8/22/10 (nong khiaw)

Nong Khiaw - Luang Prabang

Nong Khiaw is a beautiful riverside village surrounded by steep limestone cliff faces. The scenery is dramatic and I woke at 5:30am to shoot a time lapse of the morning sunrise. The mountains on this day were in a sea of white cloud. Since I was up, I tried to make the most of it and worked for the next thirty minutes to capture some of the texture of this sleepy village as it came alive in the morning light. It was amusing to watch the local girls who must have been in their early 20's exercise along the bridge that rose high above the Nam Ou river and connected the adjacent banks. The exercise consisted of one lap from end to end along the concrete bridge showcasing a combination of slow jogging, skipping, and stretching. The only sounds were that of the rushing river below and the hum of faint boat engines. Since I was nearly across the bridge, I  decided to visit the ticket office. The prior day, we had put our names on a list to charter a boat to Luang Prabang and we needed seven additional passangers to meet the minimum and have it be affordable. I was happy to see two additional names on the list and added to our party of three, we were halfway there. The day looked promising.

I returned to the bungalow to shower and pack. It was nice to have hot water since many of our recent showers had been cold. Annie and I checked out and met with Rick, our new friend from San Diego and made the trek to the boat dock. We arrived early and enjoyed some local pancakes that reminded me more of a pumpkin bread slathered in honey. Within twenty minutes of our arrival, four French tourists trickled in to join our boat and that meant we had nine, this would be enough to negotiate a deal for a boat. We all purchased our tickets in a chaotic burst and were told the boat would leave at 11am. Just before 11am we all lugged our bags down a crumbling concrete staircase to a narrow dirt path that led to a wobbly wooden plank and onto our boat. The locals enjoyed watching the big falang balance forty pound muddy suitcase in each hand along this treacherous path. Fortunately, I didn't slide into the river but came very close. Just before departure, we were joined by two additional Swiss travelers making the final total eleven. 

The boat was identical from the prior day. There had been rumors of individual luxury seats but instead we settled for wooden planks for our six hour voyage. The scenery was again spectacular as the limestone mountains rose sharply along the winding river banks. The trip went fast as we enjoyed a conversation with Rick and two Swiss travelers all the while, crunching on some fresh sunflower seeds. I vastly enjoy the smooth ride and fresh air of the boat from our more common bus trips.

Twenty five kilometers north of Luang Prabang, we stopped to visit the Pak Ou Caves. Pak Ou has two caves located on a tiny island and they are famous for the many standing budda statues that decorate the interior of each cave. The upper cave was pitch black and we needed a torch to view the hundreds of small Buddhas showcased within. After our short caving experience, we quickly descended to Luang Prabang. We arrived at the small harbor and were greeted by the usual circling pack of tuk tuk drivers eager to provide transport for a large fee. We passed by the drivers and were on a mission to locate the guesthouse our friends Pete and Danielle from New Zealand recommended. On the map, it looked like a short distance from the harbor to our planned accommodations but in reality turned out to be a long walk under the humid late day sun. We searched for nearly a half hour and were unable to locate the guesthouse. In Luang Prabang, you can feel the heavy influence of the French as much of the colonial architecture remains intact and many of the street corners are lined with cafes selling fresh baguettes. There were no shortage of restaurants and guest houses in this quaint little town. When we finally gave up on our search for our planned guesthouse we were fortunately surrounded by several others to choose from and quickly decided on a spacious unit with air con, internet, and hot water. The trifecta for $15(US) per night. 

After unpacking we set out to explore LP and quickly oriented ourselves to the layout. Our guest stay was in a very convenient location and we wandered to the main strip of town that was lined with boutique gift shops, massage parlors, and a multitude of restaurants. The town has a comfortable feel and was packed with many travelers. We soon ran into several friends we had met along our travels in Laos and spent some time catching up before enjoying some local Laos food at a restaurant along the main drag. After dinner we returned to our guesthouse feeling excited to explore this beautiful city and happy to have a cool, comfortable bed to return to for a much needed night's rest.