Luang Prabang: We arrive, "Wats going on", and dinner at View Kheam Khong

 

As we arrived at Luang Prabang Airport and walked to the transportation stand, things just felt right. We were dropped off on Ban Wat Nong, and went looking for accommodation. Our first choice was full, but just as with Vientiane, we lucked out, and chose The Chang Inn. Quite expensive by Luang Prabang standards, but it was located away from the real touristy part of Luang Prabang. Which proved to be a blessing as I'll describe a bit later.

 

If you thought Vientiane was laid back, just arriving in Luang Prabang dropped my blood pressure and pulse rate several notches. We were indeed charmed by this UNESCO World Heritage site. But even more captivated by the people, who, though a bit quiet at first, are warm and friendly.

Make no mistake about it; parts of Luang Prabang, especially Sisavong from Luang Prabang Primary School to Kitsalat are very touristy. But even during the busiest hours, except for a short period in the morning, and the afternoon rush, things are relatively quiet.

 

Even the evenings exhude a quiet charm. And though we didn't spend much.... or in fact, hardly any time on the main tourist drag, we walked past it several times a day.

 

There are only 4 main streets going East to West in Central Luang Prabang, so you'll be familiar with the town in no time. There was one Australian couple who caught the same van to the airport in Vientiane, whom we kept seeing. And we saw one young lady from Singapore, named Audrey, who came up to me, because she thought she knew me, everyday. In other destinations, when we started seeing the same folks more than twice it was time to leave. In Luang Prabang, we joked that no day would be complete until we saw them!

Luang Prabang is the "City of Wats", with over 30 temples! Don't worry, I won't bore you with all of our Wat photos. Here are just a few:

Wat Xiengthong:

 

Called the "Golden Tree Monastary" this beautiful Wat is located on the tip of the Luang Prabang Peninsula.

 

Built in 1560, the Monastary was under royal patronage until the monarchy was terminated in 1975. The North Gate has an direct entry from the Mekong River.

For us the most interesting of the 20 or so structures in the Wat were the tapestry of the "Tree of Life" and the Tripitaka Library(built in 1828), with it's beautiful mosiacs of local traditions.

 

If you check out only 1 Wat in Luang Prabang, this should be the one.

Mount Phousi:

Smack dab in the middle of town, and right across the street from the National Museum are the steps up Mount Phousi (also called Phu Si):

 

At the top of the mountain, you'll get a total 360 degree view of peninsula-like Luang Prabang, with The Khan River, Vatmou-Enna (the main street from the airport) 

And a distant view of Wat Phol Phao (aka Santi Chedi - The Peace Pagoda).

And the beautiful Mekong and the distant mountains on the other.

 

And of course at the summit of Phousi is ..... you guessed it; a Wat:

 

Check out the "little guy" taking a rest near the Buddha in the lower right hand corner. Rising out of the summit is That Chomsi:

 

Which can be seen from all over Luang Prabang.

We left via the winding stairs, opposite of the way we came:

 

Pastanother shrine (not really a Wat), and large collection of Buddhas:

 

And even Buddha's Footprint....a photo oppotunity not to be missed!

Since we had such a wonderful dinner on the banks of the Mekong in Vientiane, we thought we'd do it again here in Luang Prabang. There are many restaurants lining the cliffs alongside the Mekong. Every Guesthouse has a restaurant! View Kheam Khong was one recommended by Lonely Planet, so we thought we'd give it a try. Being famished, we ordered a ton of food; and many dishes that I'd been waiting to try.

We started with the Khai Pene served with the traditional accompanyment of Jeow Bong:

   

This was love at first bite! Khai Pene is made from river moss that is dried and pressed with sesame seeds, garlic, tomatos, and the like. It is fried before serving. Jeow Bong is Luang Prabang's signature chili dip, garlicky-salty-mildly sweet-spicy, laced with Water Buffalo Skin for texture. The Khai Pene tastes like high-octane fried kelp with the bitterness toned down, or nori with flavor cranked up times 10. I'd end up getting this dish whenever I could. Great with a Beer Lao.

Here's the Missus's love at first bite; the Luang Prabang Watercress Salad:

 

The Missus loved the tender and leafy, shoot-like watercress in Luang Prabang, which was less bitter than any watercress I'd ever had. If I could only tell you how many times the Missus had this dish in Luang Prabang. I've already covered the dressing, which is egg yolk based. This was the second best version of this dish we had in Luang Prabang.

