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Sunset Arrival

Posted by Stuart at 11:54 PM on April 12, 2004

The four of us, Ted, Than, Piyawat and I, have made it safely to Luang Prabang, Laos. We flew Lao Aviation from Bangkok with a transfer in Vientiane. I knew from my past experiences that I shouldn't expect much from this airline (just get me there in one piece, please!) but the plane from Bangkok to Vientiane was brand new and quite nice.

However, when we arrived in Vientiane, the real fun started. We had a 45-minute layover that ended up being 45 minutes of chaos. First, we had to get our visa-on-arrival. Then, we were rushed through the 4-gate International Terminal over to the no-gate Domestic Terminal. We scanned our check-in bags and had to go to a third building to get our boarding pass. Of course this office had no computers, just reams of paper with passenger lists and handwritten tickets.

Once we got our boarding pass, we crossed to the opposite side of the terminal to go through security. Or should I say "security"? When Ted went through the metal detector, the alarms sounded. But there was no one working there and since Ted knew that he was not carrying any weapons, he just walked right through.

The air conditioner on the second plane wasn't working, but thankfully the flight was very quick. We then took a taxi to my friend Noy's guesthouse on the river, arriving just as the sun was setting over the mountains on the other side of the Mekong. Beautiful!

The four of us had dinner at one of Luang Prabang's nicest restaurants. The food was good, but I am so used to Thai prices that now paying US$8 for a plate of pasta seems outrageously expensive to me. On the other hand, I have to admit that it was the best cream sauce I have had in Asia.

After dinner we walked through the night market and to a big fair. One of the highlights was seeing the motorcyle show. (I'm not really sure what to call what I saw, so "motorcyle show" will have to do.) Basically, the show took place in a big circular enclosure. (Imagine a 30 foot tall wooden bucket.) We climbed to the top of the circular wall and looked inside where teenagers would take turns riding the motorcycle around the walls, perfectly horizontal to the ground.

It is the Songkran holiday, so everyone is in a very festive mood. Luckily, the water splashing hasn't begun yet, but Than made a super-soaker water gun purchase at the fair in preparation for New Year's Day tomorrow.