Nestled between the Mekong and Nam Kham rivers, Luang Prabang in northern Laos has survived turbulent times to become Laos’ must-see destination, with its unique combination of vernacular buildings and colonial-era architecture.
I have seen Luang Prabang described as ‘the jewel in Laos’ crown’, which I find slightly ironic as the head that wore the crown ended up in an unmarked grave along with the rest of the body, presumably having failed the re-education programme when the communists took over in 1975.
Given the nature of his job, I think King Sisavang Vatthana’s fate was probably sealed long before he even became involved with the Americans and Laos’ Secret War. Today the Communists are still in charge and the Royal Residence is a pleasantly low key, low level museum without a trace of bling. Built in 1904, only the Throne Room displays a certain flamboyance with rich red walls and a riot of colourful mirrored mosiac figures cavorting joyously in a tumult of everyday scenes.
This area, in the 14th century once a rich kingdom on the Silk Route, was squeezed by its richer neighbours in later times, so much so that the king of the day invited the French, already involved in Vietnam and Cambodia, to form a protectorate in 1893.
This roughly worked until they met their match in Vietnam in 1954, but in the meantime it had allowed Luang Prabang to develop as the royal and religious capital; the king was even able to get the French to contribute towards temple restoration. They in turn built their brick colonial villas which today gives Luang Prabang its wonderful combination of traditional Laotian arctitecture and 19th/20th century colonial design. The city was given UNESCO status in 1995.
In the grounds of the Royal Palace is the new Haw Pha Bang temple, built to house the golden buddha, the Phra Bang, which arrived in Laos in 1512 as a gift from the Khmer monarchy, and which gave the city its name, ‘Luang’ meaning ‘great’ or ‘royal’.
However, Luang Prabang enjoys other advantages which add to its attractiveness today: it is beautifully sited at the confluence of the Nam Kham and Mekong rivers,so that the larger part of the old city sits on a scenic jutting peninsula. You are never far from a river view and it is surrounded by lush green mountains and pretty countryside with caves and waterfalls to explore.
It is largely unspoilt and has a peaceful, relaxed feel to it. There is a lot of unique high end acomodation in characterful old houses and an abundance of good restaurants and stylish cafes. It is safe and easy to walk around the major sites: in short, it is Asia for beginners and a gentle introduction to Laos, but none the worse for that.
Which wat?
Today, Luang Prabang is probably best known for its wats, or temples, of which there are 34. The most beautiful has to be Wat Xieng Thong, situated right at the end of the peninsula and from where the daily tak bat or alms giving ceremony sets out. In Asia, it is very easy to become ‘templed out’, but if you choose to visit only one, then make it this one.
The main temple or ‘sim’ has a lovely steep 2 tiered roof, the portico making a third layer. Inside it is richly decorated with gold on black stencils. It dates back to 1560 and was once not only a cermonial entrance to town, but also the place for royal coronations. Legend has it that it was established near a notable flame of the forest tree by 2 hermits, and you can see the tree depicted today on the rear of the temple.
There are other shrines and living quarters within the compound as well as more of that lovely mirrored mosiac work. Entrance is 20,000 kip and respectful dress is required – it is important to remember that a wat is a working religious institution. The young ‘novices’ that one sees are probably from poor homes and their enrolement allows them an opportunity to enjoy an education which they might not otherwise have. They are probably far from home and living an extremely simple life in the compounds.
It is for this reason that I am very ambivalent about the daily tak bat alms giving ceremony at dawn and the participation of tourists with little concept of the religion. Yes, by all means go and watch the procession, but keep a respectful distance and refrain from running along side with flash cameras. Ask yourself what are your motives for joining the ceremony? If you want to have more personal contact with the monks, it is quite easy to strike up a conversation as you visit the temples: many are only too happy to practice their English and it is not hard to find some common ground, even if sadly it can sometimes be football!
Another wat of note is Wat Mai which has a distinctive 5 tier roof and dates back to the late 18th century. It is in the original condition with lovely old columns and ornate gilding. There are many others and much of the pleasure of this town lies in gentle, serendipitous discoveries that you make yourself, flowery gardens that invite you in, the orange whisper of a robe that you follow or the beckoning thud of the temple drums.
Out and About
Delightful though the town is, it is worth allowing a couple of extra days to see some of the surrounding attractions. The Pak Ou caves are a good place to start, as the best way of getting there involves a lovely 20 km boat ride on the wide muddy waters of the Mekong, with dramatic limestone mountains as you near the caves where the Nam Ou river, flowing down from Nong Khiaw, meets the Mekong.
The boats leave every day near the end of the peninsula and it is a simple matter to buy a return ticket which is only about 65,000 kip. En route there is a short half hour stop at Ban Xang Hai, commonly known as ‘the whiskey village’. I would not recommend these as they often contain questionable parts of the local wildlife, but as you wander further there are numerous little wooden stalls selling fabrics and scarves in pretty natural colours. I bought a couple of lovely ones for only US$1 each – yes, dollars happily accepted too, so worth keeping some smaller notes handy.
There is also quite an attractive temple, and a public loo which I suspect, at 2000 kip a go, makes more money than most of the local enterprises!
The caves are situated in a vertical cliff face and the boats moor below them. A series of steps lead to the lower one which is probably the more interesting of the two: over the centuries it has accumulated an impressive array of buddha images of all shapes and sizes. They are quite photogenic and there is a lovely framed view out over the river through an opening in the rock.
