Why on earth have I come to Laos?

After spending only 24 hours in Bangkok and Thailand, many were telling me how silly I was to spend so little time there, and so much time in Laos (planning to spend 2-3 weeks here).



The aerial views from the 20-person propeller plane (courtesy of Laos Airlines) as we flew over Laos’ lush tropical forest and into Luang Prabang were breathtaking.

I took a dusty tuk-tuk (3-wheeled over-sized rickshaw) into town. I was so excited. Although the border with China was less than 200 miles away, this was a different world altogether.

Luang Prabang, where the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers meet, is the former royal capital of Lane Xang (Laos’ previous name for simplicity).



I already liked the place after just a few hours walking around. The scenery was beautiful with the main town sitting on a meander on the Mekong River. Even though there were dozens of food and travel shops aimed at both locals and tourists on the main drag, it was still very peaceful. The loudest by far were the chickens that roam around aimlessly everywhere. Most people travel around the dusty roads by walk, cycle or motorbike. The local people were very friendly and street sellers not ‘in your face' trying to make a sale. Monks were everywhere, not surprising given the dozens of ‘wats’ (Buddhist monasteries) dotted around town. It was roasting hot. It was super cheap: large dinner with drinks for around GBP2. And thanks to the influence of the French, the bread was great too.

I randomly met up with Dush, a colleague of mine from UBS, and spent most of the next few days chilling with him.



There are an abundance of ‘must-see’ sights dotted in and around town. The Royal Palace, built by the French, now the National Museum, was very good. The top of Mount Phousi, which overlooks the main town, was fantastic at sunset.



I must have visited a handful of wats, and each of them were different, but spectacular. Most were built out of wood, sometimes sandalwood, and decorated with lots of gold. My favourites are the Wat Xieng Thong, supposedly the finest example of a Lao monastery with a rare reclining Buddha and huge funeral chariot, Wat Sene, which houses a very large Buddha statue in one of its many chapels, and Wat Visoun, which has the town’s largest Buddha statue as well as hundreds of smaller ones.

The night market, which blocks the main road outside the Royal Palace, was also very cool – you could find lots of everything, mostly made of silk.



Just outside town, a very scenic 1-2hr boat ride away, are the Pak Ou caves. It’s a very religious spot with many Buddha statues inside the two caves.

I also went elephant riding for half a day. It was pouring down with rain which made it more fun as we were treading through mud as well as a river!



However, my favourite highlight has to be the Kwang Si falls. They’re not the largets falls by any means, but the sight was amazing, especially due to its three tiers. We also took a treacherous walk up to the top of the falls. It was very steep and slippery, but well worth it as you could literally stand on some rocks in the water at the very top of the falls and look down. We rewarded ourselves with a swim at the bottom. As an added bonus, there’s a bear and tiger sanctuary there, although we couldn’t find the tiger one.



The rest of my time in LP was spent relaxing and eating. I had the local delicacy, steam Mekong fish in banana leaf, as well as a Lao hotpot, some Thai food and many fresh fruit shakes.

It’s also a good place to have a massage, although I suggest the Khmu one (lighter) than the traditional Lao one (painful)!

There was very little to do at night, so Dush and I watched football in a bar until 2am while chatting to whoever walked through the door. Unfortunately, I returned to my guesthouse to find I was locked out. I had to climb over the barb-wired fence and wake up the guard! The next night, I watched the incredible comeback by Liverpool against Man City – and was singing ‘Fernando Torres, Liverpool Number 9’ all the way home.