Luang Prabang - April 11th-16th

After an authentic Lao bus ride we arrived in Luang Prabang just before new years. Our small truck the kind you might see delivering wood had around 25 people in it with 5 in the cabin, luckily it was only a 3 hour drive.

We met up with Ben and Annalise who we had been hanging out with since Mung Ngoi Nuea and went to the Kuang Si Falls but Hannah had to stay behind due to her body not agreeing with the frog she ate the night before. The falls were the first attraction where there were more locals than tourists. The month of April is the hottest time of the year in Laos with temperatures falling between 35-40 degrees. Countless numbers of Lao families gathered for not picnics but feasts in the shade, we are talking about a normal picnic with a few salads and sandwiches, but whole grilled fish and dish after dish laid out all accompanied but what else but sticky rice and crates of beer Lao.

After some tree swings and hurling ourselves into the water our tuk tuk driver took us to the local market and became our translator as we bargained for water pistols knowing that the next few days Luang Prabang would become a giant water fight. We had already been drenched in our tuk tuk ride that day.

The next day Hannah felt mostly better and we went to the New Year’s parade where monks were washed by the public and dozens of young “Miss Laos” girls took to the streets. After the parade armed with our water pistols we headed into town, before we got to the end of our street we were drenched kids with giant buckets had seen the armed “falangs” from a distance and armed themselves screaming “saibadee pii mai” (Happy Laos new year) we took up a spot with some locals that had a water supply and joined in on the madness.

One of the main streets became a make shift waterfight parade with trucks, utes, and all sorts of cars that looked like they shouldn’t work drove down the streets with large groups of people drinking beer and dancing to the Lao pop music. Every truck had its own barrels so they could dump water on people as the slowly drove by, as the people on the street launched counter attacks or ran up to the driver and poured beer lao into their mouths before dancing away. This madness continued for a few days and it was a daily ritual to ensure that all valuables were sealed in waterproof bags.

Luang Prabang also offered a great range of food which was nice after being in small towns where the menus were identical. We found a bakery that did great croissants in fact maybe the best ones we’ve had. Along with Belgium beer bars with double fired frites, and an Auzzy bar that did an average job at a meat pie.

The charm of Luang prabang with its nightly craft market and food stalls are definitely worth a few days there isn’t a huge amount to do but with endless temples and great food it’s easy to sit back and relax.