PART 2: ZIPLINING IN LANNA

24-25 July 2013. Days 8 & 9 of 15. 
Chiang Rai (White Temple), Chiang Mai THAILAND (Pratu Chiang Mai sothern gate, Wat Chedi Luang, What Phan Tao, Wat Phra Singh,  Chiang Mai Womens Prison, Wat Chiang Man, Eagles Trail Ziplining near Phong Hai). 
Overnights in Chiang Mai THAILAND and overnight train to Bangkok. 

Another 5:30am rise to leave 6am - what holiday! Seriously it was worth it to maximise our time in Chiang Mai. What a place - more on this in a minute. Just when you thought you'd seen all the best temples in Asia, the "Wat Rong Khun" or "White Temple" (as it is called by westerners) comes along and blows all the others out of the water! This temple is the Asian equivalent of Goudi's "La Sagrada Familia" in Barcelona. It is in its 16th year of construction and is expected to take another 44 to 74yrs to complete!

Wat Rong Khun is being designed and its construction supervised by Ajarn Chalermchai Kositpipat, the most successful and famous artist in Thailand. He was born in Chiang Rai, where his temple is located and has always focused on giving Thai art a distinct Buddhist overtone and making it known internationally. His exhibits his art worldwide and produced approx 200 works per year. Now he only produces 10 and with a team of 80 (mainly students and monks) he works constantly on this temple as his contribution to Thailand. He has also set up a trust to complete this work after his death since he is in his 60s.

The temple is actually one of a number of buildings in the complex and one is called "The Golden Building" and features toilets on the ground floor. These are the cleanest public toilets I have ever seen. There are permanent staff there that clean every time someone uses them and they supply slippers that you must wear to go in. Unbelievable. This was intentional by this artist. This temple is 1.5hrs from Chiang Khong and it was another 3.5hrs to Chiang Mai. We stopped in between to see real cashew nut trees and buy some.

The coffee in northern Thailand is unreal. Our guide tells us that it is a craze up here and people take it seriously. Unlike the rest of Indochina, there are dozens of cafes and every one of them has an espresso machine. I paid $1.50AUD for a latte that took 5min to make - the barista ground my beans fresh and cleaned the machine as they went. Delicious coffee - just like Sydney. We arrived in Chiang Mai at 11:30am and quickly took care of laundry and booked our "Zipline" tour for tomorrow - more on this later.

Then I was off solo into the old city which set up exactly like Xien in China. The old city is inside a square that was surrounded by a wall built 700 years ago - only the corners remain and there is a moat (more like a dirty canal) that is also just outside the walls. It is 7km all round because I ran this on both days we were here just like I ran the 10km wall in Xien. I entered the old city through the south gate called "Pratu Chiang Mai" which is where the food stalls are located. Chiang Mai (pop 174,000) is famous for its Wats (temples), hill tribes and many adventure style outdoor activities such as hiking, elephant riding, quad-wheel biking and the latest craze "Ziplining". Chiang Mai was also the capital of the ancient Lanna Kingdom. The wall was built to defend against Burmese invaders in the 14th century. The city is surrounded by mountains and is hot and humid.Thailand's highest mountain, Doi Inthanon, at 2,565m is only 60km away.

Aside from the beautiful temples the rest of the old city is very grubby and ugly with the signature masses of wires gracing the areas in front of buildings above what is left of the pavements. "Wat Chedi Luang" was the first temple I visited and it as my favourite. The main temple is not too ornate but the interior is stunning with several golden Buddha's and gold leaf metal strips hanging down from the ceiling. The famous Emerald Buddha (now in Bangkok's Wat Phra Kaew) was originally housed here in 1475.

The other interesting feature of this temple is the ruins of a huge stone "chedi" or stupa built in 1441 and partly destroyed by fire between the 16th and 18th centuries. It looks ornate now with several elephants attached and two gold Buddha's at the top, one facing east and one west. The next temple "What Phan Tao" is mainly made of teak! It would cost a packet to build this now but back in 18th century this wood was abundant. The outside is very plain but the polished teak interior is impressive with huge columns and beams. "Wat Phra Singh" is the most famous and nicest on the outside. Famous because it contains the Buddha after which the city was named and is its protector. It is also the best example of ancient Lanna architecture and was built in 1345. Before my next temple I passed by the infamous Chiang Mai Womens Prison.

