Free Day

We opt to take our breakfast a little later today as we have the whole day to ourselves to do with as we like. We've heard great things about the relaxed pace of Luang Prabang and the beautiful French colonial architecture. There is a great deal of French influence in Laos due to the country's roots as a French colony beginning in 1893 and continuing off and on until 1949. We are eager to just walk, wander and soak in the French-Asian fusion of culture on full display in the town.



Taking the 10 am shuttle in to the centre, we start by walking along the Manthatoula Road, or, the road along the Mekong! It seems to still be waking up. French style cafes line the street overlooking the Mekong and folks lazily sip coffee and read the paper.







There are few scooters and fewer cars along the road — many bicycles though! We wander along until we get to Wat Xiang Thong. In the process of being restored, we are still able to admire the temple's tiered roof. This temple was built in 1560. Inside the Funerary Carriage Hall, we cool off from the rising humidity outside and check out the hefty latsalot (royal funeral carriage), wondering if it was rolled along or carried by the people of Laos.












Along the peninsula, we spy people crossing over the Nam Khan river via a rickety bamboo bridge. Can't miss that! Over we go and we end up spending an hour or so wandering through the textile village where families sell their traditional weavings alongside swisher looking "galleries". There are very high quality silks here — smooth mulberry silk and the coarser cassava silk being the main choices for the weavings. It's a treat to watch the art happening right before our eyes.
















By now it is downright sweltering and we are in need of a stop. We choose the Morning Glory Cafe for its strong fair trade coffee and tasty pastries (gluten filled we know — but so worth the splurge!). The topper is that the garden tables provide a prime view of the Wat Saen temple.

We make sure to pay a visit to Thithpeng Maniphone, a renowned master silversmith of Luang Prabang to watch his workshop in action and also visit a contemporary art gallery where we get to chat with the artist himself.










Our legs are starting to ache a bit, so we pay a visit to the Lao Red Cross for a massage hoping for another knock-out massage like our one in Thailand. This one leaves much to be desired and we vow to not get another massage until we are back in Thailand (we will see if that promise lasts!!!)

We round our day off with another visit to the always hectic, never boring night food market....













Tomorrow we are off to Vang Vieng via what we hear is a VERY rough route!