Chapter 16 - Luang Prabang, Laos

Luang Prabang is the first real sign of civilization in Laos when coming from Thailand. It has an interesting mix of cultural influence. Laos was a colony of France in the late 19th and early 20th centuries (with a short occupation by Japan during WWII). The French developed the modern buildings and infrastructure. So you've got Buddhist temples and Laos style combined with French buildings with balconies and shuttered windows. How charming. If Martha Stewart were to flee the country to avoid jail this is where she would go.The recent history of Laos hasn't been pretty. Here is a VERY short version. Starting in the 1950s the Communist forces were causing trouble for the Lao monarchy. When the "American War" started in the 1960s the fighting became more intense and North Vietnamese Communists were using Laos to move supplies and hide troops. The U.S. response was to bomb the bejeezus out of Laos, with bombs dropping (on average) every 8 minutes for several years. Even today it isn't safe to walk in certain areas because of unexploded bombs. Laos is officially the most bombed nation in the history of the world. When the Americans withdrew from the area the Communist government took total control in 1975. The Soviet Union kept Laos protected for the remainder of the Cold War. When the USSR collapsed in 1989 Laos opened up to the world, which is why I'm allowed to come here and spend my money.

Now I want to explain something to anyone who doesn't travel because you say: "I can't afford it." We live in one of the most expensive countries on earth and our currency is like gold over here. I thought Thailand was cheap because 25 dollars is equivalent to 2000 Bhat. Pretty cheap right?

In Laos it gets more ridiculous. 20 bucks is worth 220,000 Kip! It's a joke. I made the mistake of exchanging 15,000 bhat at the border (just to be safe) and they handed me a 4 inch stack of bills. I felt like a drug dealer carrying so much paper. Its so worthless that they won't even trade it back for anything when I leave. I'll just give the remainder to a temple before I leave and put it in my Karma account.

The olbigatory temple picture.

The town is built around a large hill with a temple on top. These steps lead to the top.

Nice views at the top where you can see the whole town, the surrounding mountains, and the Mekong slowly creeping along.

An interesting flower pot

Scenes from around town

Monk laundry

I took a day trip to a local waterfall. It was cool and you could climb a trail that led to the top.


The top of the hill in town was the best place to see the sunset. It was also the most entertaining part of Luang Prabang.

In Luang Prabang everybody goes to sleep early and nothing stays open past eleven. No nightlife = I take my pictures and move on to Vang Vieng. See you there.

-Thanks for reading-