Luang Prabang

I'm backtracking a little bit here before my last post back to our time we spent in Luang Prabang. Our time in Laos has been nice in that we aren't rushed at all, which is appropriate in a country that is noted for it's laid back and relaxed people. Cramming all the things we did in Cambodia and Vietnam has afforded us the time to just arrive in a town and relax for awhile before moving on- and that is exactly what we did in Luang Prabang. A small, mellow riverside town, marked by French influence in it's architecture and yummy baguettes and coffee, we spent 4 days here.

We stayed at Sackarinh Guesthouse, which was quiet, clean, and had friendly staff. We told them we didn't know how long we were staying, he said that was just fine and we could stay forever if we liked. :)

I spent the first day at the spa- Aroma Spa- massage, facial, manicure, pedicure- all for the price of what I'd pay for one treatment at home- and this place is on the pricier end. Now, granted the treatments are not exactly on par with some of the ones I've been spoiled with in the past working at a spa, but still, a nice relaxing way to spend my afternoon. (Oh, and I figured out that apparently the massage therapist standing in the room while you strip down to get on the table is normal here. Luckily it's been with women, or I might have had something to say about that. )

Mornings were spent getting up when I feel like it (which yes Aunt Nancy- was before the crack of noon, thank you very much), eating breakfast at a bakery and getting a strong iced mocha. The second day in Luang Prabang was the cooking class- see previous entry. The third day we wandered around the city to see the Royal Palace Museum and different Wats or Temples. That's what these pictures are from.

Read the next posts for what else we did while here...