Thursday, October 28, 2010

My first day in the enchanting town of Luang Prabang, Laos...

This is my home for the next month.  Laos is the only landlocked country in southeast Asia.  In 1996, the town of Luang Prabang was declared a world heritage site by the UN. This is my first view of the Mekong River from my flight from Bangkok: 


Kenny is one of the coordinators and guides.  We grabbed a free boat  and floated around where the Nam Khong and Mekong rivers converge.


Monks at the riverside:



This is the most magical, surreal place I have even been to on the planet.  The town was occupied by the French in the 19th century so there is a seamless blend of Asian and French styles in the architecture and the cuisine.


These monks are creating a ceremonial boat for one of the counties largest holidays, a boat festival that happens on the full-moon at the end of the rainy season.  (More on that to follow!)


When I was in Thailand the temples felt more like museums but here I literally fell to my knees and prayed; buddhism is so potent and alive here...






The Mekong at sunset on my first day... sipping 50 cent fruit shakes...


1 comment:

  1. Wow....do you have pics of those little boats??

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