The far north - The Rough Guide to Laos - page 299

mainly Chinese and Thai specialities and (occasional) live music, it's a good spot to unwind;
larp 35,000K. Daily 7am-9pm.
Meuang Neu Riverview Guesthouse, 100m north of the old ferry landing 020 5568 4257.
A travellers' favourite with a rustic feel, which serves a largely Western menu including piz-
zas (from 55,000K) and desserts like fried banana in chocolate sauce. Also a good place to
pick up a sandwich before a long boat or bus journey south. The garden restaurant is a lovely
spot at dusk. Daily 6am-11pm.
Phongdao Buffet Just up from the slow boat landing, on the right 020 9665 7444.
Westerners normally pass straight by this unassuming locals' place, but it does the best sin
dad (Lao barbecue) in town, the buffet table groaning under the weight of fresh meat, veg,
fish and seafood. Daily 5-10pm.
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Pakbeng
The ramshackle river port of PAKBENG is the halfway point between Houayxai and Luang
Prabang, and the only town of any size along the 300km stretch of river between them. As
tourist vessels don't travel the Mekong after dark, a night here is unavoidable if you're trav-
elling by slow boat. Although first impressions of the town are generally unfavourable, Pak-
beng is actually a very interesting place, with a distinctly northern Laos feel about it. Once
extremely poor, it is now growing rapidly, a change of fortune owing to its role as an import-
ant trading post ; goods from China and Thailand come down the river from Houayxai and
then make their way up into the interior from here. Tourism has also been a big boon for the
town, with the slow boats disgorging hundreds of hungry backpackers a day.
Most tourists to Pakbeng come by slow boat, arriving late and leaving early in the morning,
the two times of day when it's at its least appealing, with touts (who can be pushy by Lao, if
not general Southeast Asian standards) hanging around at the boat landings and in restaurants
and guesthouse doorways. Stick around for a day or so to see the town without the night-time
hordes, when it reverts to its relaxed, sleepy self and exhibits a low-key charm.
Many people think the port area around the landing is Pakbeng, but the real town lies past
the top of the hill and stretches for a good kilometre along the main road that follows the
Mekong before turning north towards Oudomxai. Just beyond the last of the guesthouses,
en route into town (about 500m east of the boat landings), the market is worth an early
morning wander, though these days the Hmong women and children who frequent it have
largely abandoned traditional dress. Beyond here are two pleasant wats : WatKokkorMing-
moungkoun , which has a pretty and elegant sim , and a few hundred metres further on, Wat
Sichomecheng , which sits high on a bluff above the Mekong in the centre of town.