Luang Prabang

Today, on our second full day in Laos (after the slow boat) Nick and I spent the day strolling through this UNESCO World Heritage city to see for ourselves why it is worthy of such a status. Unlike Ayutthaya, it wasn't immediately apparent to me why this honor has been bestowed on the small town of Luang Prabang. However, after a day soaking it all in, I have to say that I agree with UNESCO on this one.

Luang Prabang is situated on and around a peninsula at the site where the Nam Khan and Mekong Rivers meet. Surrounded by lush green mountains, with some great remnants of French colonial archetecture, Luang Prabang is quaint and absolulty gorgeous.

 It was a bit expensive for our tastes and there wasn't too much to do there, but we had a really relaxing day checking out a couple temples, walking along the river, and taking it all in.  

As the sun was setting we headed up to the main temple in Luang Prabang which sits atop a hill over looking the city. The temple wasn't too spectacular, like most in the city it could benefit from some restoration and a face lift, but the view from the top was just amazing.

After two full days in Luang Prabang though, we were ready to hit the road and find some adventure - and that is certainly what we found in Vang Vieng!