Arriving in Luang Prabang

If you'd asked me to give a list of countries I never thought I would visit, Laos would probably have been on it. But when we decided we were going to Chiang Mai (well, it was suggested originally by L as a follow on to Phuket), I did the old skyscanner thing of asking it to give me suggested destinations. Luang Prabang came up, the guidebook was consulted, booking.com offered some interesting hotel options, and a choice was made. Funnily enough, quite independently L and La came here in the summer, and when they heard we had also booked it they assured us we would really enjoy it. I think we will.

A short hop from Chiang Mai (following more damp wanderings this morning - I think Chiang Mai is a bit of an acquired taste and I have to say that Buddhist Temples don't really do it for me), the flight into Luang Prabang offered amazing views of the Mekong River and the hills around. The visa process and immigration was quite smooth (an interesting production line...) and the transfer into town was also very easy, as we had booked it in advance. We followed this chap and his silver balloons for quite a way. I wonder what it is all about.

After settling into the hotel, we headed out and found something to eat. Luang Prabang is a very touristy place, but in a nice not annoying way. It has a night market, but it's tasteful and not tacky. And there are a very large number of tasty and attractive looking food options. Tonight we went for cheap eats in the form of a Lao interpretation of pizza, which was perfectly good. It wasn't quite as cheap as last night's Taiwanese, but it was certainly good value.

Really looking forward to more exploring in the morning, and perhaps to planning some excursions.