The sound of drums woke us at 6:00 am, and Barry got up for the Procession of the Monks. He had bought some oranges as an offering and enjoyed the unique early morning experience. When he returned, he came with more offerings in hand, namely croissants and coffee. Margaret is not a monk, but the coffee definitely brought her inner peace.

Unfortunately, we couldn't spend too much time in meditation, as we had to find new accommodations. The result of Barry and Connor's search was brilliant. Xieng Mouane Guest House was very nice but Phousi Guesthouse was much nicer and the same price as changing to another room at Xieng's. We got there at 10:00 am and moved in, delighted with our balcony, beautiful wood finishing and furnishings, air conditioner, TV and spotless rooms and beds. Not bad for $30.00 a room!

From Phousi, we began a walking tour, enjoying the lush plant life and lovely streets of Luang Prabang. Arriving at the Palace Museum meant a bit of bad luck. It didn't open until 1:30 pm, so we walked up to the top of Phu Si, a 100 meter high hill that overlooks the town. We checked out the excellent view. Wat Pa Huat was a nice temple to see and then we walked down to Wat Pha Phutthabaht to see Buddha's footprint. There are actually two footprints - one big, one small. We met an 18 year old monk who showed us around to practice his English.

By this time, we were hungry and out of money. Although it is a little more difficult to get cash here, Barry was able to use his Visa to get a cash advance. Next, we went to a Pizzeria where Tessa had hmmm...pizza, Connor a steak, and Margaret and Barry green and yellow curry. The meals were all excellent.

As we were dining, we saw a very pimped out motorcycle taxi pull up. We decided to hire the driver for an hour to give us a tour around town. He was very happy with the business and took us to Wat Xieng Thong, Vat Thatluang, and a few other neat temples. We drove along the riverside and saw the bustling day market and some other areas beyond the Old Quarter. Finally, he dropped us off at the Palace Museum where we'd started our day. We said goodbye and thanked him for his time, and he seemed genuinely pleased with meeting us.

The Palace Museum was really cool. We had to take off our shoes to go through so it felt strange and unique to be in a King's palace, in our socks! Back outside, we wandered around the grounds some more and finally went back to our guesthouse.

That night, we ate, checked out the Night Market again, worked on the Internet and finished off the evening by packing for our 30 km bicycle trek the next day.