ramblings: May 2008

Journal Entry: April 10

On a beautiful restaurant veranda overlooking the Nam Kong again, I enjoyed a perfect breakfast of steaming sweet sticky rice with mango and petroleum-thick Lao coffee. The morning seemed even stiller than yesterday afternoon, with the only sounds coming from long boats puttering across the river, passing motos, and a few birds in the trees above.

After breakfast I set off to explore on foot, first climbing the steps of the sacred Phousi Mountain, in the already sweltering heat, to see the temples and check out the views of the city, which were unfortunately masked by the thick smoke/haze. Continuing my jaunt, I walked the streets rather aimlessly until a young university student on a moto, eager to practice his English, stopped and offered to show me around. We first went up to Phon Phao Temple, a beautiful structure on a hill with better views than those at Phousi.

Later, my new friend took me to a handicraft market where local women were weaving silk and making stationary and lanterns from mulberry paper, pressed flowers, and bamboo leaves.

After a refreshing sugarcane juice, I returned to the riverside and spent the rest of the afternoon eating, drinking coconut shakes, and planning my next few days. For dinner I tried a couple of local specialties -- Phak Nam (a delightful watercress salad) and Kaipen, a river "seaweed" similar to Japanese nori, but covered with sesame seeds, garlic, and sundried tomatoes -- perhaps the most perfect beer snack.

Journal Entry: April 9

In Luang Prabang I sit, overlooking the Mekong with lukewarm Beerlao, trying not to sweat and failing miserably. Sitting absolutely still, I can feel the tiny beads forming on my arms and sliding down my chest, back, and legs. Even on the eve of the Lao New Year, the town is sleepy, almost like time has been slowed to 1/4 speed. There are a few youth on the sidewalks, armed with plastic basins, throwing water on the passing motos. A few falang too, are taking part in the water fight, spraying passersby from their cafe chairs with massive water guns, but otherwise the people, both Lao and foreign, seem quite subdued--drugged by the heat and the calm of the river. The sky is smoky from the burning fields outside the town, as farmers prepare to plant. Dropping below the palm branches, the pink-orange sun is swallowed by the haze well before it sets behind the mountains on the far side of the river.