Luang Prabang Old Streets and Temples

Luang Prabang is a small town located at the convergent point of Mekong River and Nan Khan River. The town is surrounded by green tropical rain forest, with friendly town folks, quiet and peaceful streets, and slow-paced lifestyle. Unique Laotian-French embedded old streets and well-maintained wooden religious structures are the main attractions that lure thousands of visitors. The area has been inhabited for thousands of years. It was once the capital of Laos, and remained as the royal city until 1975.

We visited Luang Prabang in August. Like others, we were attracted by the well-preserved old streets, but nothing amazed us more than the wooden temples that remain standing for a few hundreds of years. Out of 33 temples around the town, we visited several of them, including Vat Xieng Thong, Vat Mai, Mount Phousi, and Vat Visounnarath, which were famous enough to be mentioned in tourist's guidebook. If you move fast enough, you can finish the town tour in one single day. However, we decided to stay a bit longer to experience the lifestyle of this ancient town. 

Luang Prabang town has three main streets- Khem Khong Street beside Mekong River, Kingkitsarath Street that stretches along Nam Khan River, and Sisavangvong Road, or the main street that locates between these two streets. The town is not big, so the best way to roam around is on foot.  

We can see different types of buildings along the streets- old and very much untouched buildings (upper row), or restored according to their original designs (lower row). 

French style concrete structure (upper left), wooden shops (upper right), the houses which have been resided by generations of locals, and the well-renovated gardens to catch the attention of tourists, all can be found in this old heritage town. It was a great experience to walk along the streets with lines of trees while watching the folks live their life. Well, the town brought us the feeling of walking through the tunnel of time.

With a total population around 24 thousands within the UNESCO Heritage Site, Luang Prabang town was quiet, even with the significant supplement of roaming tourists.

Vat, or temples are scattered around the town. We can see them here and there in along the streets.  These temples are made by wood. Click on the photo for bigger panorama view. 

Vat Xieng Thong is located at the northern side of the town, some 15 minutes walk from the Royal Palace Museum. The white-coloured entrance can be easily spotted from Sakkaline Road (upper left). The architecture of the entrance is different compared to other temples (upper right). There are two other entrances located at Khem Khong Road and Kounxoua Road. We need to pay entrance fee of 20,000 Kip per person. Vat Xieng Thong looks like a beautiful small wooden palace in the middle of a quiet village. The vat is opened to the visitors from 8 am to 5 pm.

Vat Xieng Thong was built in 1560, and remained as a royal temple till 1975. It was the place where the kings were crowned. A monastery for monks was built nearby the temple. The monastery is one of the oldest in Luang Prabang. Click on the photo for bigger panorama view. 

Vat Xieng Thong exhibits typical Laotian fine art and craftsmanship. Click on the photo for bigger panorama view. 

The tree of life is illustrated at the outer wall (upper right), while the inner wall was painted with Buddhism-related stories in gold colour, such as the law of Karma (upper right). There is a royal funeral chapel located opposite of Vat Xieng Thong (lower right). The naga ceremonial barge was used during the funeral of the kings. It is now stored in the funeral chapel. 

 We took a rest at Viewpoint Cafe to enjoy the scenery at the meeting point of two rivers- Mekong and Nam Khan. The cafe was the best place to see the convergence point of these two rivers. The rivers were not big at that meeting point. The view, nothing spectacular. However, we enjoyed the peaceful environment very much. Then, we took 15 minutes to walk to Vat Mai. 

Vat Mai is located beside the Royal Palace Museum. Vat Mai means new temple- not a very appropriate for a temple which was built in 1796. The temple is famous with the drawing on the walls that depict daily life of the locals. The four-tier roof is a traditional Lao architecture. The vat was opened to visitors from 8 am to 5 pm, with entrance fee 10,000 Kip per person.

The front lobby of Vat Mai with well-decorated wall and pillars.

Royal Palace Museum is located beside Wat Mai. There are two other structures in the palace's compound- the Royal Temple and Royal Theater.

Royal Palace Museum was completed in 1909 as the residence of the King Sisavangvong. Bedrooms, living room, dining room, and special rooms used for royal activities were well maintained in their original state. The place brought us the memory of the Independent Palace in Ho Chi Minh City. There is nothing much to see in Royal Palace Museum, but worth a visit. The entrance fee was 30,000 Kip.  The palace operates daily from 8 am to 11 am, and 1:30 pm to 4 pm every day. It is closed on Tuesday afternoon.

