Luang Prabang is one of the two
big cities in Laos and hosts affordable top-class cuisine but also the nightly
food market where you can pile up a plate of vegetarian food for 10.000 kips (£0.80).
The colonial buildings and 33 Buddhist temples makes you reach for your camera
at every turn. The peninsula is bounded by the Nam Khan river and Mekong Delta
so you can take boats to many destinations, kayak or just walk along the river.
After a day of exploring on a bike I’ve visited the Wat Xieng Thong (temple), the Old quarter, the bamboo bridges and the old concrete bridge and finished my day with a meal and browse on the night market. The next day I took a tuk-tuk to The Kuang Si waterfall and had a swim in the very cold water.
The next day I started my 3 day elephant mahout experience just outside Luang Prabang. I wanted to have an experience with animals during my trip and felt that his was the one I would do. During the 3 days I would learn about elephant background, information and the mahouts verbal and physical ‘commands ‘ to communicate with your elephant. So on day one I learned to sit on my elephant called Sophie’s back, how to control her and practice my knowledge the next couple of days. The day starts at 6.30am when you collect your elephant from the forest where she stayed the night, walk back to the eco-lodge and feed her some sugar cane. Than walk to the river for her (and mine) bath and ‘park’ her at the day centre where tourist will visit and maybe have a ride on her back. As an elephant eats 250kg a day you give her some banana plant trunks and pineapple leaves. Then it was time for me to have breakfast and get changed and return to spend the afternoon with her. One day we went out on a 2 hrs trek into the forest and had a lovely packed lunch there before heading back. When it’s time to take your elephant back to her resting place you first bath her in the river and walk to her ‘bed ‘for the night.
The eco-lodge is a lovely location just outside Luang Prabang and I was lucky to have a room with a view to myself as it was very quiet. Apart from the early start I had time to relax and enjoy the beautiful Laos riverside.
My last day I kayaked back to Luang Prabang with my guide Phat and returned with great memories and a new friend called Sophie.
Elephant mahout experience, www.mahoutecolodge.comAfter a day of exploring on a bike I’ve visited the Wat Xieng Thong (temple), the Old quarter, the bamboo bridges and the old concrete bridge and finished my day with a meal and browse on the night market. The next day I took a tuk-tuk to The Kuang Si waterfall and had a swim in the very cold water.
The next day I started my 3 day elephant mahout experience just outside Luang Prabang. I wanted to have an experience with animals during my trip and felt that his was the one I would do. During the 3 days I would learn about elephant background, information and the mahouts verbal and physical ‘commands ‘ to communicate with your elephant. So on day one I learned to sit on my elephant called Sophie’s back, how to control her and practice my knowledge the next couple of days. The day starts at 6.30am when you collect your elephant from the forest where she stayed the night, walk back to the eco-lodge and feed her some sugar cane. Than walk to the river for her (and mine) bath and ‘park’ her at the day centre where tourist will visit and maybe have a ride on her back. As an elephant eats 250kg a day you give her some banana plant trunks and pineapple leaves. Then it was time for me to have breakfast and get changed and return to spend the afternoon with her. One day we went out on a 2 hrs trek into the forest and had a lovely packed lunch there before heading back. When it’s time to take your elephant back to her resting place you first bath her in the river and walk to her ‘bed ‘for the night.
The eco-lodge is a lovely location just outside Luang Prabang and I was lucky to have a room with a view to myself as it was very quiet. Apart from the early start I had time to relax and enjoy the beautiful Laos riverside.
My last day I kayaked back to Luang Prabang with my guide Phat and returned with great memories and a new friend called Sophie.
Pictures of my experience :www.dropbox.com/sh/7ssr1rqr0f1q7ky/8ztqjsBA2o
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| Angel and Sophie |
Stunning pictures, Angel - amazing experience.
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