I've changed my mind...

July 29, 2008 - PRLog -- This is paradise!! LAOS...!

We arrived in Luang Prabang after a wee hiccup at the airport due to our two day overstay. Actually the immigration officer was very apologetic which was strange as it was completely our fault. Anywho, after an $80 fine we carried on through ready to depart for Laos. We didn't really have any expectations for Laos which may explain why we were blown away by the spectacular scenery during our flight and pretty much everyday since we stepped foot off the plane. Rugged green mountains, wide flowing Mekong, rice paddie fields... Everything is very lush and green, apparently over 40% of Laos is forest.

We found a guesthouse (all very french looking villas with shutters on the windows and balconies) which was family run. There were only four bedrooms and the family lived downstairs with their two children and poodle type dog (there are loads of them here and Chris just about killed one yesterday by stranding on it - they are tiny).
We spent the evening looking around, pleasantly surprised by the many street stalls selling filled baguettes! Then we found a family run riverside restaurant, a bamboo floor with tables and chairs on the riverside, and had our first Lao dish. I can't remember the name now but it was basically a mushroom curry and it was very nice. The kitchen was across the road and down a little lane (I found out when I needed the loo). when I got there the whole family was in the kitchen working away, making our dinner and a pre-schooler showed me where the toilet was! Very sweet.

We went on our first trip down the Mekong the next day to visit a village they call the 'Whiskey village" and to the Pak Au caves which were found in the 8th century and became a place of Buddhism worship later on during the 16th century. They contain over 2500 buddha statues!
It was a beautiful boat ride and we were able to watch the locals fishing, washing and playing in the Mekong. As we walked up to the upper cave there were 20 or so children as young as two scattered up the steps selling young baby birds in cages, chips and cookies. One very little boy had learned to say in English "please buy a bird, we have no money" over and over again. It was heart-breaking but what was worse was that Chris and I had tried to get money (kip) that morning before we left but the ATMs don't open until 8.30am. We had enough to pay for the tour but had absolutely nothing left!

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Laos is the least populated of the Indochinese countries. The landscape is dominated by mountains, jungles and of course the Mekong River, which runs for 1800km along the western border of the country.