Well, it's been a very busy couple of days. Last post was elephant riding, which is still awesome!!! After the elephant ride, I made my way to town and climbed the hill in town to watch the sunset. It was really hazy, so the sunset wasn't very impressive. I got to town just as they were setting up the night market. And by the time the sun was almost set, it was in full swing. I took a few photos of the market. It's pretty awesome. Then, some dinner and back to the hotel. Yesterday, I took a boat on the Mekong to the Buddha Caves. It was about an hour each way on the river and was a great journey. The caves are filled with Buddha's. I guess that's why they call them Buddha Caves. It was pretty impressive and I guess they have been having ceremonies there for hundreds of years. I think I read that while I was there. On the way back from the caves we stopped at a Hmong Village. It mostly was for us to buy stuff. But it was cool to see. Once back to town, I made my way back to the main road and caught a ride to the waterfalls about 20 miles outside of town. The falls were very impressive. They are this aqua, icy blue color. I'm not sure what makes them that color, but it was beautiful. Lots of European and Australian hippies around though. But, it was cool. I went swimming for a little while. Let me tell you, they were FREEZING!! I mean take your breath away cold. But, it felt so good after being in the sun and the heat all day. Then, back to town and some dinner. I didn't feel so great when I woke up this morning, but that didn't stop me! I got up at the crack of dawn to make it into town by 6:00a.m. to see the morning procession of monks, and the locals giving alms. The monks go through town every morning and collect food, this is what they have to eat for the day. Lots of tourists taking photos. I was included in that, but I tried to be respectful. Man, some others got right in their faces and snapped photos with the flash. It was kind of irritating. I felt bad for the monks. All they wanted was food for the day. I guess that's what happens when you promote it as a tourist attraction though. It was pretty beautiful to see. Really peaceful, despite the hordes of tourists snapping photos. Made it back to my hotel for a little nap and breakfast, then off to Utopia. A bar right across the river from my hotel. They have these lounger things and you can stay all day. I got a couple beers and some awesome bruchetta, and just lounged there for about 3 hours. I had a great conversation with my waiter. I think his name was either Lenny or Ernie. I was embarassed to ask him again. But he is from a town 4 hours north of Luang Prabang. He is going to school here. Studying economics. He loves math! He was embarassed because he thought his english wasn't very good, but I thought it was great. It was a cool place to hang out for the day and just relax and try to regroup from the last couple days. This is my last post from Laos. Off to Vietnam tomorrow, where my schedule will be much more hectic. But, I will try to post again soon...