|
|
The road linking Luang
Prabang to the
capital Vientiane is the once infamous Road #13. It is unbelievably
scenic,
with sugarloaf mountains, precipices, and paddies. It is also
harrowing.
Even in an air-conditioned minivan, I was almost car sick. I am glad I
wasn't riding in one of the antiquated and crowded buses. |
 |
I spent the night in
Van Vieng,
a market town on the bank of the Nam Song. The famed Van Vieng caves
were
actually nothing special, but the little town had much honkytonk charm. |
 |
I was about ready to call 911
for a
periodontal emergency for those poor ladies when I realized they were
chewing
betel nut, hence the copious red drooling and spitting. |
|
|
Near the caves, in Van Vieng |
 |
Magical Van Vieng |
 |
The Van Vieng market |
 |
After dinner I heard a great
ruckus
in the distance. It was one of those festivals which are so popular.
Some
people had come all the way from Thailand for this one. The pop music
was
blaring from refrigerator size speakers. Next door, the temple was
crowded
with old men who were pretending to sleep under rugs while old women
were
disturbing them. Everyone was laughing uproariously. |
|
|
There were tempting snacks
everywhere.
When it was time to go, I had to walk for 1 kilometer in pitch darkness
to reach the lodge. I was a little nervous. When I finally made it
after
such a rich evening, I looked at my watch: 8:00pm! |
|
|
In any case, this rooster
made sure
I didn't oversleep and miss my ride to Vientiane. |