The compound itself is old and decrepit but the front entry has a colourful mural made by the inmates with statues on either side. I am told that the inmates are allowed to make an income by offering massages to tourists which are always booked out! From here it was a short walk passed the Culture Museum and the Statues of three Kings outside on my way to "Wat Chiang Man". This temple is famous for its two "Crystal Buddhas" which are supposed to have the power to make it rain! The building outside is very nice and set in a garden that contains a Chedi and school. The inside is not stand-out. All the temples worth seeing are inside the old city and within easy walking distance of each other.

I saw all of this in 2.5hrs but was dripping in sweat due to the sun being out and the humidity. From here I took a tuk-tuk back to south gate so I could get a run in before dinner. I stocked up on wine and new sandles ($6AUD) to replace my trusty old Colorado boating shoes which shed their undersides in Luang Prabang because it reached 38C that day.

Call me ridiculous but my heart broke to leave them behind in Chiang Mai - they had travelled with me to many places in the world including my dad's last visit to Greece in 2009. I should have started a "hall of fame" for my shoes just like I have my cozzies but it is too late now - I have left too many shoes abroad since they are too bulky to bring back. My run that arvo was tough but very scenic and enjoyable - I got to circle the entire old town. I joined the others for a beer or two for dinner at a restaurant in the night markets since I wanted to try the food stalls at the south gate later. We organised to meet at the hotel at 11pm for drinks so I headed to the food stalls whilst the rest went shopping. The food stalls were as basic as it gets. I picked out various Thai dishes already cooked in large containers and served by local women into small clear plastic bags tied at the top with string. I also picked up a BBQ chicken leg from local guy. I had 5 dishes for $5AUD.

I ate back in my room and decided to lie down to watch a movie until our drinks at 11pm. What a bad mistake. I feel into a deep sleep and stirred at 2am to have a wee and turn off the TV. Apparently Guenther came around at 11pm and knocked on my door - I was dead to the world. I was up at 5:30am the next morning to make a work call at 6am. People are already knocking at my door but I am not too sure that I want to work again! I think I will become a professional traveller instead! If someone paid me to blog and film, I would do it! Lucky for me I did not go out the night before since during my call, two of our girls walked in at 6:20am and came over to sing on my call! How would I ever explain this to the people at the other end! Thank goodness they did not ask! Last night's food stalls were now making there presence felt. After two bouts on the dunnie (toilet) it was off on a morning run at 7am. The third came half-way through my run. Bugger. I held to the end but it was painful!!!

After blowing up the dunnie Guenther and I were off at 9am to our "Ziplining" adventure at 9am (with the company "Eagles Trail"). It was 30km out of town, near the village of Phang Hai, in the middle of the jungle, full of water falls and rice paddies in the distance. On the way Guenther told me all about the huge drinking evening that finished for most at 2am and for some at 6am! Lucky I did not go - there is no way I would have made my 6am work call! There were 7 of us Ziplining including Desi, an ozzie from Bundaberg. Ziplining is the art of attaching yourself to a cable via harness and sliding from platform to platform through the jungle canopy some 30 to 60 metres above the jungle floor. It is fantastic and well set up.  

Two guides constantly hook you to safety rails on the platforms and onto twin cables - one is a backup. All the gear is imported from a French mountaineering climbing company. Except for one item. The "hand break" - this is a piece of Thai bamboo, the size of a small hammer that has a hooked end that you scrape against the cable to slow yourself down as you speed into the opposite platform. Very high tech indeed - I thought they were joking at first but hey, it works! You travel at around 20km/h and you can rotate, spread out your arms and legs and fly like a bird. It is exhilarating. My only fear was actually jumping off the edge of the platforms! Once in flight it is unreal. We spent a total of 90min sliding along 9 segments across 20 platforms. We also abseiled down three verticals, the last was scary at 40m straight down. Somehow I managed to brake too hard on one of the runs and stopped 10m short of the

platform and just dangled above the forest. One of the guides had to come on the other line and pull me in - reminded me immediately of Stallone in the movie "Cliffhanger". On another run I was coming in way too fast and by pure instinct reached up and grabbed the cable. Boy what a mistake. My hand quickly heated up and I let go! The guide screamed from the platform - "no, let go, let go!" Two stuffups, noth at least with happy endings. Poor Guenther got a sore arm using his bamboo brake since he is heavier and therefore travelled faster.

