We got up around 7am so we could get breakfast before heading to the airport. The hostel was in an area that Tetsuko knows well, so it was really nice for me to just follow her around. We got breakfast from a street vendor- rice, fried egg, mystery meat (pork?) and then dunkin' donuts coffee. Apparently there's no DD in Japan, so this was Tetsuko's request.
 |
| 7-11 food options! |
Since Tetsuko knows mass transit well, we decided to go by MRT (sky train) and then bus (didn't happen) to the airport. We missed the bus and had to take a taxi. The driver was a total ass, tried to rip us off from the start and then texted and talked on his phone the entire drive. Oh Thailand- exactly as I remember!
The flight was delayed, but then quick. Only an hour from Bangkok to Luang Prabang. We flew on Air Asia for $66, which included the baggage fee (one way trip). The plane was small and was flying soo close to the mountains- it was pretty crazy how narrow the spaces we were flying in were.
Americans can only get a visa on arrival for $36, cash only. Japanese citizens are free and don't even stand in line!
We'd arranged to get picked up at the airport, and I'm glad we did because there didn't seem to be many tuktuks.
For whatever reason, you cannot get Laotian Kip outside of Laos. I chose to use my debit card at the airport to get money from the ATM. $1 = 8,000 kip. So yeah, doing that math is FUN! (Note- exchange leftover Kip before leaving the country... Now we both have Kip that we can't exchange anywhere!).
I booked us a private room with 2 beds, AC, and bathroom for $30 per night. Andy, the owner was so nice and accommodating. He answered all of our questions and gave us suggestions, then we went to wander around.
The guest house is in a good location and the town is relatively small. You could walk around the entire place in a day.
Around dusk the night market began. The night market takes up the entire main road and is full of vendors selling touristy stuff. We happened upon an alley way that was packed with "Buffet" food vendors. Each stall had a different variety of vegetarian options- veggies, noodles, tofu. It was 15,000 kip (less than $2!) to fill a bowl with whatever you wanted. There was some meat and fish, but that cost extra. A large beer cost 12,000 kip.
After a long day, I was passed out by 10pm!
Comments