Day 14 - My Dream Pool Day

Following the exertions of the previous day, we planned on having a leisurely day around our hotel pool. We went down to breakfast at 9am and I am pleased to announce that the coffee was much much better. Jackie had spicy rice with a fried egg on top and I settled for baguette with cheese, tomatoes and marmalade.

During breakfast, the manager came over to make sure we were happy with everything. He confirmed that our stay had been extended and he pointed out the room we would be moving to for the last 3 days. The staff at the hotel are exceptionally polite.

After breakfast we rushed down to the pool to reserve two prime sun beds that I had mathematically calculated to receive the optimum amount of sun throughout the day.

Today was also laundry day. The hotel offered a laundry service, but they wanted a $1 dollar for each pair of shorts, t-shirt or shirt. Jackie was happy to pay it, but I took charge. I bagged up my shorts, 3 shirts, 5 t-shirts, about 12 of Jackie’s tops, numerous pants and socks. I walked our dirty washing a couple of doors up from our hotel to a little laundry service.

The weight of our washing was just under 3 kilograms and I was charged 75,000 Kip (£2.50). It will be ready for collection the following day, hopefully not ruined.

We spent the morning by the pool which we had to ourselves and we took a stroll through the hotel gardens down to the river.

At lunchtime, we adjourned to the hotel restaurant for a couple of beers and we ordered a portion of french fries. They weren’t particularly nice and we have come to the conclusion the hotel food is definitely not the best.

We returned to the pool for the remainder of the afternoon, then packed up around 4.30pm, vowing to ensure we bagsy the same sun beds early tomorrow morning.

At 7pm, we caught the shuttle bus into town. Jackie had expressed a desire for French cuisine that evening. We fought our way along Sisavangvong Road, the location of Luang Prabang’s night market. It was exceptionally busy, so we didn’t stop other than to take a few photos. We will return, hopefully on a quieter night, because there were a few mementos on sale that took our fancy.

At the end of the market, the road opened up into a series of beautifully lit restaurants, cafes and bars set in colonial buildings. It was absolutely stunning and again so atmospheric.

Annoyingly we didn’t stop because we were on a mission to call in at Tamarind Cooking School, which was highly rated and they did Lao taster set menus. A table was available, but we didn’t like the position of it, so we booked a table for Wednesday night.

We then went off in search of a couple of French restaurants in the vicinity. Both looked too formal and poncy, so we abandoned that idea. It was then that I suggested the alcohol-free Fathima Indian and Malaysian restaurant that we had walked out of two nights ago. Jackie agreed as long as we could have a few beers first.

We had a few beers at a riverside bar, served by a stroppy 10 year old girl, then we walked along to Fathima’s restaurant. I ordered a chicken tikka masala and Jackie ordered the ‘spicy’ rogan josh together with steamed rice, two parathas and two bottles of sparkling water.

It was delicious, although Jackie’s was probably too spicy even for her, but she would never admit it. After tasting it, she even asked for raita or yoghurt to accompany it. The whole meal cost £9.

We were too late to catch the last shuttle bus, so we walked back to the hotel which took us just 20 minutes.

Song of the Day - Atmosphere by Joy Division.Baca lagi