For a map of my travels, click here.
First stop today was a trip to an elephant sanctuary for the second elephant ride of my life. I got a full 45 minutes on the elephant, which was about 35 minutes more than I really needed. The trip included a crossing of the Nam Khan River next to the sanctuary, which was interesting. The elephant has a "saddle", which is kind of like a chair, and there is a bar across the front, so there's no danger of falling off. My only fear was looking like an idiot. My fear was justified, as the picture below shows.
 |
| Countryside near the Elephant Sanctuary |
 |
| Local boys doing some fishing |
 |
| An offering at the Sanctuary |
|
 |
| My ride |
 |
| Bwana Moose--they provided the pith helmet, which is not comfortable |
 |
| Laundry along the river bank |
|
 |
| Crossing the river (obviously the rider in the picture is not me) |
After the ride, it was back to Luang Prabang for lunch. I took a walk on the wild side and ordered some deep-fried river weed. A bit on the greasy side, but anything deep fried is good. Not only was the food interesting, but the view from the restaurant was spectacular.
 |
| River weed and fried rice |
|
 |
| View of a temple from the restaurant |
 |
| A couple of monks going about their business |
After lunch, according to my tour brochure, I "will visit local villages of Lao ethnic minority groups at Ban Ouay, a Hmong village, Ban Ou a Laoloum village and Ban Thapene, a Khmu village". So, first stop was Ban Quay:
 |
| Ban Quay Village |
 |
| Inside a house at Ban Quay. One room, filled with smoke, but it did have electricity. |
 |
| Ban Quay |
 |
| Ban Quay |
 |
| The water supply at Ban Quay |
The next stop was "Ban Ou a Laoloum village and Ban Thapene, a Khmu village". Unfortunately, I only remember one village after Ban Quay, so I'm not sure which one the next few pictures are from.
 |
| Spinning thread at Ban Qu or Ban Thapene |
 |
| Local Housing at Ban Qu or Ban Thapene |
After the villages, we continued to
Kuang Si Falls, about 20 miles south of Luang Prabang. It was pretty crammed with tourists but the falls were really nice.
 |
| Future Laotian soldier at the falls |
 |
| There was a bear sanctuary at the entrance to the falls |
 |
| Lower part of the falls |
 |
| More from the falls |
 |
| Upper part of the falls |
After the falls, it was back to Luang Prabang for an evening walk and dinner. I decided that it was finally time to eat some serious street food, so I went to the food stalls at the night market. I got more food than I could possibly eat (including a full rack of ribs) for about $10, including about a liter of beer.
 |
| Night Market in Luang Prabang |
 |
| Dining at the food stalls |
Having survived my meal, I wandered back to my hotel (which was next door) and prepared for tomorrow.
Here are some random shots from the day:
 |
| On a boat to the elephant camp |
|
 |
| Using the local transportation |
 |
| Activity along the river |
 |
| River transportation |
 |
| The view from my lunch table in Luang Prabang |
 |
| Ban Quay |
 |
| Ban Quay--not as primitive as it first looked |
 |
| Ban Qu or Ban Thapene |
 |
| Ban Qu or Ban Thapene |
 |
| At Kuang Si Falls, where we made sure not to parking |
 |
| Kuang Si Falls |
 |
| A picnic at the falls |
 |
| At the falls |
 |
| Night market in Luang Prabang |
 |
| At the night market food stalls |
 |
| At the night market food stalls |
 |
| What a Laotian keyboard looks like |
|
Next:
A stroll around Luang Prabang, and on to Hanoi.
