The effects of the two typhoons have caught up with us. We received numerous text messages from the US State Department application (STEP) with travel warnings. The overnight rain was very heavy and the water level on the Mekong has really risen and was REALLY muddy. We were worried the river might not be navigable, but our captain and Fahn don’t seem too worried.
After breakfast at the Grande we headed down to where our vessel was tied up. Instantly, a group of locals swarmed the transport vehicle to transport our luggage. There’s not much work around these parts and any tips are greatly appreciated. We didn’t have any local currency so I tipped them with a USD each. It’s a great tip when converted but they had absolutely no idea what I gave them and probably no way to exchange them for Lao Kip . Felt kinda bad.
Once on the boat, it’s ‘batten down the hatches’ so the boats side shields were dropped. We still had some great views of life along the river. There were quite a few small villages, fishermen, and a number of slow boats like ours.
After a few hours we pulled up the boat at the Pak Ou cave, a major spiritual site filled with over 4,000 Buddha statues. The statues are offerings from devotees and vary in size and material and are in various postures. The caves have been a site of worship for centuries.
A few hours later, we arrived just outside Luang Prabang, our destination and home for the next few days. Fitting the boat into a narrow slot between a few working barges was quite an operation with the crew (and Fahn) using poles to guide the vessel into position. We had to walk through an adjacent working boat to get to the shore and then clear a wet, aggressive rooster. Great!
It was a short drive to our hotel, Maison Dalabua, in the old quarter. It’s a very nice property. We had a cocktail in the lounge and wandered down the street a few blocks to a beverage shop which stocked a huge section of wines (Sav Blanc!). Next door was a shop carrying the local IPA (Luang Prabang IPA). Good stuff!