Luang Prabang

I flew into Luang Prabang, Laos with my chin dropped. From the air, I could see green green green forest, the muddy Mekong, and the golden roof of Phousi, the temple on a hill. Beautiful little town.


The town itself is small but touristy, with specialty shops and restaurants catering to the western crowd. I didn't mind it too much. Honestly, traveling on my own, it's comforting to be able to get to something familiar. Laos used to be a monarchy but then became a democratic republic, and the royal palace has turned into a museum. I visited the King's receiving room , imagining what it would be like to be a guest there, walking barefoot on the polished plank floors, sitting on the heavily embroidered cushions, eating rambutan and bananas. The most recent king had a thing for glass mosaic, and had the walls of his throne room completely done over in colorful glass mosaic murals of local folk stories. It was very very sparkly. :)

I toured the town on foot, visiting a few temples . Temples, though, I don't know...it's not like "you've seen one, you've seen them all" but honestly I'm a little templed out. I lived almost next door to one for a year, and you see them about every three blocks, so unless you study Buddhism.... anyway, they are gorgeous and make for a very peaceful stop in the middle of a scorching hot day.


I had some yummy Lao stew for dinner. They eat sticky rice here with every meal. You take a little ball of it and squish it in your hand, then dunk it in broth or grab a piece of veggie and down the hatch.

I took a one day weaving course. I'd always wondered about the whole process, so it was an interesting lesson. They collect the silk worms and let them build their cocoon. When the larva has changed and is close to flying away, they boil the cocoon and pull at the silk , twisting it into silk yarn. It kills the larva, which they then fry up and eat. Okay, that sounds kind of vicious, but these are Buddhists! My guide told me that the women who pull the silk sing a song to the larva as they do so, wishing it luck in a new life.

By the end of the day, I had pounded indigo and turmeric to make my own dye... dyed some silk yarn... and made my own silk masterpiece. Yes that's right, I climbed up onto the loom... ...and wove a placemat. I'm very proud of it!!

The next day I bought a ticket for a 2-day boat trip up the Mekong. I would land in Houayxai to be transported to the Gibbon Experience. Before leaving I had to exchange some money ... I was a millionaire!!!! Okay, in Laos kip, but still exciting!