There were also four "novelty" runs of walking rope bridges and across tall tree stumps - all with harness, of course! All this and a buffet lunch too for only $60AUD. A great way to spend the day and see some of the jungle that typifies the north of Thailand. We were reluctant to leave but had to get back in time for our 4pm departure to catch the 5pm overnight train to Bangkok. After a quick shower we were off in tuk-tuks for 20min to the railway station which was well set up with Thai food shop and 7-Eleven for last minute supplies for the train.

We departed on time. The train was in significantly better condition and cleaner than the Vietnam train of Part 1. The set up was also different. There are two seats on each side facing each other which the staff turn into flat beds on request. One sleeps on the bottom and the other on a fold out bed above with a width double that of Vietnam. There are also curtains to create privacy. Clean sheets and pillow-cases all round. Lots of staff making beds and constantly cleaning the toilets - Vietnam - take note!!!

The cabin is also air conditioned. Terrific. It was a great place to blog Chiang Mai, drink wine and nibble on garlic mini-toast and processed ozzie sliced cheese - the only thing I could find at 7-Eleven. The scenery outside was terrific. Wide rice paddies with distant jungle covered hills and a thick jungle with tunnels until sun-down. The feature of the train journey was my first ever bottle of Thai wine! Yes - you read right - wine! They have started making it in the north east and only in certain years if the rain and temperatures are down. I enjoyed a 2011 Shiraz from Khao Yai Winery in a little place called Nakhonratchasima. It was great. Lots of chocolate and plumb coming through. What a pleasant surprise. I did not even touch my backup bottle. Well done Thailand.

PART 2: MIGHTY MEKONG

22-23 July 2013. Days 6 & 7 of 15. 
Mekong River Cruise, Don Cheang LAOS, Huay Xai LAOS (border), Chiang Kong THAILAND (border). 
Overnights in Don Cheang LAOS & Chiang Kong THAILAND. 

Waking up from a 5hr deep sleep is a tough job. It was 1am by the time I said "good night" to Larry the night before and we had to be up at 6am in order to leave the hotel by 7am for our two day cruise and home stay along the Mekong. It was overcast and sprinkling as the large tuk-tuk ferried us down to our boat about 30min out of town. By 8am we were chugging down the river with a straight six diesel behind us, a very long and narrow open cabin with canopy in the middle and 12 backpacks plus one red Virgin sports bag at the front.

There is even a little Buddha shrine with incense and offerings over the engine which I was told is for its reliability! What a river. The views of the swirling Mekong and surrounding bush were both impressive and relaxing. Today we would be traveling approx 145km upstream to our overnight home stay at a tiny village called Don Cheang with a local family belonging to the "Khmu" ethnic group. Tomorrow we would set off again at 6:30am to travel a further 155km to Houay Xai in Laos just before the Thai border. That's 10hrs on day 1 and another 11hrs on day two.

Imagine that - 21hrs to do 300km of upstream Mekong out of a total length of 4,200km! No wonder they call it the Mighty Mekong. The boat was reasonably well equipped to ensure our survival over the lengthy stretches. Free coffee, tea and bananas, plenty of room to stretch and even mats on the floor to sleep. I found a great spot at the beverage table down the back where I happily blogged Luang Prabang to successive cups of coffee!

 
Occasionally I would look up and admire the river and the adjoining banks and snap away at scenic moments. Our skipper worked hard turning his wheel constantly to navigate the many eddies and cross-drafts in the water. The colour of the Mekong was like liquid caramel, its colour coming from the silt collected from the banks and bottom as it swirls its way to the South China Sea. He was particularly skilled at aiming the boat in exactly the right directions when it rained so that no rain entered the open sides of the boat. We had three short downpours during the journey and the rest was sunny with clouds.

It is a peaceful journey and an opportunity to rest from the constant travel and heat. I snoozed for about 2hrs, finished my blog and even read half a book before we arrived at our homestay village of Don Cheang at 6pm, approx 15km downstream of Pak Beng (which you can find on any map of Laos). The village is close to the water, perched on a hill and built on a slope to prevent flooding in the wet season. There are no roads so it is completely isolated. We all had packed our day pack, leaving the main bags on the boat and climbed up several stone steps and mud to reach the top.

