Lakhangthong Boutique Hotel

On my flight to Laos, I grabbed the magazine inserted infront of my seat. Somewhere in that edition, it says that the true value of hotel is if it makes you feel at home more than just giving a temporary shelter to homeless travelers. When we got at the  Lakhangthong Boutique Hotel, I remembered what I've read and I instantly knew this is what they meant.

We arrived past 8 in the morning and check in was not until 2 in the afternoon, but the hotel staff happily welcomed us and offered us free breakfast while waiting for our room to be served. It only took them half an hour until the suite was ready instead of waiting for the standard check in time which was a couple of hours more. That alone made me appreciate Lakhangthong Hotel because they have a genuine desire to give a home to travelers such as ourselves. They could have just asked us to pay for another half day rate, but they didn't. 

Luang Prabang: For Travelers than Tourists

Luang Prabang probably is the most difficult destination to write about simply because there's hardly enough perfect words for me to describe what it is about. To date, it remains my favourite destination because it has a lot of the elements that I prefer in a destination. To me, Luang Prabang is the epitome of what South East Asia is all about.

It wasn't any shorter than an 8 hour bus-ride away from Vientiane but every minute spent on the narrow beds of that sleeper bus was definitely worth it. I might not be able to describe it well, but I would like to see it as a way of giving you room to experience it for yourself. 

8 Hours in Vientiane

Three years ago, Laos was just a thought. Back then, Indochina sounded like a peculiar place to be, but my guts weren't enough to bring me to the crazy streets of South East Asia, albeit I am Southeast Asian myself. 

I have been waiting for the perfect time to check Laos. Before the chance came, I was very reliant about photos and stories online, most of which were vague and didn’t had a clear image of what I could expect. Because we were planning for an Indochina trip, it was necessary that Laos became part of the itinerary. This was my chance. Landing at Vientiane Airport, I knew this was a whole new world. The terminal was nothing fancy, the immigration officers, although appear authoritative, were dressed strangely. It was South East Asia, but the looks of the people around me are not something familiar, like how it is elsewhere.