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We left Vang Vieng around 10am and arrived in Vientiane by 2:30pm. It’s a good thing the drop off point was near the National Museum so I only had to walk a short distance back to Lao Heritage Hotel where I checked in again. It’s great to be back at the capital city of Laos. I let the city air in and I just relaxed the whole afternoon. I tried the Riverfront Eateries that night for a Lao dinner then rested early for my last day in Laos.

Somewhere around a 100 meters more after Wat Chom Phet, still on a dirt road but covered by tall trees. Across it is the Wat Long Khun Temple. It is one of the best looking temple grounds I’ve seen. The monastery looks new and the main sim is petite but beautiful likewise. Across the river, I noticed its directly across Wat Xieng Thong.

After visiting Tat Kuang Si waterfalls, I was deciding whether I should leave Luang Prabang the next day. Don’t get me wrong I love Luang Prabang but the slow pace can get to you some times. The best thing to do here is to visit outlying villages instead of staying in town. In the end, I decided to stay another day and try to visit the Ban Xieng Maen. The village just across the river where they say will give you a glimpse of what the Luang Prabang was like more than 40 years ago.

My morning temple hopping led me to Th Sakkarin Area. Before I went back to Levady GH to get my bags and move to my new lodging I decided to visit another temple since I had plenty of time to spare before checkout. It’s easy to get templed-out in Luang Prabang, so it’s best to choose which ones to visit. If you would only choose to visit just one it should be the most magnificent temple in Luang Prabang. And that is Wat Xieng Thong.

I enjoyed walking through the Night Market of Luang Parabang but had to withdraw myself lest I get tempted to spend. I headed to Th Khem Khong Road, another parallel road to the river but quieter and closer. Then I had a quick dinner of Stir Fry Mushroom Beef (16,000kip) and a strawberry shake (6000 kip) at one of the riverside restos there. Checked the internet and emails nearby then headed back to Levady Guest House for the night’s rest. By 9pm the town quiets down. There’s an 11pm curfew in Luang Prabang.

I remember Laura, the petite English girl I met down south of Laos in Wat Phu Champasak, telling me that the sunset at Phu Si Hills is really beautiful and I shouldn’t miss it. So I made sure before 4pm, I made my way to Phu Si Hills, a 100-meter high hill found at the center of town along the main roads. There are several temples on and at the slopes of the hill. It’s also a popular place for the tourist to catch that famous Luang Prabang setting sun.

After visiting Xieng Khuan, I had lunch nearby and not to let the tuk-tuk blunder ruin my travel, I went on my afternoon exploring the city of Vientiane, which would be on spotlight in Asia later this year as Laos hosts the upcoming SEA Games on November 2009. For participants and audiences, there a number of attractions to keep them busy around Vientiane in between games. The city is dotted with numerous temples, it may not be as many say as Luang Prabang, but there are special ones worth a visit. If I were only to visit a couple, I would start first with Wat Si Saket and Haw Pha Kaeo.