The "leader" of the village, Thong Wan, was there to welcome us and he led us to the underside area of his stilt home. We passed most of the village along the way taking photos and film in the fading light of day. Most homes were concrete brick bases with wooden siding and iron roofs. They were solid and well built. What I noticed immediately was the many children - they popped out to see us, some giggling, some shy. We would say "Sabai Le" (hello) in the local Khmu and sometimes get one back. At the leader's home we were divided into groups to stay at different village houses - two for eight guys and two for six girls. We all walked to our stilt homes and dropped off our day packs. The set up was exactly like my home stay in Lac in Vietnam. A flat mattress on the wooden floor, covered by a mozzie net suspended from the ceiling and windows.

By this time it was dark and we returned to the underside of the leader's home for dinner. What a tasty dinner. Cooked by the local women who were hosting us. Plenty of steamed rice, yellow chicken curry with potatoes and carrots, spicy pork with onion, stir fried morning glory (a type of green spinach) and a stir fried veggie medley. After dinner I held my "press conference" and "cultural exchange" with the leader, Thong Wan surrounded by his family and our group. I had prepared a list of questions on the boat which I gave to Sayan (our local Lao guide) to translate and show to Thong Wan while we ate. Sayan and I sat on either side of Thong and our leader, Stephen was cameraman. We then proceeded to film a total of 10 questions with our group acting as the live studio audience. We learned a great deal about Thong Wan and the village. Thong Wan is 40yrs old with 4 boys and 1 girl. Two of the boys are married with one child each. Thong Wan has been living in the village since 1975 and has been leader for 10yrs. This is his third term as leader and the village elects the leader every five years. Thong's responsibility as leader is to ensure that all the villagers have adequate shelter and food - if this is not the case then he rallies the villagers together to help out. He is also in charge of the care of common village property such as the primary school.

Thong Wan was instrumental in securing home stay for his village with G Adventures at the start of 2013. As a result of the extra income from this, the villagers decided to build a new primary school of concrete brick to replace the old wooden one. We were shown this work and the new school will be ready in another month in time for the new school year which begins in September. Thong Wan was very pleased with the benefits of tourism and his village has hosted some 200 visitors since the start of 2013. The village itself has 185 residents including 85 children - I was right - I mentioned to Stephen that I thought the kids would outnumber the adults.

The villagers grow mainly rice plus a number of different vegetables, catch fish and have plenty of pigs, chickens and ducks. Some have a few albino water buffalo which have a pinkish hide and spend most of their time close to the water's edge. During the wet season they also pick and eat mushrooms and bamboo. Thong Wan said that the best thing about Don Cheang village was its peaceful agricultural heritage and the fact that it was close to Pak Beng (1hr by boat) for supplies or emergencies or to sell their produce. He finished by saying that the Mekong was integral to their village as it is the only reliable means of

transport. There is a road, 30min walk away but it is often closed in the wet season due to mud slides. After the interviews came the "cultural exchange" (another idea I had pre-staged with Sayan) where Thong Wan invited me to taste "rice whiskey" from a clay plot and I reciprocated by pouring a glass of red wine for Thong Wan to try. What a blast this was. The rice whiskey is in fact rice wine and this one was better than the one I had sculled in Vietnam. It was less sweet and a bit more flavoursome.

The procedure is to sip from the full vat of whiskey from a bamboo straw and replace the liquid drunk with water from a plastic cup. Once the cup is depleted you have drunk one cup of whiskey! It is strictly one cup at a time per person for good luck. The water at the bottom of the clay pot has picked up fermented rice liquid at 20% alcohol. By the time the new water at the top reaches the bottom it will also pick up fermented liquid. This can go on for 2 to 5 weeks with just one clay pot of about five litres.

Amazing - this thing literally turns water into wine! Thong Wan liked the wine. I know because he insisted I stay after the my group had retired to finish the bottle! He had never tasted wine before. I suspected this, which is why I brought the bottle and insisted on the exchange. I had done this with my home stays in the Andes and in Vietnam with excellent results. Thong Wan described the wine as "bitter fruit juice". An excellent description from a first time wine drinker. The filming finished and the whole group partook of the whiskey, especially Sedd, who was turning 18 tomorrow - he must have sculled at least 3 cups! After our group retired at around 8pm, I stayed on with Thong

Wan, his family, Sayan and his step-brother Xa who was also a Lao-English guide with another company. We had a blast drinking rice wine, red wine and talking about life and Laos. Xa and Sayan explained to me that since the village installed solar cells and a generator and connected some TVs about 10 years ago, all the village women can now understand and speak some Thai because all the soap operas are from Thailand! What a laugh. The men of the village all prefer Thai music and Syan was even playing some on his work laptop whilst the others sang along. Like Vietnam, Lao has 44 different ethnic groups with "Lao" itself being the predominant (68%). Don Cheang is a Khmu village with a slightly different language, traditional clothing and food to the Lao.

