A few days later

A few days later

Now it’s Monday (10^th Dec). What did we do yesterday? – the days meld into each other. Oh yes, again, no electricity in the morning. So we read and wrote until mid afternoon.

Inside the bungalow

Stone-walled bathroom - electric shower, loo, basin. What more do you need?

We had decided to drive into town to climb Mount Phousi to see the famous sunset over the Mekong and then to search out “Utopia” bar on the banks of the Nam Khan.

“I’ll just send a quick email before we go” says Trevann. Ah. Well anyway the network was down. So we bundled into the jeep at about 4.00 and Bo drove us down to the JoMo bakery which has free wifi. I drank my banana milk shake without apprehension but Trevann remembered warnings about ice and bugs and decided not to drink his. But at least the free wifi worked and we sent emails. (And I had no ill effects to report later!)

The famous jeep. Mr K drove it over from Vietnam 10 years ago for 3 days in the pouring rain along non-existent roads.

The Night Market stalls were just setting up as we walked along Sisavangvong to find the steps up to Mount Phousi. Crowds of people – western tourists and visitors from other Asian countries – were making their way up and down the steps. After 138 steps there’s a stopping point and two elderly Lao ladies at a desk with tickets. The sign requests “Please buy ticket before climbing the mountain. 20,000 kip”. Being an obedient sort of gal I dutifully handed over 40,000. It was only later that I realised no-one takes or checks your ticket and no-one else bothered to buy one. Oh well, it was good for my karma. You can also buy orange-coloured flowers on sticks to buy as an offering for the temple. I didn’t  fork out for those – I figured I’d done my bit with the tickets.

After a further 190 steps, the views from the top of Mount Phousi are indeed spectacular. Towards the west the mighty Mekong winds through steep-sided mountains with the setting sun giving us a red, orange and yellow light display. To the east the city of Luang Prabang is laid out below, with the Nam Khan river running through it. On the summit of Phousi is a tiny temple – and an old gun emplacement!

The downside of all this beauty is that we had to share it with dozens of other tourists. It was too crowded for comfort, especially on narrow paths with precipitous drops.

So we hurried back down as darkness fell to explore the streets along the banks of the Nam Khan. We were looking for the fabled “Utopia” bar, favourite riverside hang-out spot for backpackers and cool people. It’s hidden away down an alleyway and you find it by following the signs along twisting lanes and alleys. We thought we were on the right track but as we turned what we thought was the last corner our way was blocked – a tuk-tuk had squeezed down the alley and completely filled it to both sides. Defeated, we returned to the main road and found a peaceful comfortable bar offering BeerLao at 9000 kip (just over a dollar). We settled for that and enjoyed watching the world go by for half an hour or so.

The jeep was to pick us up at 7 so we made our way back through the Night Market to the meeting point outside the Post Office and drove back to K&K’s for our evening meal.

This morning it’s quite cool. I needed to wear a shawl until about 11ish. The bungalow was cleaned.

Perhaps I should try uploading some blog.

Sign on the road outside.

Our bungalow.