E hatisitsoe: 30.03.2017
Luang Prabang, a manageable town with countless temples and countless monks. It is practically orange dominated! They are simply everywhere. This place was once again relaxed, clean and inviting. Besides the many Buddhist temples, colonial buildings shape the cityscape of this former royal city of Laos. Everything is in good shape and well maintained, a jewel protected by UNESCO. Nestled between mountains and rivers, you will find a pleasant atmosphere here and many beautiful places to linger.
But as already mentioned, the sheer number of orange-robed monks and novices is simply the highlight and splash of color of the city. Every day at dawn, they pour out of their temples to ask the Buddhist population for alms, which ensures the monks' livelihood and brings them spiritual gain from the respectful giving. Unfortunately, this procedure has gotten out of hand in Luang Prabang, as many of the (especially Asian) tourists do not keep the necessary distance. A bit like in the zoo.
It was also exciting to learn that every Laotian man should actually be a monk for a certain period of his life. Anything from one day to a lifetime is possible. In any case, this also shapes the culture and the people appear nicer and more respectful.
Luang Prabang really has a lot to offer, both the city itself and the surrounding area. As already mentioned in a previous report, a lot of value is placed on traditional crafts here, especially silk weaving. Here you can still get really great originals and traditionally crafted products, which have become rather rare in the Asian region among all the imitation trade. We were able to visit a traditional silk weaving and follow the entire production process ... starting with the silkworm to the finished end product. A paradise for Lieschen 😉
The surrounding area lures with beautiful waterfalls (really!), which even impressed us - sounds a bit stupid now, but we have actually seen a lot of waterfalls...it is sold as THE "highlight" everywhere in the world....and you wouldn't believe WHAT is sold to you as a "waterfall". Therefore, we have limited the "waterfall visits" a bit. We have simply become a bit tired of waterfalls 😉