A further steep climb leads to the 2nd cave, the larger of the two, and yet more buddhas – remember to bring a torch.
Kuang Si waterfalls
Another day we hired a moped: they are widely available for about 100,000 kip for 24 hours and a great way of getting around. We bumbled out some 32 km to visit the Kuang Si waterfalls, passing through some pleasant rice farming countryside en route. It is also possible to go in a shared tuk tuk, or as part of an organised tour. The entry fee is 20,000 kip and you could easily spend the day there.
After the entrance gate, the first thing you actually come across is the Asistic Black Bear Rescue Centre. These are often called ‘moon ‘ bears after the half-moon shape on their chests and are quite small chunky bears. These ones have been rescued from poachers and traffickers and have thus been spared awful fates such as being used for bile extraction. There are wooden walkways so you can get really good views of them playing in tyres, splashing in a pool or more often than not, just sleeping! The cubs are especially cute, but it was sad to see a 3-legged bear which had been caught in a trap. A larger up-country complex is now planned. Free the Bears do not receive any of your entrance money so a t-shirt is a good souvenir in a good cause. (www.freethebears.org.au and www.bearlao.com)
A short stroll led on to the waterfalls which were much more spectacular than I had expected and well worth the trip. The water falls over limestone platforms into beautifully turquoise pools. The lower ones are wide and perfect for splashing about underneath; there are changing rooms and loos nearby. The central area is quite beautiful with high tiers of churning silvery water – there is even a bridge for the essential selfie!
A steep ascent leads to more pools at the top and a verdant view: the falls have a jungle setting. It is possible to follow the river back for other quieter swimming holes and it is a pretty path through the trees. You can return down the other side of the falls on precarious paths: proper shoes are advised,
The package tour crowd had lunch laid out on tablecloths near the bridge, but the independant traveller will have to forage for himself in the array of perfectly good food and juice stalls near the entrance.
Craft Villages
Our third excursion involved a little more effort: we hired bicyles this time and headed out on dirt country roads to visit the paper making village of Ban Xieng Lek and the weaving village of Ban Xang Khong. It was pleasant if rather bumpy cycling. We passed several wats on the way and stopped to explore them, though we drew the line at a local funeral – sightseeing has to have some limits!
We found one shop that had the entire life cycle of a silk worm on display behind it and girls toiling away on old wooden looms. The papermaking looked the easier option and I bought some lovely notebooks very cheaply, the paper having pretty pressed flowers within it. You can pick all this up at the night market, but it was a nice way to spend a day, and luckily there are plenty of cold drink stands en route in the little villages.
Shopping & Eating
On a lighter note, we really enjoyed the nightly night market which uniquely seems to have nice craft things that you would want to buy and not the usual tourist rip offs. There are lovely cotton scarves, colourful cushion covers and bedspreads, charming purses with enbroidered animals and fruit, jolly keyrings and brilliantly clever cut-out pop-up cards. The vendors are low key and don’t hassle you and prices are realistic, though there is always room for a little haggling. The only thing we could not like was the local coffee!
The Indigo House Hotel is centrally situated at the end of the night market and is a good mid range option. It has a good pavement cafe which is a great place to sit and watch the street life. Also less obviously, it has a nice rooftop terrace which gives you a bird’s eye view over the nightmarket.
Phousi Hill is a popular if crowded sunset stop and also offers nice night market views on your way back to town. Even better is to drop over the hill in the opposite direction and make your way down charming little back streets to Utopia. I suspect this is largely a backpacker hangout, but what a great spot, overlooking the Nam Khan river and with lots of squishy cushions for chilling out. The cocktails and food aren’t bad either and it is a great way to pass a lazy afternoon – take a book – or evening when candles give it an atmospheric light.
We actually liked the busy little junction just up from Utopia: the L’Etranger cafe/bookshop is here and has a little outdoor seating area. In the evenings they show movies upstairs: it seemed an appropriate place to revisit The Killing Fields again while sipping on banana lassis. Next door, Deliahs did an excellent green curry and then it was only a 10 minute walk back to the main street.
More westernised options, and priced accordingly, but with nice food and locations were the Le Banneton cafe(good at 16.00 hours for the temple drumming opposite) and the Joma cafe on the Nam Khan side of the peninsula which did great breakfast burritos.
For a light bite, try the baguette stands opposite the Indigo House Hotel: every possible combination and a superb selection of freshly squeezed juices. There is also ‘Buffet Street’ by the night market, where for only 10-15,000 kip, you load your plate with a selection of goodies and it is then cooked for you – hardly haute cuisine but certainly a cheap feed in quite an atmospheric spot!
We stayed in the Lankham Riverside Hotel which had a double room with air conditioning and en suite for around the £50 mark. It is hardly worth paying extra for a balcony on the river side as that is actually over the road and you hardly see it – however, their breakfast terrace does overlook the river and is a great place to start the day. All along this stretch, you will find a good assortment of restaurants with lovely views over the Mekong.
With frequent and inexpensive flight access from around Asia, Luang Prabang is an simple city to reach. Only 339 km north of Vientiene and with the scenic mecca of Vang Vieng in between, it is easy to combine a visit to these as well. I would say that all too often Laos is the oft-overlooked gem of Asia, so maybe Luang Prabang is indeed its jewel.
