A Little Taste of Laos

I climbed the hill in the center of Luang Prabang today to get a view of the city. It is amazing to me how sparsely populated this city is, considering that it is the second largest city in the country. It gives you an idea about life in Laos. The country’s population is only 5.6 million and 75% of the population lives in rural areas.





On the way down the hill, I passed many Buddha images, but this reclining Buddha had the most serene face I think I have seen on a statue.

In the evening, Rebecca and I went to see a traditional dance performance. It was especially nice to see the generations collaborating; the teenagers performed the dancing and the older generation provided the music and singing.

Afterwards, we headed for the alley of street food vendors who had lost generator power, and were therefore working by candlelight.

I bought a whole fish on a stick and brought it over to the vegetarian street buffet to join Rebecca, who is a vegetarian. I am not sure how the rest of the vegetarians felt about having a fish at the table, but no sooner had I sat down then I had a feline friend sitting next to me crying the angriest, most desperate cry I have ever heard. Now tell me, what cat hangs out at the vegetarian buffet? Clearly not a smart one! Naturally, I was not going to feed this cat at the table, but after I finished, I made a small pile of scraps for him away from the food area. Sorry, Darwin.