Luang Prabang is another UNESCO World Heritage city and it is between the confluence of the Nam Khan and Mekong Rivers. The city is beautiful and we are instantly taken by its charm, even before finding accommodations. Unlike many of the tourist cities we have visited, Luang Prabang was obviously developed with some planning in mind. The peninsular or Old Quarter is riddled with glittering wats, most of which serve as the home for numerous studying monks who freely roam the streets in their varying shades of saffron, orange and mustard robes going about their daily lives.
There are all sorts of accommodations although they are bit pricer than we have become use to - for $40 US you can get a really spectacular room, but unfortunately for us our budget is more like $15 - 20US. Traveling for a year means that you need to keep close tabs on the budget. It would be so easy to just go a little higher to get that special suite in Kathmandu, to upgrade to air/con in Chiang Mai, etc., but 365 days of little increases will add up and given how bad the economy is at home we are already losing money each day in our savings account so we can’t afford to splurge too often. But no worries, we find a lovely teak room, with Laos silk bed accents and a small balcony which views the Mekong River in the old quarter for a mere $17 US. It is a great little 7 room family run hotel. The whole room is teak and when the window and door are closed it becomes the darkest room I have ever slept in. 
The river side of the street is lined with outdoor restaurants, including one called Saffron Café which would turn out to be our regular morning stop -- excellent local BREWED (not Nescafe) coffee, a breakfast burrito for me and pancakes with real maple syrup for John - yum!
