As much as I want to write about the rest of our time in Chiang Mai, I think I have to give some credit to my current location first.....Luang Prabang. A lot of backpackers take the slow boat from Chiang Mai to Laos but it takes two days, so in the interest of time, Katy and I took an hour flight over here today.....and in about five hours, I am already completely in love with this city.
This city was one of the ones I was looking forward to the most after my rudimentary research. Something about the way that the lovely writers at Lonely Planet painted the picture of this town had me sold from the beginning. It also got raving reviews from my fellow travelers on my favorite travel forums....and here we are and maybe it is because I had built it up so high or maybe it is because the city really is that amazing.....but I cannot wait for the next few days.
Luang Prabang is a small, safe, town full of genuinely happy people. Starting with the man who dealt with our visas at immigration all the way up to and including the man at our hostel for tomorrow night who offered us his home cooked meal, I have never seen people who appear to be so friendly. According to my sources, Laos just reopened to tourism in the late 1980s and the country is now in a rapid state of economic rise as it attempts to get off the list of one of the world's poorest nations. Also, the city of Luang Prabang is on the UNESCO World Heritage Site List. As expected from my previous reading, everyone moves at a slower pace here....Lao time if you will....and it is very refreshing.
The town has a curfew of midnight; therefore all bars and businesses close by 1130pm every night so that shop owners and customers can make it home by curfew. The curfew is strict, and it is expected to be respected by all travelers as well. One of the main reasons for curfew is that the majority of the town is awake before 6am to give alms to the monks every morning....something I cannot wait to witness in the next few days. Here is a brief article about it if you are interested: http://www.luang-prabang-hotels.com/travel-info/the-alms-giving-ceremony-in-luang-prabang-guidelines
The Mekong River runs through the town and after exploring a bit tonight, we can tell there are tons of places to grab great authentic food and sit along the river. There is also a nightly Hmong market from 530-9, and as much as I do not enjoy shopping, the market seemed great. What else is on the agenda? We heard that there are some beautiful waterfalls nearby, lots of treks to do if we choose....and the city is so small that you can rent a bike for the day and easily cover the whole thing (I think you actually can on foot as well, but bikes will be more fun).
We are headed to bed early this evening as we had a few too many eventful nights in Chiang Mai and need the sleep....and somehow both of us crazy planners overlooked the fact that we need a visa for Vietnam which cannot be obtained at a land border crossing....so we need to go drop off our passports in the morning as it takes a few business days for our visas to be processed.
I have nowhere I need to be and nothing I have to do until March 13, when we meet our friend Megan in Vietnam.....and the feeling is great :) We are anticipating four or so days here, but depending on who we meet and how we spend our time, we may stay longer.....sky's the limit. I will hopefully post some pictures soon as we delve into this amazing city.....and I'll catch everyone up on Chiang Mai as well :)
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