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Our stay in Luang Prabang was split into two parts by our trip to the Plain of Jars .. Our first stay lasted only three days, the second stay was a little longer. We had called ahead and booked into a hotel on the recommendation of an American couple we met in Vang Vieng . We were reasonably happy with it. It was fairly small, but brand new and had a very new and clean bathroom and even a small balcony that overlooked the front street and a beautiful Wat (Buddhist temple) opposite for which the hotel was named.

This former Royal Capital of the former Kingdom of Laos is bult on a long arm of land surrounded on three sides by the Mekong and one of its tributaries. there are about four parallel streets, one on each of the river fronts and two including the main drag in between. The main drag is mostly dotted with restaurants and souvenir shops. At one end of town is an open market where you can buy lengths of, mostly, Thai silk and have them made into the traditional Lao-style skirt, which consists of a tube of material with a waistband that can be folded over and hooked to form a skirt with a single large pleat in front.

The whole isthmus is dotted with the most lovely temples and unlike in Vientiane, the populace openly and frequently visits them and they seem well-supplied with young men fulfilling their duty by serving as monks and getting an education into the bargain. Some of the temples were even acquiring the trappings of richer temples from across the Thai border, in the guise of fresh coats of orange-red lacquer.

Perhaps the major tourist site of the city is undoubtedly the Royal Palace, now a museum. The Royal family's personal temple, in the grounds of the palace was being renovated while we were there to its former glory. A sure sign that tourists are coming.

But for us, our favorite aspect of Luang Prabang was its relaxed atmosphere, internet cafes, varied restaurants, delicious iced fruit shakes, and access to some authentic Lao food in a suitably luxurious environment in the hotel ???  Here, also, Jan found the handicrafts she craved buying dozens of pieces of hand-loomed silk that found their way into Christmas stockings at the end of the year. She also had a Lao skirt made that for only a few dollars added a touch of class to her rather rough and ready wardrobe.