The ticketing counter is located on the left side of the entrance (upper left). Royal Ballet Theater is located on the left side of the palace (upper right). The palace is the storage room where we can keep our bags for free. We can't bring our bags into the palace museum. There is a big pond in the compound of the palace museum (lower right). The most striking structure within palace's compound is the royal temple. It is gold-clad and can been seen from the main road. We can get more information about the palace museum at Tourism at Luang Prabang website.

Wat Visounnarath (or Vat Visounnarath) was built by King Visounnarath in 1512. It is in fact the oldest still-in-operation vat in Luang Prabang. However, the temple was burnt to the ground on 1887. The one that we can see today is the not-so-real replica built in 1898. We can see the original Vat Visounnarath via a drawing by Louis Delaporte. Walking from Royal Palace Museum to Vat Visounnarath took us around 15 minutes. Wat Visounnarath was opened to public from 8 am to 5 pm, and the entrance to the compound was free.

The stupa in front of Vat Visounnarath was built in 1515. It was named That Pathoum, or Stupa of the Great Lotus. Now, the stupa is more popularly referred as Watermelon Stupa due to its shape.

Mount Phousi is right in front of Royal Palace Museum. It is just a hill. In order to visit the vat and enjoying the view at the top of the hill, we need to take the challenge- climb the stairs. The ticketing counter is located at the half way up the hill (upper left). For those who dare not continue their trip, they can take a rest under the bodhi tree a few steps away from the counter (upper right). The tree was given by Indian Government as a token of friendship. The stairs looked intimidating, but it was not that scary when we put them under our feet. The entrance fee of the hill was 20,000 Kip, and it was opened to visitors from 5:30 am to 6 pm.

The temple on the top of Mount Phousi.

The view from Mount Phousi towards Nam Khan River.

The view towards Mekong River.

Luang Prabang Traditional Arts and Ethnology Center is located beside Kitsalat Road, around 7-minute walk from Royal Palace. The center consisted of two major rooms with clothes and some traditional tools on display. The entrance fee was 25,000 Kip per person (free for Laos Citizen), and it was indeed quite expensive, compared to the information and exhibits available. We just need to take less than 20 minutes to see everything in the center. But still, we would encourage all to visit the center, as the entrance fee contributes to the development of the ethnics around Luang Prabang. The center operates from 9 am - 6 pm daily, from Tuesday to Sunday. 

Sample of the decorative beads for the visitors to touch. 

Luang Prabang is a small town. If you walk fast, you will finish visiting all the places of interest before sunset. In order to blend in and enjoy the lifestyle of the town folks, we stayed in the town for four days. We stayed in a small guesthouse beside Royal Palace Museum. We spent a day at Kuang Si Water Fall, which was 1 hour away from Luang Prabang heritage area by tut-tut. We will share our experience there, and of course, the food, shopping, transportation, and accommodation in Luang Prabang in our next posts.

More about our stories in Luang Prabang are available:

[Luang Prabang Old Streets and Temples] [Getting Around Luang Prabang]

[Kuang Si Waterfall] [All Our Destinations]

Six Must Visit Places along New MRT Line in Kuala Lumpur

New Mass Rapid Transit System from Kajang to Sungai Buloh was opened on 17 July 2017. We took a ride on the new transit system middle of August. We would like to highlight 6 interesting places along the MRT line for both local and international visitors- Medan Sate Kajang at Stadium Kajang Station, Central Market and Petaling Street at Pasar Seni Station, National Museum at Museum Negara Station, Bukit Bintang Shopping hub and Alor Road Food street at Bukit Bintang Station. We can visit all these places in one or two days.

1. Medan Sate Haji Samuri, Stadium Kajang Station 

Kajang Satay, or Sate Kajang is famous, and deems to be the best in Malaysia. Want to take a bite on the original Kajang Satay? Then Medan Sate Kajang Haji Samuri is the place for you! The location- second last station before Kajang Terminal, if you are travelling from Kuala Lumpur. 

Medan Sate Kajang Haji Samuri is located around 100 meters away from the station (on the right side of the stadium, with a big yellow signage). The surrounding area used to be the busiest area in Kajang and finding a parking space was a big headache. Now, not anymore. With MRT, we can eat Kajang Satay hassle free. 

Medan Sate Kajang Haji Samuri offers several types of satay, such as chicken, beef, fish, mutton, and chicken liver. Chicken, beef, and fish are our favorite (upper left). The satay eatery is big (upper right). Air conditioned hall is provided without extra charge. There are some antiques displayed in the air conditioned room, including old irons, utensils, pottery, music instruments, and historical photo replicas.

