Luang Prabang, UNESCO world heritage site where the Nam Ou River meets the Mekong River. We talked so much about this river before that here we were: meeting the Mekong. Very lively city where you can feel the previous French colonisation (houses, bakeries...) Indeed, we enjoyed eating delicious cakes (oh food when you take us!) and also having a hot shower (it had been quite a while now). The city is well-known for its numerous temples and monasteries. Every morning, hundreds of monks from the various monasteries walk through the streets collecting alms. It is a ritual and not a tourist attraction... Indeed, we enjoyed our 3 days there, walking around (as the sunshine had started to shine again), going to swing in the clear blue Kuangxi Waterfall (I again surprised myself swimming in freezing cold water :-), listening to the afternoon musical ritual of the monks, having our first Lao massage at the Red Cross followed by a herbal steam sauna with locals... but we found it a bit too much... made for tourists like the Hmong market at night. Relaxing time however after our rough travelling in the North.
One of the practice of Buddhism is to give alms to the monks. Their food for the day comes from this ritual, held very early in the morning. They are only allowed to eat food given to them on the morning of each day, received either from this ceremony or from family. It is a very regimented ritual, with closely observed etiquette and routines.
Luang Prabang, UNESCO World Heritage Center
Where the Nam Ou river meets the Mekong river...
Novice monks collecting alms in the morning (dawn)
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