Last morning in Luang Prabang

Friday 17th Feb 2012 Sitting sipping coffee and watching the world float by on the Mekong river. Luang Prabang is a gorgeous spot - but for how long? I spoke with an American woman whose husband works for UNESCO. He is here to help look at how a place like this can maximise the potential of tourism at the same not having it ruined. 5 years ago there were a few guest houses and now there are hundreds. Food is still cheap - top restaurant will only cost $10 but generally spending $3-5 and the food is fresh. The people are gentle and peaceful. When the government came into power they worked with the head monks whereas in other such countries the religion was surpressed. This has been a major benefit as the people could still worship openly. I must admit it is so worth getting up early and just sit and watch the monks walk along the street. This morning I just sat and watched as a group of them walked past and then suddenly 3 little ones took off down a little side street and a 4th one wanted to but got a harsh word of warning from a senior monk behind him - I wonder where the 3 escapees ran off to?