Laos

I travelled to Laos as everyone had raved about Luang Prabang and how much I would like the place. It is an Unesco World heritage listed city.I found Laos very much under French influence with delicious food and baking.The people are lovely, very gentle and kind and a nice place to cycle round. Unfortunately I was there during Chinese New Year so the places I visited were very busy and loud with Chinese and Korean visitors. I found Laos very touristy but I did have fun playing in the water with elephants and a sore backside from a cycling trip over cobbled roads for 14 kilometres. Luang Prabang is a very pretty city. It has a daily market that starts around 4pm and ends around 9pm. You can eat like a king at the market stalls. The city Luang Prabang feels very French and the standard of good food and coffee is very high. It has some wonderful buildings that are very photogenic. The morning collection by the monks was a fiasco with tourists pushing and showing to get photos of the monks. it was a terrible display of bad manners by the tourist photographers to a custom that is gentle and kind. Everyone gives the monks a little something even if it is only a handful of cooked rice. I got up very early and saw people cooking for the monks almost before dawn. This beautiful ceremony has turned into a spectator event. Vientiane is a beautiful city and, as yet, does not have too much traffic.  It is known as teh city of sandalwood and has a great deal of French influence. It is on the Mekong river. It is possible to cycle in this city to get around. Vang Vieng is a fun place for the adventurous but also a beautiful place where the river meanders and you can sit and enjoy a meal or a drink watching the world float by. You can also float on rubber rings down the river, kayak or hike in the hills or explore caves or cycle in this pretty town.  It did have a party reputation but has been calmed down by enforced early closing rules.