Flashback – Laos (Introduction)

We made it to Laos!

Welcome to Laos.

After arriving in Bokeo, Laos we met our guide Don. He would travel by boat with us to the city of Luang Prabang, a city located in north central Laos. This city was incidentally Meg and my most favorite place we visited on the entire trip. Along the way we’d stop at several villages and the city of Pak Ben to stay overnight.

Meet Don. Our tour guide for the next 2 days as we cruised on the Mekong River.

Our taxi to the private boat we’d be taking on the Mekong.

We arrived at our private boat. The boat was for my parents, Meg, me, and our boat crew of seven. It was huge! It seated 20 people or so. Needless to say, we had lots of room.

Our private boat.

And we were off on our river adventure!

For about an hour or so on the Mekong we had Thailand on one side of us and Laos on the other, then we came to the divide where Thailand stopped and both sides became Laos.

After a few hours on the river we pulled up to a village. A bunch of kids rushed to our boat to sell us goodies. They knew Meg would be a prime target!

We decided to stretch our legs and walk through the village to do some sightseeing.

Precious Hmoung boys sitting in front of their house.

Dad playing with the village kids.

After visiting the village, we got back on the boat and continued on to the town of Pak Ben where we would stay overnight.

Our French guesthouse for the night along the Mekong in Pak Ben.

Meg and my humble abode.

We took an evening stroll into town, did a little shopping, and interacted with a lot of the people.

A market vendor.

The next day we met our crew in the morning, loaded onto the boat, and continued on our way. In just a few hours we’d be arriving in Luang Prabang. Along the way we stopped to look at some caves and Buddha statues.

Caves right outside Luang Prabang.

The first cave was filled with hundreds of Buddha’s of all shapes and sizes. It was very Buddha-ful!

The second cave we had to hike to a little bit, but it was well worth it.

The time came for us to say goodbye to our boat crew. They were so helpful, cooked amazing food, and were so friendly. We definitely enjoyed their company.