2. Bukit Bintang Shopping Hub, Bukit Bintang Station

Bukit Bintang is a shopping heaven. It is the largest and busiest shopping hub in Kuala Lumpur area. Bukit Bintang Station has several exits, linking it to Pavilion KL, Fahrenheit 88, Sungei Wang Plaza, Starhill Gallery, Lot 10, Berjaya Time Square and several other shopping malls. Shopping is not our favorite, but we do visit Bukit Bintang once in a while. 

If you are fancy about luxury products, Starhill Gallery and Pavilion KL are the places for you. If you are a strong supporter of "the cheaper the better", then you can go to Sungei Wang, Fahrenheit 88, and Berjaya Time Square. You can find many nice eateries in Lot 10 and Pavilion KL.

The big cube-shaped digital screen in front of Lot 10 is an icon of Bukit Bintang (upper left). Fahrenheit 88 (upper right), Starhill Gallery (lower right), and Pavilion KL are located a few steps away from each other.

Mall hooping can easily take a whole day, or even two.

3. Jalan Alor (Alor Road), Bukit Bintang Station

Jalan Alor is quiet during daytime and turns into a busy food street in the evening. Restaurants and hawkers start their business around 5 - 6 pm till midnight, serving mostly local Chinese food. Limited Vietnamese, Thai, and Cambodian food are available as well. 

Some special Malaysian food can be found there, such as bat kut teh (pork rib with Chinese herbal soup), satay, Hainan chicken rice, fried oyster omelette, char siew pork, Hokkien fried noodle, and, a lot of durian (a bit expensive though, according to season). The overall taste of the food, above average.

If you don't really like the hot and sweaty weather in Malaysia, then you can opt for the air-conditioned restaurants. MRT Bukit Bintang Station Exit A is right beside Jalan Alor.  

5:30 pm, people start gathering at Jalan Alor. The street is closed to traffic. Somehow, there might be one or two cars coming in occasionally.

Customers can choose to sit outside of the restaurants, right on the road. However, for us, we always opt to sit inside air-conditioned room.

Fried chicken drumette or more popularly referred as boxing chicken in Malaysia (upper left), fried oyster omelette (upper right), grilled fish (lower right), and fried durian are some food that we like in Jalan Alor.

4. Central Market, Pasar Seni Station

Pasar Seni Station is located at the convergent point of two rivers- Klang River and Gombak River. Attractions nearby- Central Market and Petaling Street. Central Market was built by Chinese Capitan (leader) Yap Ah Loy in 1883. It served as wet market for the locals until it was transformed into local handicraft and art center in 1986. This award winning market is one of the most visited place in Kuala Lumpur. We strolled in Central Market for almost one hour before proceeding to Petaling Street. 

 The outlook of the market is well-conserved. Take a look at these old photos of Central Market.

Fully air conditioned building makes Central Market a cozy shopping mall for visitors. The shops were nicely decorated, selling various types of local and international products. 

Chinese-themed walkway in Central Market.

We could find some exquisite local products, including Luwak Coffee (upper left), Chinese artworks (upper right), wood crafts (lower right), and Malaysian batik. Other souvenirs such as fridge magnets, key chains, simple wood and bronze sculptures, t-shirt, rings, wrist bands, and snacks were available as well. 

5. Petaling Street, Pasar Seni Station

Petaling Street is no doubt another big tourist attraction in Kuala Lumpur. It is located around 150 meters from Central Market. Many tourism websites referred Petaling Street as China Town. Well, we don't really agree with that, as most of the shops there are neither owned nor currently operated by Chinese. Nevertheless, it is still a big tourist magnet, selling cheap items like souvenirs, watches, clothes, electronic gadgets, bags, and spectacles. Many of these items carries famous brands. Are these genuine products? That is the question that we need to answer with our wisdom. 

We can find some nice food at Petaling Street. Kim Lian Kee Restaurant provides special char-cook food. The restaurant was painted with catchy red colour, located at the junction in the middle of Petaling Street (upper left). The restaurant is nicely decorated (upper right). We took Hokkien fried noodle and roasted pork at the restaurant. The taste was not excellent, but good enough for us to come back again in future.