Fish Laap (Fish Larb):

 

The fish was kind of mushy, but not muddy in flavor. A bland version of Laap.

The Lonely Planet recommended the Fried Green Chili with Duck:

 

Which was nothing more than a mediocre stir-fry. And the duck was tougher than the water buffalo skin in the Jeow Bong!

I'd been looking forward to having the classic Laung Prabang version of Or Lam, a very distinctive "stew". So we ordered the Or Lam Pa (fish stew):

 

Again the Missus had problems with the "bitter" flavors that pervade certain Lao dishes. The fish was mushy and without flavor. There were lots of hard pieces of lemongrass stem, and of course there was the Sa-Khan, pieces of stem from the Piper ribesioides tree.....more like branches. The Sa-Khan when eaten....you actually knaw on the stem/branch (minus bark), gives you a tingling sensation, not unlike Sichuan Peppercorns. I was to help make a version of this when I took a cooking class, which tasted much better than this.

Half the fun was just having a Beer Lao (or two), marveling that we were actually in Luang Prabang. Sitting in this empty restaurant, watching the Mekong quietly flowing by, I was embraced by a feeling of tranquility. Author Natacha Du Pont de Bie mentioned a legend that said the site for Luang Prabang was chosen because it was "so remarkably beautiful". All I know is here I was having dinner (again) on the banks of the Mekong, watching some folks fishing....

 

And I don't ever recall feeling so relaxed during a vacation.........

Comments

[caninecologne]

wow, you're quick! one minute i'm reading about the Food Cabin in Rosemead, then this pops up.
fyi - i've been enjoying reading your posts on Laos and seeing all of the beautiful photos and salivating over your descriptions of the food...

[Kirk]

Hi CC - LOL! I'm kinda late tonight! ;o) Luang Prabang was just a wonderful place.... for once I wasn't ready to return home.

[sawyer]

beautiful pictures of both the scenery and food. it must have been so nice! i really like that tree of life

[kat]

from the second photo, I thought it may be a relaxing trip...thanks for sharing, beautiful photos and narrative.

[Passionate Eater]

The khai pene almost looked like beef jerky at first. It must have tasted amazing with all of those concentrated vegetable flavors. What does moss taste like? Like seaweed?

[Kirk]

Hi Sawyer - Luang Prabang was wonderful!

Hi Kat - My blood pressure dropped to levels not seen in decades!

Hi PE - It does look like beef jerky, doesn't it? It tastes pretty much like very good nori..... but a bit more salty, and greater depth of flavor.

[jay]

sabaidee, Nice photos

[Kirk]

Hi Jay - Thanks for dropping by and commenting!

[Carol]

Love that Tree of Life. I think my blood pressure dropped a few just from reading the post.

[Chubbypanda]

I have to tell you, the food thus far on this trip series has been absolutely amazing. You two are so adventurous, inviting random locals to dine with you and trying so many new things.

[Kirk]

Hi Carol - I had to be literally dragged away from Luang Prabang.

Hi CP - There was just so much that was new to us..... and the people in Laos are wonderful. It was so easy to do what we did, anyone could do it.

[jeffrey c]

Kirk,
you've opened my eyes to the beauty of this region. Before, I would have thought just heat and humidity. A place that the long ago Chinese emperor's sent as a punishment diplomatic posting their problem courtiers to for exile and punishment. But its beautiful.

[Kirk]

Hi Jeffrey - Luang Prabang is quite beautiful, in more ways than one.

[anie williams]

Hi Kirk, it's more than a distraction to read about Luang Prabang in particular, I was there earlier this year, hope to go next Feb. Even though there was so many tourists, they all chilled out..
I was hours in Xiengthong, & noticed how tourists would come through the gate, slow down, & start smiling.
It's like how places used to be,
somehow.

[Kirk]

Hi Anie - Yes, Luang Prabang was beautiful.....I couldn't believe how relaxed we felt.

[Joseba]

Haha, you are eating like the minorities!

By that I mean mostly vegetables and I sometimes say because they live in the mountains and are poor. But what an adventure.

I want you to visit China next time because I also enjoy authentic Chinese food.

JOSEBA

[Kirk]

Hi Joseba - Yes, we are.... we like to eat what the people eat...... because most times it is fresh, tasty, and unpretentious. And I'm sure we'll make it to China (many times, since the Missus is from there) one day! Thanks for stopping by!