Laos

  We arrived by plane from Hanoi, a one hour flight. We are staying in a town in Northern Laos, Luang Prabang, which is a World Unesco Heritage Site . It was the ancient royal capital of the country till the communists took over in 1975. The town if full of ancient Buddhist temples and monasteries. The Old Town contains many of the original French houses.  The town sites on the banks of the mighty Mekong River which flows out of the mountains of China about 90 miles north of here. The riverfront is lined with very nice outdoor restaurants , we eat there every night. 

    This area, along with parts of Myanmar (Burma) and Thailand, is the Golden Triangle, an region known for its traditional opium production. Laos is now a communist country ruled by a Politburo of Army Generals. It is considered one of the poorest and most corrupt countries in the world. 

    Luang Prabang is a prosperous town benefiting from a recent surge in tourism. Compared to many old Asian capitals, it is very well preserved and still quite inexpensive. Nice hotel rooms are around $35 a night,  with private bungalows like ours are a bit more. Our private porch , where they bring us breakfast, overlooks the river. We had a nice dinner last night splitting 4 dishes for under $7.00. Beers are $1.00. Private guides are cheap too.

    The pace of life is slow here, there's hardly any traffic. The merchants are polite, and unlike so many places in Asia, not aggressive. It's a refreshing change. 

   Our porch has floor futons, plus a nice breakfast table. Fortunately we have AC as it's over 100 every day. The mornings are cool till 9AM . Although it's not very buggy, this is an region with malaria so we are using the mosquito netting and taking malaria drugs.