We would like to recommend some of the very old stalls at Petaling Street. First one is Kim Soya Bean (upper left), selling soy milk and douhua (soybean pudding) (upper left). The soy milk tasted nice and concentrated. The douhua was not fine and smooth enough, but tasty (upper right). Next, Air Mata Kucing (lower right). The drink was made by the mixture of long ngan fruit, winter melon, monk fruit, and sugar- a good thirst quencher at the middle of warm sunny day. The stall has been in operation since our first visit to Petaling Street more than 15 years ago. Last but not least, dried meat. Oloiya and Loong Kee are two old shops selling nice dried meat. We like Oloiya more, personally.

There are an Indian Temple- Sri Maha Mariamman and a Chinese Temple- Guan Di Temple nearby Pasar Seni Station. These temples are not very attractive for us. Nevertheless, you may consider visit them if you have never being to any of Chinese or Indian temple before.

6. National Museum, Muzium Negara Station

Another station for tourists- Muzium Negara or National Museum. Muzium Negara Station is connected to KL Central as well. National Museum is a good place for us the learn about the history of Malaysia through artifacts. We could walk to the museum from KL Central, but with the new MRT station, the museum is just steps away from the exit.

Our personal opinion- although National Museum is not the best museum in Malaysia, it is still a good one around greater Kuala Lumpur, which worth to spend one hour or two. 

Travelling with MRT is convenient, cheap, faster, and safer. With all together 31 stations along the line, the MRT connects towns around Kuala Lumpur to the cosmopolitan. As the MRT is designed mainly for the usage of the locals, many of the stations are built at the residential or local shopping  areas with low tourist interest (especially for international visitors). 

Nevertheless, with effective ticketing system, clean environment, high frequency of train (7 - 8 minutes interval), ample parking car park, feeder bus and taxi connections, and strategically designed walkways, the new MRT system will definitely increase the mobility of the people around greater Kuala Lumpur.

We started our trip from Kajang Terminal. We can buy the ticket from the counter (upper left) or via ticketing machines (upper right), or we can use "Touch & Go" card to pay at the auto gate (lower right). The platform was clean and the arrival of the train was clearly stated.

We found useful map in the station (upper left). These maps show the exits and the direction to the places of interest nearby. Some places of interest are connected to the stations by sky-bridge or covered walkway (upper right). Taxi station (lower right) and feeder bus stations are available for some stations.

A train can accommodate up to 1200 passengers. 

We can see the town and residential areas from the MRT.

Several MRT stations are connected to shopping malls by covered pedestrian walkway, including Taman Connought Station to Cheras Central Mall, Taman Mutiara Station to Leisure Mall, and Maluri Station to Velocity Mall. Bandar Utama Station is connected to One Utama Mall via feeder bus. These shopping malls are good places for locals to spend our boring afternoon. But if you have traveled thousand miles to Malaysia, we don't really recommend these shopping malls to you.

With new MRT line, we don't have to worry about traffic jam or parking problem anymore when we go for shopping. 

1-Utama Shopping Mall from the feeder bus station.

More information on stations, fare, ticketing, and travel information, please visit the official website of KL MRT. Ready to take a ride? Don't forget to wear comfortable shoes and bring along your umbrella. 

More about our experience in Kuala Lumpur:

[National Museum] [KL National Planetarium] [KL Bird Park] [Aquaria KLCC]

[All Our Destinations] 

Food, Shopping and Moving around in Melbourne

Melbourne is a huge food-junction. We can get food from all around the world in the city. We can choose to step into worldwide franchises such as McD, KFC, or Hungry Jack (Burger King in Malaysia) with more or less standardized food and taste (but with cheaper prices),  or we can just step into any eatery of your choice along the street.

Eateries with nice environment are scattered around Melbourne. We can choose either to take a seat or take away.

For McD, the burgers served in Australia had more or less the same taste with burgers served in Malaysia.

If you are staying somewhere around the city center, the arcades, Southbank and Yarra Promenade along Yarra River are the places that we can hunt for nice food. Food courts can be found in Crown Towers, Melbourne Central and other major shopping malls. In Melbourne, the food, especially seafood were fresh, and the taste was good. The price wise was fair, as long as we didn't convert it back to Malaysian Ringgit (especially to Malaysians). Well, we would like to share some photos of the food in Melbourne. We were lucky to have Uncle Tony bringing around to get nice food in Melbourne.

We tried a few dishes at the alley leading to Block Arcade- paella (upper left), chicken risotto with cheese (upper right), cheese cake (lower right), and smoked tuna pizza. The food looked tempting and tasted nice. In Melbourne, dessert is always served together with ice-cream.

