One of my goals for this 6 months is to take time to slow down, breathe, and savour the experiences. So far, so good, and this week in Luang Prabang is an exceptional exercise in slow travel. We have a main activity each day, but the rest of our time is spent wandering, exploring, tasting, and absorbing. This leads us to some unexpected things: sipping homemade whiskey with a local (hoping we would not go blind) then trying to plan a graceful escape from the situation, practicing English with kids in the market, and the feeling of almost floating from the awesome vibrations of a temple full of chanting monks.
One day we spend a couple of hours at the Kuang Si waterfalls nearby. At the entrance to the park is a conservation area for Moon Bears, which look like a really hairy version of the black bears we have at home.
I had read reviews that the hike to the top of the waterfalls was underwhelming, but we decide to explore it anyway. It turns out to be my favorite part of the day. A really friendly guy in a very sketchy boat rows us about 15 minutes to the ‘source’ of the waterfalls. What looked like just a regular part of the stream is actually 45 meters deep – an underwater cave that is the reservoir for the roaring falls.
We spend two (exhausting but worthwhile) hours at Big Brother Mouse, which is a free school where kids can go to practice speaking English. Not once, not twice, but three hilarious times I am asked if Rox is my older sister. I seem to think it’s funnier than she does.
Propelled by our discomfort from seeing tourists so blatantly disrespecting the Buddhist traditions, we spend a couple of hours on a tour learning from a young man who spent 2 years as a novice (young monk). He answers our list of monk and temple related questions. We now have an understanding so we don’t unintentionally do something rude or disrespectful. Speaking of the monks, I’m pleased to report that there is no longer ecstatic drumming at 4am, just a little bit of softer drumming. We think it had to do with the full moon, though have not gotten a clear answer on this one.
Otherwise, we round out our days with a yoga class, biking in the countryside, a massage and herbal sauna, shopping the night market, and working our way through a long list of Laos foods we wanted to try. I have some food pics, but Rox has been much more consistent with this, so if you’re interested I suggest you check out her Laos food blog: www.delafrijoles.com.
It is in the same vein of slow travel that we had decided to take the ‘slow boat’ from Luang Prabang to Chiang Mai, Thailand. We are picked up by the slowest tuk tuk in Laos and delivered to the boat dock about 10kms away. There we board our long, narrow, wooden boat that will take us upstream on the mighty Mekong River to the Thai border. The seats in the boat are actually car seats. They are filled by about 80 people sleeping, daydreaming, and snacking. Check out the size of our food bag!
Over the 2 days (9-ish hours each day) we pass by remote villages, fishing nets, elephants bathing in the river, and many fires (it’s the time of year when farmers burn their crops). The nights we stop in local towns to lay our heads in rock hard $8 guesthouse beds.
On the 3rd morning we cross the border and take a long hot minibus to arrive in Chiang Mai. One day here to eat as much mango sticky rice as possible, then it will be the end of this Rock-Awn 3.0 adventure. A Rock-Off, if you will. We’re already thinking about a version 4.0!