Traditional dress is still worn at weddings but music and dance has largely disappeared. Thong Wan is happy that the Lao government has opened up the country to tourism and free trade. The villagers pay only a nominal land tax each year based on size and received some funds for the construction of their school and the establishment of the home stay. I could see that Thong Wan was very pleased with our visit and the guides were so impressed with the press conference and cultural exchange that they would drive it themselves for future home stays. Lucky for me there was a full moon out and I was able to find my own way back to my stilt home at around 10:30pm for a 5am rise tomorrow to farewell Laos and greet Thailand. Waking up was easy. Getting to sleep was tough. It was warm and humid and there were multiple insect sounds and one in particular was like a car horn! Not to mention my buddy Guenther next to me. So it was time to double the dose of blu-tac in my ears!!! It worked.

When we woke to the different pitches of four digital alarm clocks in the room and the sound of rain on the iron roof, it was too dark to visit the dunny downstairs so we set off slushing and slipping our way down to the boat in the mud. At around 5:30am we farewelled the village of Don Cheang and started our epic 11hr journey further upstream towards the Lao-Thai border. Most of us resumed our sleep and woke a second time to more rain and a breakfast of fried eggs, bread and marmalade. The rain soon stopped revealing a much narrower Mekong with jungle covered granite peaks on one side and rolling thicket on the other.

It was back to blogging, reading, chatting and even an episode of Larry David. Lunch was a chilli pork fried rice. The afternoon was particularly pleasant with a coolish breeze blowing over the bow of the boat. We arrived at the border Laos border town of Huay Xai at about 4:30pm. Two tuk-tuks took us to immigration and by 5:30pm we had stamped out of Laos, crossed the Mekong in a long boat, stamped into Thailand (with instant free visa - no wonder Thailand is the powerhouse of Indochina!) and tuk-tuked again to our hotel in the Thai border town of  Chiang Kong.

As soon as we checked in, everyone except me went for a shower in their rooms after 48 continuous hours on the Mekong - I went for a run. The typical wet season rain came down and by sun-down I was back. As a result of my run and the need to post the remaining Laos adventure, I was unable to join my group for dinner and sandwiched, beered and wined my wine to midnight...

PART 2: ENLIGHTENED CROISSANTS

20-21 July 2013. Days 4 & 5 of 15. 
Bantin Pah LAOS, Khiewkha Cham (Bear Paws Wine) LAOS, Luang Prabang LAOS (Wat Xieng Thong temple, Wat Xien Muan temple, Pha Bang temple, Royal Place Museum, Phu Si hill, That Chomsi temple, Wat Pha Phutthabaht temple, Wat Wisunarat temple), Kuang Si (waterfalls) LAOS. 
Overnights in Luang Prabang. 

Luang Prabang (pop 62,000) is to Laos what Siem Reap (Angkor) is to Cambodia and Hoi An is to Vietnam. An ancient, slow pace, peaceful town full of temples, colourful houses and French influence. The town was founded in 698AD by Thai Prince Khun Lo and has 33 temples (or "Wats"). Many French lived here during the 1893-1953 occupation and their influence is obvious in many of the buildings and shops. You can walk down any of the main roads of Luang Prabang and see a juxtaposition of Buddhist temple and French bakery,

one after the other, making the croissants here enlightened indeed. I wonder if anyone ever offered up a croissant to a Buddhist monk during the 5:30am blessing ritual! Luan Prabang means "Royal Buddha Image" and it was the capital of Laos from its founding until 1975 when communism took over and moved the capital to Vientiane. Our 230km drive to Luang Prabang from Vang Vieng took 6.5hrs because of the narrow windy road ascending and descending a huge lush jungle ridge which afforded terrific views and added meaning to the "rugged north" that is common to these parts across Vietnam, Laos and Thailand.

