Crystal clear waterfalls, Hidden Caves and Home-made Rafts
Luang Prabang, 27th April 2002
Yesterday, we'd found a tuk-tuk driver who agreed to take us to the
waterfalls & the famous Pak Ou caves for US$7 each, including all
entrance fees. I say `we found him', when in fact there are dozens
of them who hassle you, so he actually found us & gave us the best
deal. Because the entrance fees amount to about US$3, we're only
paying US$4 for a whole day trip.
The caves and the waterfalls are in opposite directions from Luang
Prabang, so we made an early start and by 7:30 we were driving
towards the caves.
The driver said he would take us through a couple of villages on the
way, at no extra cost. However, when we got to the first one, we
found it to be really commercialised and fixed to suit tourists. We
didn't have any interest in seeing such `staged' villages, so we
left & went straight to the caves.
The caves are one of the most famous sights of Luang Prabang. They
look quie bizarre, a sheer cliff by the river with a bright white
staircase running up it into a cave. The cave holds a collection of
Buddha images and is an important relgious spot for many Lao people.
After taking a few photos, we climbed up far too many steps to reach
a smaller cave with a smaller selection of buddha images. Not really
worth the effort of those stairs! Of more interest, we found a huge
line of ants running up the stairs & across the courtyard. We
watched them at work for a while, ants are fascinating creatures.
They are so organised! We watched them combine forces to carry a
dead caterpillar to their nest and how they negotiated various
obstacles.
When we were done watching the ants, we waked back down the stairs
and climbed carefully back onto the narrow, unstable boat for the
quick river crossing back to the waiting tuk-tuk.
On the way back through Luang Prabang to the waterfalls, we stopped
to pick up the driver's family. Before we'd left, he'd checked that
that would be ok with us, which of course it was. He wanted to take
his wife & kids to the waterfalls for lunch.
I hadn't planned to visit the waterfalls, I'd only done it because
the others wanted to. But I'm glad I went because they are
fantastic! The rock formations & the gushing, sparkling clear water
look spectacular. After taking some photos, we climbed up the trail
by the waterfall to reach an idyllic, isolated, scenic spot at the
top. The rock formations have made a decent sized pool with water
continually gushing into it from the waterfall above then pausing
briefly before continuing over the edge & downwards. The water is
always moving, so the water is a crystal clear blue. The rocks &
plants around this pool make the whole spot quite beautiful. The
awe-inspiring views over the edge to the mountains & hills in the
distance add an extra breath-taking edge. There is no sign of
civilisation, even though you can see for miles aroun. Just endless,
stretching fields, hills & forests.
We spent a few hours at this great place, jumping from a rocky ledge
into the refreshing, icy-cool water. It was the best way to spend a
sweleteringly hot Lao day. Ahhhhh, I could sit floating in the
chilly water all day...
When we'd had our fill of the waterfalls, we went back to our
waiting tuk-tuk. It was quite funny how although they'd come out as
a family, the mother & kids had spent the day the falls, while the
father had played cards with his mates. Watching him sitting round a
table with the playing cards looked strangely reminiscent of
European `male-bonding' pastimes. Except the obligatory peanuts,
crisp, pretzels beers, were replaced with sticky rice & iced tea.
Back in Luang Prabang town, I went to the net cafe while the others
went to freshen up at their guesthouse.
Just as I was signing out, I got a mail from Matthew Whitney saying
he was now in Luang Prabang & he wanted to meet up. Less than 5
minutes later I bumped into him by chance, about 50m down the road!
Over dinner we caught up on the things we'd been up to and Danny &
Matt had an amazing tale. They'd taken a ferry up to a small village
a few hours upriver of Mung Ngoi Neua with some rope, a machete &
the words `Bamboo Poles' written in Lao script on paper. They then
spent the day creating a huge bamboo raft with a little help from
the locals. By late evening, the raft was complete & they set off
down the river, hoping to reach Nong Khiaw.
After 9 hours of easy cruising, Mung Ngoi Neua drifted into sight,
and they decided that that would be good enough. At about 3am, they
landed back on terra firma, in one piece & quite dry! They'd done
it! They'd rafted the Nam Ou River by a raft of their design, quite
an adventure!
And before leaving Mung Ngoi Neua (by normal boat) they were the
guests of honour at a party held by their guesthouse celebrating
their achievements!
The story swapping & eating continued into the night, with various
people we'd met at other times in Lao joining us for a bit then
continuing on. You can't help but bump into people you know here! We
then did some e-mail swapping because Tillen & Sophie were heading
off to Phonsavan tomorrow while we were staying in Luang Prabang.
When all the goodbyes & `see you soon's were said, we all headed off
to our guesthouses.
Next Diary Entry >>
|
