Laos from 1887- 1945.  The French provincial style houses had charm, and were fused with Asian characteristics, such as wood carvings along railings and other detailings.  Luang Prabang has been referred to as the most beautiful city in southeast Asia and it was easy to see why.

We also made it to the "most impressive" Wat in town, Xien Thong, which was currently under a bit of renovation, yet, we could still appreciate its beauty.

We also meandered to the junction of the two rivers, a key point as to why the city was placed here.  After a lot of walking, it was the perfect place to stop, have a beer, and soak in the surroundings.

At night, a section of the main road in town was shut down and hundreds of merchants set up canopies and goods for the night market.  There were wood carvings, Laos silk scarves, paintings, clothes, purses, jewelry, etc.  One of our favorite spots of the market was an alley way of small food vendors, in particular the meat from the Laos BBQ.  The meat on a stick and sausages ($1.00 for a huge chicken breast or sausage stick) were delicious and super cheap.  There was also a stall where you could get a plate for $1.00 and fill it up with everything you could imagine.  Cheapest buffet ever.  We also really enjoyed the wontons and spring rolls.

We felt like we had seen a lot of Luang Prabang on our first day, but we also knew there was a lot of talk about waterfalls just outside of town.  So the next day we loaded in a Song Theow (tuk-tuk truck) and headed out for the hour long ride to Kuang Si Falls.

Along the path to the falls, there was a Malaysian Black Bear sanctuary.  Many Asian bears are currently threatened by de-forestion and poaching for their body parts.  In particular, the bears are caught and their bile used for ancient Chinese traditional medicine practices.  This sanctuary helps provide a peaceful home for them.

Kuang Si Falls is made up of multiple levels of waterfalls and serene teal pools with the highest fall towering roughly 200 feet.  It was a beautiful setting to spend the afternoon.

After a couple days in Luang Prabang we headed south, back the way we came from ;-).