We made some stops along the way to take photos since you pass many small villages clutching the sides of the ridge. There are many children playing roadside and they love having their photos taken,

especially playing them back - I photographed and filmed a little boy in Bantin Pah and he was especially entertained by watching the film of himself! We also stopped off at a cafe at the top of the ridge some 2,000m above sea level for a coffee and some more pictures. Lunch was not far off in scenic cafe at the small village of Khiewkha Cham which featured on its menu "soup of wild deer intestines stuffed with feces"! I kid you not. Stephen claims that no one in his 14yrs of guiding has ever ordered this item so I decided to break the mold. Much to my disappointment, the waiter looked at me surprised then smiled and informed me that this dish "was out of season".

The table moaned with disappointment. For me it brought back memories of my first cousing Peter using the same words and the same smile when I asked him to cook "baby seal" in Norway in 2006! Guess what. In true Golfin Adventurer style, I managed to part salvage this lunchtime situation by finding a huge jar of "rice wine soaked in Asian Black Bear paws" right next door!!! I immediately proceeded to pour myself a glass and drink it much to the disgust of my group. If it is there and disgusting I have to do it. It is on film. It tasted like a very strong, sweet version of standard rice wine with a slight musky flavour. It was strong. I could still feel it in my esophagus and stomach, 30min later.

At this point the scenery started to soften from the rugged mountains of the ridge to rolling hills, still however, covered in lush green jungle. Our last stop was up on the ridge just before descending down into the plateau that contains Luang Prabang. You can see the Mekong from here and a small town just before Luang Prabang. We pulled up at the hotel at 4:45pm and I was keen on posting Vang Vieng and even keener for some plonk given the h

ours on the mini-bus. At around 7:30pm I set off under the soft lights of Luang Prabang to meet the others at a popular restaurant fronting "Nam Khan" (Khan river). Luang Prabang was purposely built at the juncture point where the Khan empties out into the bigger, faster Mekong. Dinner was terrific since it gave me another chance to eat exotica - this time not too exotic - wild buffalo with sticky rice! Very tasty. Sticky rice is ordinary rice that has been steamed instead of boiled so it sticks together so you can shape it and dip it into sauces and eat it with your hand - much like the Italians do with bread.

Tonight it was Larry David night and I finished off the last of my blogging red to a couple of episodes - I must have kept someone awake with my laughter - "Palestinian Chicken" was to blame - my favourite "Curb Your Enthusiasm" episode!!! Most of us decided to go solo the next day so I slept in and ran at 8am instead of the usual 6 or 6:30am. The run was great taking me over an old wooden bridge spanning the Khan and out to the new international airport nearing completion by the Chinese in return for minerals.

What a fine building - one of the nicest I have seen - it is done Lao style and looks like several temples joined together. A320s (130 seats, twin jet engines) are able to land here given the large size of the plateau. Today the plan was to walk the town and temples alone in the morning and meet some of the others to go to the famous Kuang Si waterfalls in the afternoon to cool off. Many of our group went elephant riding which I skipped since I had done it in Thailand with Lucy and George in 2007. Much to my delight the sun was out but it was shit hot.

Sweat poured out and I found it impossible to dry off. Laos had finally shown its true jungle colours. Here we were, thinking that it is milder than elsewhere in Indochina. Wrong. Just as humid. Just as hot. The great designs and colours of the temples made up for it and took my mind off the sauna around me. Before the first temple I walked down the main road alongside the Khan to the tip of the town's peninsula  to see the Khan pour into the Mekong. This area is very neat and tidy and has the bulk of upmarket hotels and restaurants. Most buildings are French style.

There is a cafe at the juncture of the Khan and Mekong and the view from here is first class. The first temple I visited is above the juncture point and was easily the most ornate (of the 3 others that I saw later). It is called "Wat Xieng Thong" - built by King Setthathirat in 1560. It is famous for its "tree of life mosaic", "dharma wheel ceiling" and a magnificent 12m high funeral boat housed in its own chapel. It was one of the hardest things to photogragh since it fits almost exctly in the chapel that contains it. From here it was a long walk to Wat Xieng Muan temple. Unfortunately it was closed and is known for its gold naga (seven-headed "good" serpent) and fancy candle rail inside.