Malaysian Kitchen served food in Malaysian style... certified by both of us. The restaurant is located at Doncaster Road (upper left). We tried several dishes, including lady's finger (upper right), fried squid (lower right) and beef served on hot plate. The portion was not big, but the taste was nice and really exquisite. If you wish to get some Malaysian food in Melbourne and you don't mind to drive far away from Melbourne city, you should go to Malaysian Kitchen. However, it's always good if you could book the seats for any restaurant at Melbourne to avoid disappointment. At Melbourne, the restaurants don't open everyday.

Malaya Inn is located at Village Ave, Doncaster, was another Chinese restaurant we visited in Melbourne. The restaurant was big (upper left), and we tried a few dishes including pork (upper right), tofu (lower right), and fried chicken. The taste was good, but we prefer the Chinese food at Malaysian Kitchen.

We had Australian style breakfast everyday, prepared by our aunt- fresh eggs, bread, bacon, pasta, together with fresh milk, baked bean, pan fry sliced pork, and coffee. The food was really nice, and tasted great! The food was prepared exclusively for us, with a lot of love. :)

Shopping malls are scattered all around Melbourne city. Melbourne Central is a hub for mass-transit system and shopping center. There is a well preserved shot tower located at the center of the mall. Hundreds of shops, selling clothes, food, skin care products, books, sport equipment, and many more. 

Some huge shopping malls are located in residential area, far from city area, such as Coles and Chemist Warehouse might be available in these shopping malls. We bought chocolates, fruits, and beverages from Coles, and skincare and health products from Chemist Warehouse. We found that the items with special promotion like chocolates were quite cheap.

When we were walking down the street, we can look for the promotional billboards (upper left), or take a look on the products or the show by street artists (upper right), or at the booths along the street (lower right). Don't forget to slow down the pace and take a look at the statues along the street as well.

The best way to go around Melbourne City area is by following the free tram service. Bus and taxi are available too. When we travel out of the city, mrt, transit bus, and taxi can be used. We travelled around with our uncle's car most of the time. However, we did grab the chance to try the mrt and taxi when we were going to Healesville Wildlife Sanctuary. 

For mrt, the fare could be paid only by MyKi card only. The card had to be scanned at the departure and arrival stations. So please make sure you have the card ready before you go for mrt. The fare and information about the mrt line and destinations can be obtained from the official website of  Public Transport Victoria.

For taxi, the fare can be estimated by the Victoria Taxi Fare Estimator. From our experience, the estimator has an error of plus minus ASD 5. All the taxi should charge according to the meter in Victoria. Please do not use any taxi service without meter.

Intracity tram service is perhaps, the cheapest way to move around Melbourne city area (upper left). What we need to do is, get a map, find a station (upper right), and hoop into one of this electricity powered tram. We saw a few bicycle-for-rent booths around, but we didn't really know how it worked (lower right). Anyway, walking around Melbourne City is convenient. The street is safe, drivers are obedient and polite, and people are moving in a relaxing manner.  

There are several mrt lines in Melbourne, which a few of them extends far beyond the city. So we need to get familiar with the system to avoid confusion. Beware that not all mrt stop at every station. It's better to ask the officer-on-duty or locals before hop on to any mrt. The mrt stations are basically easy to access, clean, and safe. The stations are less crowded after peak hours (upper left). The mrt is convenient for us to travel in group (upper right). Taxi and transit bus were available at some of the stations, such as Lilydale (lower row), but might not available at some stations at residential areas. If you are stuck at the station with no taxi or transit bus, try to ask the officer-on-duty on how to call up one.

MyKi card can be purchased from the shop with myki signage.

We stayed comfortably with our uncle and aunt in Bulleen area, which by car, could reach city center within 30 minutes. If you don't plan to drive by yourself, you should stay somewhere nearby the mrt stations, or within the city. With the mass transportation system within your reach, you can access to other places without much problem.

Staying in central business district, such as hotels along Flinders Street keep us close to the places of interest and activities in Melbourne. Homestays with easy access to public transportation, especially mrt can be a good choice as well. 

We would like to express our deepest gratitude to Uncle Tony, Aunt Mee Ing, and our cousin Harn-Yih for their hospitality, advice, and assistance. 

We will visit Luang Prabang in Laos soon. You can follow us by following our blog or our Facebook page now.

[Walk Around Melbourne City] [Great Ocean Road]

[Healesville Sanctuary Day Trip] [Shrine of Remembrance and Botanic Garden]

[Food, Shopping and Moving Around Melbourne]

[All Our Destinations]