Day 2 – Celebrated New Year in Luang Prabang : Laos (Dec’04)
On 30th Dec’04, we traveled from Vang Vieng To Luang Prabang By Road. We celebrated new year’s Eve in Luang Prabang on 31st December 2004. The weather was so nice and cold.
Vang Vieng To Luang Prabang By Road
My Walking Story :
Now, this is my second day at Laos wherein I plan to visit Luang Prabang and planned to celebrate my New Year at Luang Prabang. After done with my morning breakfast I was waiting for a bus which use to come from Vientiane, I catch a bus which came around 10 or 11 am in the morning. I sat inside the bus and the bus traveled from mountainous areas like a round-round path as Luang Prabang is at the top of the mountain. Previously foreigners use to go there for holidays.
While I would like to add some information related to Luang Prabang: Luang Prabang, the ancient capital of Luang Prabang Province in northern Laos, lies in a valley at the confluence of the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers. Inhabited for thousands of years, it was the royal capital of the country until 1975. It’s known for its many Buddhist temples, including the gilded Wat Xieng Thong, dating to the 16th century, and Wat Mai, once the residence of the head of Laotian Buddhism. It is a kind of hill station along with the stunning beauty of nature.
I reach Luang Prabang at 3 pm in the afternoon, then from the bus stop I started walking towards the city to find a Guest House, as one can easily get a guest house over here, people have made guest houses into their own houses. Finally, I booked a room for myself and I clicked the photo also with an old lady and took the rest for a couple of hours. While rent was affordable at around 150 to 200 Thai Baht and I still remember that the old lady told me to explore the evening market after taking a rest. So, after doing rest I got fresh and got ready to check out the market, it was a long lane.
Further, over 300 vendors selling handicrafts, spices, and souvenirs, including food crowd the night market. Their wares are comparatively affordable plus can get even cheaper if you put your haggling abilities in play. Also, if you’re not buying anything, you can get a touch of the local culture just by roaming among the stalls plus watching business go down in the night market. Simply like Luang Prabang, the vibe in the night market is more comfortable; you can look around without busting through the stalls. The night market opens regularly from 5 pm to 10 pm.
After being done with the market, I went to have my dinner at a Malaysian restaurant which I found while exploring the market. So, I went to the guest house where the old lady stared and showed me her marriage album, she cannot speak the English language but with the help of gestures, I use to understand some of the things. It was almost 10 at night and I went to sleep in my room. The next morning, the old lady told me to wake early as monks use to visit to take food at 6 am in the morning.
I had captured the photos of it one can see on my blog page. This is called the alms–giving ceremony and it is a longstanding belief in Laos Buddhist culture, while, it takes place daily as the sun rises, beginning on the main street of Luang Prabang before spreading out to all the sides streets. This is an everyday ceremony that is both peaceful plus spiritual and delivers you a wonderful opportunity to feel an ancient Lao tradition. One should buy his/her offerings (mostly food) in advance and also arrive with plenty of time to spare as it’s deemed very offensive to interrupt the ceremony once it has begun.
This photo was taken in 2004 at Luang Prabang, Laos. Very nice memories attached from this place. I wish to visit again soon. Nice weather and city architecture are like a French colony. Get a bicycle and go around the city.
Then after I took a bath and got ready for breakfast, in Luang Prabang there was a place, I didn’t remember the shop name, but I had my breakfast along with the coffee, one can see the picture of it. The weather was cool and loveable and further, I went to the sightseeing places plus also hired a bicycle on rent for a day. There are lots of attractions in Luang Prabang though most of them are faint in comparison to the stunning golden temples and there were 34 active temples in the city, moreover, all of them are wonderfully gilded which gives Luang Prabang an intensely spiritual feeling.
While the most popular temple is called Wat Xieng Thong, which was built in the 1500s, and it’s one of the most excellent places to visit in Luang Prabang. I like to visit temples and other places too. I didn’t remember the name of a few sightseeing places in Luang Prabang but try to explore as many places as possible, I went to the mountainous places and other heightened places to see the beauty of spots. Captured many images, one can check the photos on my blog page. After roaming I went to my room and went to sleep.
I stay the second day also over there and actually in order to reduce the expense I use to take the bus and alternate options, so most time went into traveling only, while nowadays we travel by flight which saves our time and had more time to explore the places. The next day I took a bus return to Vientiane and I also celebrated my New Year over there with lots of fun. This was also a nice experience for me and carrying beautiful memories along with me. Thank you!
Luang Prabang, the ancient capital of Luang Prabang Province in northern Laos, lies in a valley at the confluence of the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers. Inhabited for thousands of years, it was the royal capital of the country until 1975. It’s known for its many Buddhist temples, including the gilded Wat Xieng Thong, dating to the 16th century, and Wat Mai, once the residence of the head of Laotian Buddhism.
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