Luang Prabang

Since we are not allowed to check in to our hostel room until 1pm, we have plenty of time to explore the city. Luang Prabang is considered the most beautiful city in Southeast Asia and with its population of nearly 70,000, it is the fourth largest city in the country (cute, right?). I can't say whether it really is the most beautiful city, but it is definitely different. It is located at the confluence of two rivers, one of which is the Mekong, and has many small cafes, bars, and restaurants along the waterfront.

The city is generally very quiet and relaxed, and Max's personal highlight is the numerous street stalls that sell well-filled baguettes. Finally, bread that is not toast and doesn't taste sweet. You can still clearly feel the influence of the French colonial era here. The houses in the old town, which is part of the UNESCO World Heritage site, are built in colonial style and well maintained. We spend the morning strolling through the compact town, sitting in a café, and eating baguettes. They are not filled like in France, but still very good. They are always filled the same way: eggplant paste, chili paste, mayonnaise, white cabbage, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, and sliced bologna.

Feeling refreshed, or as refreshed as one can be on only 1-2 hours of sleep, we climb Phou Si Mountain. Like every mountain in Southeast Asia, there is of course a monastery on top and you have a beautiful view of the city, the surrounding mountains, and the two rivers, Mekong and Nam Khan.

After we can finally check in to our room, the long-awaited shower awaits! After that, you already feel a lot better, but don't even think about lying down and falling asleep. So we stroll through the city and visit the small markets. They sell more special things here than in Thailand... One market woman has a bundle of toads in front of her, tied together by one hind leg so they don't hop away (hello France). Another stall has a plastic basket full of bats. I don't even want to know what all the stuff is that's not intact anymore and therefore not so easy to identify.

Since we heard that the only Laotian beer, Beer Lao, is supposed to be very good, we are naturally excited to try it and sit down in a bar promptly at 4 o'clock. They even have draft beer! And while we're at it, we also order the national dish Laap, Laab, Larb, Lab, Lap. All these spellings are confusing. You can choose between chicken, pork, beef, and sometimes fish, and you get a spicy lukewarm salad of ground meat or fish with herbs, lime, chili, and rice. It tastes very interesting and much better than I expected. But that's just the appetizer. The night market starts at 5 o'clock every day and that's when we go all out. Conveniently, it is thematically organized in Luang Prabang. One street hosts stands with trinkets and the other very narrow and short street hosts food stalls. I can only say small, but nice. Barbecue, soup stands, fruit, smoothies, buffet stands, coconut pudding, and cake. Max starts with a bratwurst made from buffalo meat, which tastes really delicious and interesting because it contains lots of herbs, is a bit spicy, and not greasy at all. I try the Laotian Khao Soi (the Thai version with coconut milk is better). Later we have pineapple, mango, and a peanut butter pastry to round out the fun. We go to bed at 8 o'clock and sleep. Finally.

On the next day, we rent a scooter and drive to Kuang Si Waterfall, which is 30km away. The route is partly adventurous, as we took a wrong turn and had to drive several kilometers on a sandy road, but it is very beautiful. Along the river, through small villages, all surrounded by mountains. And the traffic in Laos is really manageable. When we pass a Laotian wedding celebration, we have to stop for a moment and watch the festivities. On a meadow, pavilions and gigantic stacking boxes are set up and the whole village is dressed up nicely and flows towards it.

The waterfall is very famous and is considered the main attraction. Of course, the Chinese tour groups have to be there as well. But the crowd disperses very well because the waterfall is huge and really beautiful. Unfortunately, it is cloudy today and the sun does not shine on the water, but it is still bright turquoise and looks very inviting. We spend many hours there, walking around, climbing all the way to the top, which is damn sweaty, and planning the further course of our journey. Originally, we only wanted to travel through northern Laos to quickly get to Vietnam. At the moment, however, it is too cool for me in the north and Central and Southern Laos have so much to offer that we want to see. So we change our plans and decide to take the bus south the next day. Back in the city, we visit the various bus stations and find out where the right bus will depart from tomorrow and buy a ticket for the following evening.

In the evening, we go back to the night market. This time, I have a whole grilled Mekong fish, Max has a chicken skewer, we have more pineapple and cake, and of course beer. Having eaten our fill, we go to Utopia, a chill backpacker bar by the river, with seating areas, fireplaces, and so on. We meet some people from the sleeping bus there and spend the evening until we are kicked out at 11:30pm, the state closing time. Too bad. Outside, the dedicated drug dealers are already waiting, with their bags full of plenty of smile that they want to sell to us.

The third day in Luang Prabang is rather uneventful. We chill at the hostel until checkout, book a hostel in Vientiane, the capital and our next destination, read some travel reports, sort pictures, etc.

After that, we visit the UXO Visitor Center. There, you can learn for free about the bombing of Laos during the Vietnam War. However, the focus is on the millions of unexploded ordnance leftover in the country and their clearance. On average, one person is seriously injured or killed each day by such unexploded ordnance. Children in particular, as they play with the small bombs. And this is 40 years after the US bombing. Laos is the most heavily bombed country in the world. The visit was really very interesting and now we also know why everything in Laos happens on the western side. The east has simply been completely bombed and is littered with unexploded ordnance. A program has existed for almost 20 years to educate about the bombs, track and defuse them. But it progresses very, very slowly.

At 5 o'clock, we quickly jump to the market to stock up on provisions for the 12-hour bus ride. Baguettes, pineapple, cake. Our main sources of food in this city xD Fully motivated, we set off on foot to the bus station which is 3km away. Fortunately, the sun has already set...