Friendly Laos

Leaving Thailand, we debated making a stop in Laos. While we were worried that it might be more of the same, many folks told us it was a highlight of the region so we decided to risk it. Our turbo-prop landed in the remote town of Luang Prabang, Laos. It was definitly the most beautiful city we'd seen so far: French colonial buildings with an old world feel with lots of fine stained wood and very clean streets. The local people are always smiling, and often laughing - a genuinely happy place. And perhaps because tourism is so new in the area, folks were unusually friendly. For example, our host at the hotel said he wanted to treat us as family guests, and shortly later offered us his cell phone to use for the day.

There were no 7/11s in Luang Prabang - or any other familiar franchise. Just a simple city still somewhat untouched by western influences. That's not entirely true because there are a lot of tour operators in town that cater to tourists - mostly Australian, German, French, but almost no Americans. And it was bizarre to see western style marketing emerging: man on the street handing out fliers heralding 2 for 1 drinks at the nearby restaraunt/bar.

Laos is a Communist country, but the only obvious difference we could sense as brief visitors was the curfew - everyone had to be inside at midnight. I wanted to go outside and see if the streets were really empty, but didn't. It is a very poor country, and they said the average wage was about $1 per day. Folks in town drive motorbikes so they are earning more than that. But if an hour-long skilled massage at the "spa" costs $5, the staff can only be earning a couple of dollars an hour - maybe a few thousand per year.

We enjoyed kayaking down the famous Mekong river, a scenic trip that included another elephant ride along the river at the lunch stop. This time we felt a strange sensation emanating from our elephant - I wonder if elephants can purr? It was like he was vibrating us with an inaudibly deep tone. This was our first female elephant, and they are gentle enough that you can pet them, unlike the males which you do not get near (unless you are on top!).

Another day we visited the Kouang Si waterfall, a surreal multi-terraced waterfall cascading emerald green water inside the dense jungle environment (each adjective totally necessary). Then we biked 20 miles through the countryside back to town. On the way, we'd hear little kids excitedly shouting "Sabadie!" (hello) to us from their windows as we biked by. One boy walking on the street even put out his hand to slap me five as we rode by. Did I mention they were enthusiastically friendly?

For the complete best-of photos (eleven), click here (F11 for full screen). Next stop: Hanoi, Vietnam.