Luang Prabang - northern Laos

So far, Luang Prabang is not at all what I expected. Yes, it's green and lutious, yes the Mekong adds interest, and yes, there are plenty of temples and rolling hills. Our hotel is beautifully situated next to a large lilly pond that would have delighted Monet, and the food and beer are really good....

BUT this place feels odd, it seems transformed by tourism. We have seen more tourists in 48 hours here than in an entire month in India. There are some nice things to do, such as animal refuges, waterfalls, caves, and jungle walks, but it all seems over organized . For $25-$100 per head there are lots of offers, but we generally don't do that if a walk or a touk touk will take us there, and in any case maybe the nouveau riches hippies can afford $25, but for 6 of us that implies $150. "Maybe children are $10 less," but then again, maybe not. That would still make a visit to the elephant sanctuary cost $230 for half a day. The prices are surprising given that a good triple hotel room costs $45, and a meal with a beer is $3 or 4. Someone somewhere is making a large margin.

In any case, we came here to slow down a bit so that we will do, and we will be creative with the rest and get out and about.Read more