As Nick and I have both mentioned, we had a slightly extended stay in Chiang Mai. The city is filled to the brim with Buddhist temples, and one of the most famous is perched atop Doi Suthep (I think Doi is Thai for mountain). This is the large chedi in the center of the wat on top of the mountain. It took us 306 very sweaty steps to reach the top, but the wat was full of Buddhist art, orchids, and lovely views of the valley below.

Oddly enough, we also found this likeness among the temples at Doi Suthep.









We rode in the back of a pick-up truck up there, and on a mountain road with approximately 1800 curves, Nick and I both felt relatively "unhinged" after the ride.








Despite my own panic that grew out of changes in travel plans, our entrance into Laos went pretty much as smoothly as possible and we settled into our adorable guesthouse (this is our balcony) shortly after arriving here.






This is the Mekong. It is weird for me -- and I can imagine even weirder for someone my parents' age -- to visit an area scattered with foreign yet familiar names. Vietnam will of course be even more like that; but having heard the name "Mekong" so many times in a particular context, it is almost eerie to arrive at its banks myself.


We don't really have any photos from the Grand Palace (they are prohibited inside the building), which was abruptly vacated in 1975 when the new Lao government banished the Royal Family to northern Laos (it is rumored that they were exiled specifically to caves). The palace itself is quite beautiful, and includes a lot of incredible Lao and Buddhist art, as well as a tea set given by Mr. and Mrs. Charles de Gaulle to the King and his wife. This picture is of the temple on the palace grounds.

We have two more nights in Luang Prabang before going to a small town called Vang Vieng, where there are lots of outdoor activities like tubing, caving, and kayaking. Tomorrow, we will also visit a nearby waterfall and cave (which serves as a repository for "extra" Buddhas). We'll have one more night in Luang Prabang before leaving Laos and flying to Siem Reap, Cambodia -- our base for exploring Angkor Wat.