Day 3&4 in Luang PrabangApr 18, 2012
|
|
Elephant Trek
Attempting to cross the river
Crossing the river
| Hi Friends and Family, Well, we have had busy few days. Two days ago we travelled two hours up the Mekong River to visit the Pak Ou caves and Whiskey village. First stop was Whisky Village. They make "Lao Lao"- very strong whiskey made from rice- YUCK! Like diesel fuel running down your throat, but worse- not that I actually know what diesel fuel tastes like. The bottles contain not only the liquor, but also snakes, scorpions and other weird creatures that you really don't want to be looking at each time your pour yourself a drink. They also make red and white rice wine, not bad- I bought some white. A little further up up river, we reached the Pak Ou caves. These caves contain thousands of Buddha images and are of great religious importance to the Theravada Buddhists in Laos. These caves were converted into Buddhist temples in the 15th century and are used as a site for old Buddha images that can no longer be venerated in a temple, either because they are damaged or the temple they were displayed in has been destroyed. During Laos New Year, pilgrimages of Lao people go by boat to the caves and perform the washing ceremony of all the old Buddha images. Previously this was performed by the King and members of the Royal Family but now is performed by the Governor of Luang Prabang and local families. So needless to say, it was busy at the caves as it is the New Year.(we forgot our computer cord for the video camera, so pictures will have to come later- after we buy one in Bangkok tomorrow). Interesting, but busy- and super hot. Have I mentioned the temp has not been below 35c since we arrived ( plus humidity). Yesterday, we had a wonderful adventure to the Elephant Village. We were the only tourists there. Very cool to have the entire place to ourselves. The village is a small private operation that focuses on the protection and rehabilitation of elephants. They rescue elephants from abusive work, such as logging camps(many here- very sad- for some reason many of the locals have had this slash and burn tradition). Our day consisted of a elephant trek through the jungle and up a mountain- which required crossing the river. I had the amazing opportunity to be the mahout(ours gave the reigns to me - should say ears because that is how you direct them along with your commands). Sitting on top of her neck almost on the head, you tuck your knees into the tops of her ears and then push one side or the other for right or left direction. A few of the commands (in case you get the opportunity someday) Forward: "pai" Stop: "how" Turn:"baen" using the ears. The one thing you need to adjust to( kind of hard as it is quite gross) the elephant takes spit from her mouth via her trunk and sprays it on her back and neck. First we thought it was "snot" from her trunk. It was a constant thing throughout the trip and always seemed to go right in your face or up your arms. We thought she was mad at us until found out otherwise. Upon reaching the river again, we had a beautiful bamboo raft waiting for us( you will see in the background of one of the elephant pictures)from there we floated back to the camp and ate a wonderful traditional Lao lunch with wine, fruit and homemade cookies. What a peaceful and relaxing end. Restful sleep was in order after this day. Will write a quick update on our last day today on a separate page....so a bit more rambling from me is still to come. |
Advertisement 
|
