Dec. 16 – Fun day. We took our chances on renting a motor bike to do some exploring. It’s only been 33 years since my horrific motorcycle accident that laid me up for 18 months! I caught on real quick, as if my last ride was yesterday. We traveled on dirt roads through rice fields and worn out trails. We found ourselves at the caves on the sides of the limestone cliffs. We needed a guide to help us explore. We paid 20,000 kip ($2.50 USD) and paired up with 2 Americans, the only Americans we met in Laos. They are students at UC Santa Barbara (Casey’s alma mater). The cave is a bit different than the ones we explored in Thailand. The climbing is steep with incredibly narrow entries. It was very challenging but loads of fun.

The next day, a stomach virus got me. I stayed in bed watching movies while Michelle kept herself entertained riding a rented bike around town and the river.
Dec. 18, we took off for Luang Prabang, Laos. It is a 6 hr. bus ride through beautiful mountains and villages. It’s always a blast to see the country side at the mercy of a driver that wants to be Mario Andretti. We made it …. It was a great feeling to arrive alive!
Luang Prabang is a small beautiful historic city on the list of UNESCO preservation sites. There is an open air market every night closing down ½ mile of the town’s main street. Buddhist Temples line the streets and hillsides and French architecture is noted for the shops and guest houses. At the market we see locally made textiles, art and clothes, all hand embroidered, sewn or woven.

Two of the major rivers in Asia run along the town and meet in Luang Prubang: the Nam Kong and Mekong. Michelle and I decided we needed to get out to explore the wild. We kayaked the Nam Kong, a 15 mile adventure through many different hill tribes. We actually got to stop with our guide Lee, to visit a tribe. Most everything that keeps this tribe and the others alive, is the river. The river supplies food, shelter, and transportation. The kayak trip made us really understand the nature of the culture in Laos. All along the 4 hour journey we saw children playing in the river yelling Michelle’s favorite greeting, “Saba-dee”, which means hello in Lao. Their lives were so simple and pure. It makes one wonder about industrialization and how good that really is.

We ended up at a water fall with large azure blue pools for swimming. It was so beautiful. One morning we got up at 6 AM to watch the monk procession receive their “aims”. The monks line up single file, head bowed, as town people and tourists kneel down in a line as well to donate the monks meal. It is a beautiful procession of orange robes and watching the ritual was very humbling. Later in the day we rented bicycles to view small villages. Once outside town, a flat tire forced us to return via tuk tuk (a motorized cart). That evening we went to a special restaurant which is pure Lao Food, mostly sticky rice and various sauces. In this culture, people eat with their hands and stick their hands into shared bowls of rice. It is considered rude to leave a piece of rice in the bowl BUT not rude to stick your hand in the same bowl as others. Go figure. In our culture, we aren’t even allowed to double dip! We also had the good fortune to hear the monks do their chanting. That was a beautiful although very different sound.

The rest of our time in Luang Prubang was shopping, eating, and temple observing and learning a bit about the native culture. We learned about the silk worm and how it works and the quality of silk made products and textiles here in Laos. They are at the top end and in demand all over the world.

At the end of 5 days here we were sad to say goodbye but it was time to move on. We flew over to Cambodia to explore ancient temples of the Kumar dynasty. The first thing we noticed is that there are mega hotels here which was quite a surprise. They are all lit up for Christmas. Our hotel is nice with a great swimming pool. Cambodia is close to the equator and very warm.

This country has gone from the good, to the bad, to the ugly during its existence, and they are still recovering from it all (quote taken out of Lonely Planet book). They have found ceramic bowls that can be dated back to 4300 B.C., pretty crazy. Again, as in the other countries we have visited, the people here are very friendly, but we find that everyone wants your business and are a bit insistent about asking for it. Tuk-tuk drivers and people selling things on the street are constantly calling out to you. After a while you just don’t hear them. Cambodia has just recently opened its door to the outside world, so it’s fairly new to tourism. The city that we are staying in called Siem Reap, its fame comes from the many temples that are located around the city, some dating as far back at the 10th Century.

We took a guided tour of Angkor Wat, which is considered the largest ancient city found here. The temple is a smorgasbord of architectural design and reliefs which tells the story of the Kings religious and spiritual history.

It is now Christmas Eve. We feel like strangers in a strange land. No Christmas music or Christmas movies. No fish dinner at Darryl and Louise’s. We are happy to have each other : - ) We wish you all a Merry Christmas and look forward to making some phone calls tomorrow. Enjoy your holidays! Our thoughts are with you.

Michelle and Dave (Pictures will be added next chance we have)