Luang Prabang

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We have had a really relaxing few days here after our visit to Cambodia. Luang Prabang is a UNESCO designated world heritage site and you can easily see why. It seems that time stands still in this town. As you walk around you see the locals enjoying a game of cards or petanque, old folks sitting on their front step watching the world go by and buddhist monks in their orange robes wandering from temple to temple. No need to rush around in Luang Prabang - nobody else does. The seasonal haze at this time of the year meant that the town was bathed in a rosy hue from the early afternoon, which added to the dream-like experience of staying here.

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The town has an impressive position on a promontory overlooking the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers and is surrounded by hills. The rivers are a popular spot for the locals to cool off and splash about. The streets are quiet, making it a pleasanty place to wander around and admire the temples that are dotted about the town.

The town that time forgot

There is quite a lot to see in town - we saw lots of wats and also went along to the Royal Palace Museum. This is where the Laos royal family lived until they were exiled in the 1970s and very few changes to the house have been made since their departure. The palace also houses the Prabang ('The Golden Buddha'), after which the town is named, along with lots of other historic artefacts from Laos. We also ventured out of town to see the Kuang Si waterfalls. There are a series of falls and cascades and we had a relaxing dip. The water was cold but it was really refreshing to escape the jungle heat.

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We also spent a day trekking to one of the nearby hill tribe villages, combined with a visit to the elephant project. After a rather bumpy ride to the lodge and a short boat trip along the river, we set off on the short trek to the village. The lack of shade and heat from agricultural burning made the walk hot going, but our guide strode off ahead, with just a solitary bead of sweat on his brow! Arriving at the village where a community of Khmu people live, we found it a strange experience to wander around looking at the villagers homes, but the friendly people didn't seem to mind and the kids were keen to try out their English.

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After lunch we met the elephants, who used to work in the logging industry but are now retired and looked after by the elephant project. From a high wooden platform we climbed aboard the chair for a slow lumber through the jungle and down to the river. At one point, more patches of burning undergrowth blocked the path and the elephant decided to make a short detour - the fact that there were bushes in the way didn't bother her, she just ploughed straight through them!  We felt a little precarious as we descended to the river bank, but managed to stay on board while the elephants went for a paddle and gave us a spray with their trunks.

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It was soon time to say goodbye to Luang Prabang, a really nice place to relax and to spend a few days watching the world go by.