The night was falling as we approached the Luang Prabang airport. We (I and Jomima) were on board Lao Airlines from our departure point of Hanoi after spent a week in that lovely capital city of Vietnam.

We hardly saw any lights as the plan approached the runway, indeed Laos is surrounded by undeveloped forests. The roaming engine of MA60 China-made 58-seaters aircraft indicated that we were about to land. What we saw then was a humble terminal building with 4 or 5 officers (two of them were immigration officers). I learned lesson number one : they trust people. Even you can easily walked out the airport thru an open gate without anyone noticing.

We stayed at Thongbay Guest house, right besides the Sisavangvong bridge. From the balcony of my room, I could see Phousi temple at the top of Phousi hill. The host was so friendly. She has one kid named Emily. She’s a lovable silent little girl. Her father is a Swiss national.

Our stay for three days in Luang Prabang was very much an amusing experience. We went to a spa, where I had a shoulder massage. It was the best massage I ever had! So relaxing that I fell asleep just a few minutes after starting. I learned that I have just visited one of the most popular spa destination in Asia.

In terms of tourist spots, Luang Prabang has many to visit. On the first day we decided to go cruising the river Mekong, into an ancient cave at the river bank, known for its Buddhist statue inside. It was Pak Ou cave. The trip took about three hours I guess, we started shortly after having breakfast at “Croissant d’Or” and arrived at the cave just before lunch time.

While everyone on boat was asleep as the breeze touched their faces, I let my hands down to the water, and taste the touch of the golden glowing Great Mekong stream. Mekong history has brought us here, from Hainan in China, Hanoi in Vietnam and now Luang Prabang (Laos). Still, we have to continue the journey to Cambodia and Thailand, where the Great Mekong meets its eternity with Indian Ocean.

On the second day, we decided to go to the forest and see the Quang Xi waterfall, said to be the tallest in the country. Bound with a van of 9 other people, we talked a lot with a New Yorker. He’s traveling alone, spending two weeks in Luang Prabang before leaving back to NYC through Vientiane and Bangkok.

Quang Xi was not so much special. We need to climb uphill for about one hour before getting into the site. The waterfall itself was less interesting compared to the road trip journey where we saw wild elephants and stop by in a handicraft village. Here I captured a poor families and their kids running across to greet and tout the tourist selling their local products.

But the journey must continue. On board Vietnam Airlines Fokker-70, we left Luang Prabang to Siem Reap.

Bye bye Luang Prabang.

Hibiscus with its dew drops that early morning when we left Thongbay Guest House