Laos - Luang Prabang & Champasak🇱🇦

After a bumpy 6 hours on the bus we arrived in Luang Prabang. The views during the bus ride were definitely worth shaking every fiber of our being! We crossed one or two passes and saw a few villages in the interior. Luang Prabang is also our northernmost destination of the Loas journey. But when we arrived in the city we first had to make the next unexpected trip to the hotel. It's probably so new that no one in this city knows about it yet. Our TukTuk driver first had to ask all his friends to know where he had to go. But a good hour later we finally made it. And yes the hotel is really completely new! It feels like we are one of the first real guests. You can't even pay by card because the bank hasn't gone through all the bureaucracy yet. But the hotel itself is really beautiful and definitely invites you to take a stroll. In the evening we went straight into town to have something to eat and watch a breathtaking sunset on the Mekong. We also strolled through the night market briefly, but we were all too tired to do more. We all have a very positive first impression of the city and are looking forward to seeing more of it in the next few days. The next day started with a hearty breakfast and then chilled by the pool until the afternoon. When it wasn't quite so hot anymore, we grabbed the bikes and rode into town. We looked at a few temples and the side streets. We sat down in a nice café and enjoyed the really good Laotian coffee and, of course, Mom had a margarita. Then it was time to go to the Mekong again to watch the sunset. The next day started early to watch the sunrise at the oldest temple in Luang Prabang. On the way there we could also see the monks' morning alpine procession. The mood at sunrise in the temple and the city in general was very special. Afterwards we had breakfast again and spent the rest of the day at the pool. Since we like it here so much, we decided to stay 2 days longer, so we definitely didn't have any stress. The penultimate day was spent on a ship on the Mekong. We looked at a few small villages along the Mekong with a pottery factory, rice wine distillery and a cave right on the Mekong. Since we had the boat and therefore the guide to ourselves, we really learned a lot about the country and people of Laos. Of course, the day ended with a sunset on the Mekong. The last day was spent relaxing again in a tea house around the corner from the hotel and mom and I took a little stroll through the small local shops. Well, I have to say, I really liked Luang Prabang with all the nice little restaurants and shops, and I was also impressed by the night market here. We then continued from the north all the way to the south. We landed in Pakse but our destination was the island of Dong Deng, which is another hour away from the airport. To get to the island we were picked up in a boat that was obviously self-built and taken to the hotel across the Mekong. Me and mom ended the evening with an espresso martini by the pool until late into the night. On the first day on the island we first took a short walk to see the small villages in the area and marveled at the variety of local fruits. In the afternoon we made ourselves comfortable by the pool again. The next day we went to Vat Phou, an ancient Khmer temple. We then had to take the boat back to the mainland and take the TukTuk through the town of Champasak. The temples are like the Angkor Wat in Cambodia, built but unfortunately no longer as well preserved. But it was still very interesting. Afterwards we looked around the city a bit and found a nice restaurant for lunch. Well, to be honest, there weren't that many options. Return by boat and go to the pool. In order to get to know our island of Don Deng a little better, we got bicycles again the next day and rode them around the island. But on the island there are only sandy roads and you are constantly driving in the blazing sun, which actually became quite tiring. But it's also exciting to see how the locals live on an island in the Mekong. We spent our last day on the 4000 islands in the very south of Laos on the border with Cambodia. We first went down by bus, then by boat to the island of Don Khone. There we had a TukTuk to drive around the island. The island is not big but has a lot to offer. From an old railway line to lots of fruit tree plantations and a waterfall. We had lunch directly on the Mekong at a bridge that connects Don Khone and Don Det, the two most famous islands. Then we went back straight away. On the way back we looked at one of the largest waterfalls in Laos - Khon Phapheng. And so our time in the south of Laos was over again. I then took the plane back to the capital and had one last luxury stay at the hotel. At the end we enjoyed the sunset again over the roofs of Vientiane. On the last day we walked around the city a bit and mom and dad bought the last souvenirs before they had to go to the airport in the evening. I was able to go until the security check and then it was “goodbye” again. 2 1/2 weeks in Laos went by so quickly but we saw so much and really enjoyed our time together. For me it's now time to wait for my Vietnam visa in Vientiane and then get on the bus to Hanoi. 💟