Most temples have a monastery beside them to house the many orange-clad Buddhist monks that live in the town. The monastery at Muan was built with the assistance of New Zealand including a school to teach new monks temple art (painting and wood carving) and how to take care of the many temples in town. Any male can become a monk and many Lao guys actually "do a stint" as a monk after school before returning to the world to work. I call it Holy Service instead of Military Service! Our guide, Sayan did this for 6mths and he laughed when I coined the term. Stop 3 and 4 were the Pha Bang and the Royal Palace very close by. The two are in a huge enclosure. The Pha Bang is a temple containing the standing gold Buddha after which the city was named. The Lao Royals would worship here until they were expelled when the communists took over in 1975. At that time the palace was made a musuem showcasing the history and culture of Laos, especially differentiating the many ethnic groups that live in the country - much like the Ethnology museum we saw in Hanoi Vietnam.

Opposite the Palace complex is the famed 100m high "Phu Si" hill containing the golden spired "That Chomsi" temple at the top (visible from most parts of town). This "hill" offers 360 degree views of the entire town including the converging Khan and Mekong rivers. You can even see the new international air terminal! Also on top is the "Wat Pha Phutthabaht" which is tiny and apparently built over a footprint left by The Lord Buddha himself! Pity it was locked up so I cannot verify this claim. On my way down I met Guenther who was chatting with two guys from England and Taiwan. Ten minutes later and we invited them to come with us to the waterfalls in the afternoon since they too were wondering how to get there (32km from town).

I left Guenther and made my way past the fresh produce markets alongside the Mekong and then to the Dala Markets to buy an alarm clock since yesterday my iPhone 4 finally carked it (died)!!! I reckon it was so full my sweat that it could not cope.

So much for smart phones - smart but not tough! Lucky for me I brought my old $5AUD MP3 player that I bought in China in 2008 and it is still going - dumb but tough! From here it was off to my last temple, "Wat Wisunarat" which is the oldest continually operating temple in Laos. It was built in 1513 and destroyed by invading Chinese in 1887. It was re-built by 1989. This temple is also famous for "Rain Buddhas" which are called on when it has not rained for a while so that the rice harvest can be preserved.

Out front is the "That Pathum", a Lotus Stupa carved from limestone back in 1514. It couldn't be burned down! By this time I was melted so I headed to the hotel to strip down for the waterfalls. A total of seven of us turned up at the agreed time of 2:30pm and the hotel called for an airconditioned mini-bus to take us the 32km there and back for only $8AUD each! The ride took 30min through lush jungle and the entry gates were surrounded by BBQ food stalls and shops.

The falls are a 5min walk from the gates and along the way we visited the "Bear Sanctuary" which works to preserve the Asian Black Bear which over the centuries was hunted by locals for its meat and claws. OK, yes - I felt bad that I had drunk bear paw rice wine as I proceeded to photograph the cuddly creatures. The Kuang Si falls themselves are very enjoyable. Very clean, very milky blue and very cool (I guessed around 20C). As a result they are very popular and there are lots of people in them from all over the world. After my swim I lay down for kip and reckon I must have counted six different languages spoken within a 100m radius from me.

My favourite pastime here was to sit under the falling water giving you a free massage - all that was missing was a glass of bubbly! It started to sprinkle as we headed back (5pm) and just as well since we had finished our day and walking to dinner at 7pm was cool and less humid. Dinner tonight was my favourite. Guenther agreed. We all walked into the night markets selling everything from Oreo shakes to intestines. The fresh fruit shakes are especially popular. The clever Lao actually line up rows of plastic cups with all the various fruit menu combinations already inside the cup. You look, you pick and then they add ice and blend and hey presto - what looks like a 350mL fresh juice shake for only $1.50AUD. Ridiculous.

The food we ate was even more ridiculous - price-wise I mean! Most of us enjoyed huge portions of BBQ meats or fish with an "all-you-can-fill" plate of 15 different vegies and 10 different pastas and noodles. Heaven. My estimated 400gram fish cost $5AUD. The 640mL Beerlao's only went for $1.50AUD. Double heaven! I even sampled some breast chicken - so tasty. There were also whole or half ducks, smaller chickens and pork, beef and sausages of many shapes and sizes. The vegies were the best I had eaten anywhere - eggplant, beans, carrots, morning glory, bock choy and even broccoli. Not coated in oil and very tasty. The place was packed including Dutch and New Zealanders! Shock!

The only downside was the place was hot because it was narrow, unventilated and next to the BBQ coals. We all struggled to walk home from all that wonderful food. For me the rest of the evening involved reducing my 396 photos of Luang Prabang down to 109. One of the toughest culls I've done. I needed more than just my usual Chilean red to calm me down and keep me going so I decided that another episode of Larry David was in order before what turned out to be a deep sleep.