Luang Prabang, Laos
They celebrate the New Year for three days here. April 13th to the 15th. The cops were out in their scary riot van telling people to stay inside so only the dogs were out today. Gigi was the runt and no one wanted her because she was such a scaredy-cat, but with some love and a little wolf training she's become more confident and has been accepted by the other dogs.
I can't remember there ever being a cool New Year's like this and I've been here for two decades. I wonder if all of the factories and transportation being shut down has had an effect on the weather.
Nice dogs are a reflection of the of the people they're around. People in Luang Prabang are generally kind and chill so the dogs are too.
Luang Prabang was called The Land of a Million Elephants in ancient times. It was the richest town and capitol with mostly royalty because it's in the prime location. The perfect weather makes for many types of fruit abundant in the trees.
It can get quite chilly here in the winter, but it never gets too hot for too long. The flowers look pretty as a picture all year round.
I did a post about the bridge in the background a few days ago. This shot shows one edge of town. It is like an island surrounded by thick tropical green mountains. Flying in or out on a clear day is such a treat. You'll see beautiful tall mountains higher than your jet's altitude around you.
I had the best New Year's here last year. Everyone was so happy and having fun. I didn't see one person out today. Let's hope things can return back to normal soon.
Someone still made an offering to the dead. Bananas that are a bit brown actually taste really good. The ones found in America with that perfect yellow coloring are the ultimate GMO. The term, Banana Republic, is a sad bit of history involving American manipulation of poorer nations to get pretty looking, but cheap bananas.
Jealousy isn't an emotion that I feel very often, but I feel jealous of the lady who owns this dog and guesthouse because all the dogs really love her.
Thanks for reading about my second day of the Lao New Year. We didn't get to play with water or drink beer today, but we gave Gigi a bath.
