luang prabang

After a long day crossing spectacular mountains, we arrived in Luang Prabang in the early evening. It is a nice little town, with everything within walking distance from our guesthouse. Our group dinner that night had excellent service, which was such a nice change! Some of us went to the Hive bar, down by the river. It was a really cool place, playing normal music, including The Streets! I drank Lao vodka, which is quite strong stuff! At one point the power went off, so we sat around in candlelight. As the 12 o'clock curfew approached, we made our way back home. In the morning half the group went to the Tad Sai waterfall, which was absolutely amazing. As we entered the gates, we passed an enclosure with four elephants in it. They reached out at us with their trunks which was really cool. The falls were actually made up of multi levelled terraces, all cascading down into a big pool area. It was so good! The water was so clear & refreshing. The rocks between the levels weren't slippery at all, so we could walk up & down the falls. The current was so powerful when I tried to stand under the waterfall. It was so relaxing just lazing about in the water, and there weren't too many people about either (except for a few dodgy tourists swimming in their Y-fronts!!). The elephants even enjoyed a swim in the pool, although I made sure I stayed upstream of where they were afterwards! After lunch, we hung about in the water a bit longer, then followed a steep walking track up to the top of the hill. Was a nice view from there, and also another section of the waterfall. The day was a close second to the tubing in Vang Vieng! That night I did a little bit of shopping at the markets, before having an early sleep. The next morning I got a massage from the Lao Red Cross, which was excellent! I wasn't sure that I could get any more relaxed, but somehow I did! In the afternoon, I filled in time by drinking beer. We ate dinner at avegetarian street stall, which was the best- 5000 kip (about 60 cents) to fill your plate up with noodles, vegies, rice, etc. They even heat up your selection in the wok so it is piping hot! We sat at big communal tables, and got chatting to some Aussies. Afterwards, I bought a few last things at the night markets, then met the others at the local bowling alley! Unfortunately, I am still hopeless at bowling in Laos! Only could manage one game. The locals in the lane next to us were having a great time- high fives all around for no apprent reason. The best thing about the bowling alley is that is stays open serving beer as late as you want, even after curfew! They had microwave butter popcorn which reminded me of home- was delicious. We caught a tuk tuk home, ready for an early morning.