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Other articles by Anne Merritt:
Crocodile
Rockin' in Samut Prakarn - Lopburi
Monkey Festival - Saraburi
Sunflower Fields - Koh
Tao: Island Travel at a Turtle's Pace -
Doi
Suthep: Exploring Chiang Mai's Spiritual Side
- Full
Moon Party - The
Life of Pai – Northern Thailand's Sweetest Find
- Sister's
are Doing it for Themselves - Coming
Together on Koh Samet - So
you want to teach in Thailand? - Halong
Bay: Vietnam's Jewel on the Water - Zen
and the Art of Marketplace Haggling - Laos
Lifts Us Up Where We Belong - Kuala
Lumpur: Off the Backpacker Route and Into the
Big City
- Water
Water Everywhere - the Songkran Festival Explained
-
Da Lat's Easy Riders - Swimming
in Sihanoukville - Thailand
Books for Travellers; a KSR Guide to the Backpackers'
Favourites - Luang
Prabang - Volunteering
with Elephants - Seeing
Kanchanaburi through the Eye of the Tiger
-
Hoi An - Strolling Through Vietnam's Prettiest
Colonial Town - Slowly
down the Mekong - Traveling
as a Couple; Some Tips in Thailand - The
Vegetarian's Guide to Thai Food
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| Tourists arriving off a 2-day slowboat
bustle around the town, eager to stretch
their stiff legs. Trekking enthusiasts use
the town as a base point for their ventures
north into the dense jungles and tribal
villages. Buddhists and curious scholars
flock to Phou Si, a sacred hilltop site
where Buddha's footprint is still pressed
into the side of the mountain. Luang Prabang
may be a mere stopover point on your trip
through Laos, but this town merits a few
days for exploring. Veteran travellers praise
it as a place they'd visit again and again,
UNESCO named it a heritage site, and KhaoSanRoad.com
applauds it as one of Southeast Asia's most
charming sites. |
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| The remnants of French colonization are
still visible on Luang Prabang's main streets,
where colonial architecture coexists with
the gilded or teak points of traditional
Laotian buildings. Old churches stand beside
older wats, and the result is a picturesque
mix of architectural styles. While the city
is in rapid development thanks to tourist
exposure and foreign business, it still
maintains a picturesque, European feeling.
On a clear day, the city's winding streets
and pretty rivers make it a photographer's
dream. |
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| For accommodation, Luang
Prabang has a competitive guesthouse market,
and touts will greet you no matter where
your arrival point may be. The Merry Guesthouses
(1 and 2), on the northern end of the downtown,
are fantastically clean, spacious and quiet,
with kind and helpful staff. Those looking
for a view of the Mekong should try Vong
Champa Guesthouse, which is clean, cosy,
and impressively cheap. |
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| By day, the Phou Si mountain
offers beautiful views of the surrounding
landscape, as well as ornate Buddha statues,
a Buddha footprint, and a solemn cave shrine.
Near the main street, the former royal palace
of Haw Kham is the stuff of postcards; opulent
shrines, murals and furnishings, showing
many different traditional styles of Laotian
art and decoration. |
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| For a bit of downtime, L'Etranger is a
two-storey gem with a used bookshop/book
exchange on the bottom floor and a comfortable
teahouse on the top, which plays smart artsy
films on weeknights at 7pm. Located on the
north side of Phou Si mountain, the great
selection of books, teas and snacks make
it well worth a visit. |
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| Those looking to get out of the city should
book a taxi or rent bikes to get to Kuang
Si Falls, 30km outside the city. These perfectly
blue, multi-layered falls are set amidst
lush jungle, and tourists may find themselves
lounging all day in these pools. At the
entrance, by the odd yet heartwarming bear
zoo, stalls of food and drinks ensure that
visitors will not go hungry. |
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| Come nightfall, restaurants illuminate
their patios, inviting travellers to eat
and drink while people watching on Xiang
Thong, the main street which hosts a vibrant
night market. Here, tourists stock up on
anything from handmade quilts to ubiquitous
Beerlao T-shirts. Foodwise, baguette is
a local specialty, and many restaurants
go the mile in western offerings by boasting
full French menus, with wine and cheeses
among its fare. While the food is indulgently
delicious, cheaper and fresher fare is available
at the many night markets in alleys branching
off Xiang Thong. Here, a vegetarian buffet
of fresh produce from the Laotian countryside
will cost a mere 5000 kip. These markets
host a more local nightlife, where Laotian
families gather to eat at tiny plastic tables.
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| Though the city is relatively quiet at
night, there are still a handful of good
bars. Young and thirsty tourists flock to
the funky Hive Bar, beside L'Etranger, or
the breezier Laos Beer Garden. When the
bars close at midnight, tuk-tuk drivers
are ever-available to take tourists to Vietnam
Bar, an after-hours speakeasy of sorts with
good music, plenty of seating, and the liveliest
crowd in town. |
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| Though Luang Prabang serves as a stopover
point for many, its languid pace and compact
downtown make it an easy spot to relax.
In the midst of the eco-tourism that makes
Laos so famous, this city is a great place
to spend a few days sipping good coffee,
exploring old buildings, and feeling immediately
at home in Laos' most welcoming town. |
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