Luang Prabang

It's up at the crack of dawn with the monks. They are already parading past our hotel when we emerge bleary eyed, at 5:45 am. After a quick demonstration on how to serve sticky rice (alms) to a monk (you must take off your shoes and kneel before them), we get ready to receive the line of some 300 monks who come each day to get their daily rations of rice from the local people. Monks are not allowed to cook anything themselves as they might accidentally kill some poor innocent insect which might happen by. Bad karma!

When our rice bowls were empty, it's back to our hotel for our morning rations, aka breakfast. Our guide, Toubee, picks us up at 8:15 to visit the Wat Xieng Thong -- yes, another pagoda. It's considered to one of the most beautiful in Luang Prabang. It has several layers of roof which sweep down almost to the ground, and is covered with shimmering mosaics, including a tree of life covering one whole side.

Next, it's down to the Mekong river for a boat ride to the sacred Pak Ou Buddha Caves. On the way, we stop to sample the local moonshine -- rice wine and whiskey -- made in an old fashioned barrel still. There were also several vendors there selling mostly textiles. We continue on to the caves, where another 250 step steep climb awaits us. There are two caves, one shallow and one deep, which are home to thousands of Buddha which have been placed there by locals since the 16th century.

After our climb, it's time to eat again, so we go across the river to a local restaurant, then journey back down the river. Before returning to our hotel, we make a side trip to the weaving, paper making, and silver factories.

After a couple of hours of siesta, we wander through the night markets, make a few more purchases, and have pizza and spagetti at a local restaurant.