Heading to the falls
We woke up mid-morning and was treated to a free breakfast of omelette and bread (a common theme in Asia, not complaining!). Everyone loitered a bit as we were waiting to go to the Kuang Si Waterfall. The Kuang Si Waterfall appeared to be one of the must see attractions in/near Luang Prabang. Since the others said they were going, we were definitely tagging along with them! Once the numbers were confirmed, all but 2 of the girls were going, we loaded up and headed out to the Kuang Si Waterfall.
The Sun was shining, the skies were blue, we had music playing, and most of all, everyone was happy. It was a really great atmosphere and ride in the tuk tuk. When a classic disco song came on, such as ‘Africa’ by Toto, everyone immediately became a passionate singer, screaming their lungs out. We took one wrong turn, but after that, we made it to the Kuang Si Waterfall, and parked up. It took us around 45 minutes to get here from Luang Prabang. Entry cost 20,000 kip, cheap enough! For more info on the Kuang Si Waterfall, check it out here.
To the falls
After we’d paid entry, we began our walk to the waterfall. On the way, there is a random bear enclosure which contains a few bears that had been rescued from illegal trade. The waterfall comes in several tiers. You arrive at the first and lowest tier, which is a lagoon of vibrant blue water, almost doesn’t look real. It’s very calm at this pool, with just a small waterfall quietly babbling away. You’re able to swim in any of these pools, nice and cool! Further up the path are another two pools, the furthest one being the largest of all. In the largest pool, we all went for a swim, it was so blue, and really cool.
If you stand still for a minute or so, small fish will gather around your feet and legs to nibble at your dry skin or scabs! I had quite a large scab on my knee and over 10 minutes or so, one persistent nipper took it all off. Afterwards, Mat and a couple others laughed at how strange it looked, me just standing there by myself. After a great swim, we all got out, dried off and made a move towards the main waterfall.
At the fall
Only 10 minutes of walking later, and we had reached the Kuang Si Waterfall. You’re not supposed to go under it, there’s a wooden bridge that spans the breadth of the resulting water flow to stand and view from. The waterfall was pretty high, as expected, and didn’t disappoint. It wasn’t very crowded here either, which made it all the more serene and peaceful. Once we’d took it all in, as well as taken a few photos, we made our steep trek to the top of the waterfall. The trail we took begins on the right hand side of the waterfall as you look at it, it’s only a dirt trail.
After a 15-minute steep trek, we were at the top. There was another swimming area, a swing, as well as some benches. You were able to see over the waterfall and into the vast surrounding jungle. There was basically no one else here, so it really was a great place to chill out. Once everyone had had their fill, we began our descent. Again, this path was pretty steep and slippy at times, due to the moist air around the waterfall. At the entrance, there are quite a lot of shops and food stalls, I had a purple yam which had been grilled. It was very nice and tasty actually, albeit slightly dry, similar to a sweet potato.
The way back home
The drive back home couldn’t have been more perfect. Somehow, the atmosphere here beat the drive here. Everyone was so calm and relaxed, due to the activity today as well as the sunset behind us. We had some great road trip themed music playing that we could sing along to. This particular ride will stay with me forever; this is better than I could have ever imagined before I came travelling. To be in the back of a tuk tuk, with strangers who had become friends instantly, during the sunset, with chilled tunes on, I wouldn’t have traded it for the world. When we were back in Luang Prabang, the locals on bikes behind us seemed to be amused by us too.
When we got back to the hostel, Mat and I went out for some food and had a chat, before walking through the night market once more. I did enjoy some of the snacks and puddings that were on offer here. There are some very small coconut flavoured pastries, look a bit like profiteroles, very tasty. After browsing around the market, we headed back to the hostel and turned in for the night.
