Our bike trek began after an excellent free breakfast at our beautiful hotel. There were 9 of us on the trip - 3 Norwegians, an Ontarian, a Victorian, and us. Margaret immediately had some qualms about the difficulty of the trip as 30 km was a little beyond her normal athletic capabilities but, being the team player she is, she forged on.

We first cycled through town, delighted with how laid back the town is - no honks, no vendors calling out. When we got to the edge of town, we hit the highway for a bit and then turned off onto a dirt road. It was quite rough and Margaret questioned her sanity, but the roads flowed nicely and were peaceful as there was minimal traffic. The slight hills and dips through dappled shade made the ride a joy.

Our first stop was at Ban Phanom village where the people who sell the beautiful weaving work in the Night Market do the actual weaving. We went in to see their complicated looms and the results of their meticulous work. Margaret bought a red shawl/table cloth covering for more money than she would have paid at the night market but it was neat to buy it right from the shy weaver who actually makes them by day.

Back on the road, the rough terrain continued, but the lovely natural landscape dotted with the occasional farmer's garden made the rocky path worthwhile. Along the way, we stopped at the grave of the French explorer Henry Mohout - the man who "discovered" Angkor Wat. He died of malaria in the Luang Prabang area in 1861.

At last, after more than 2 hours of biking, we arrived at Ban En Village where we embarked on local boats to travel down the Nam Khan River to the site of the Tad Sae Waterfalls. The trip only took a few minutes. We then hiked up a quick trail, passing elephants which were ready for rides. We weren't interested, having done that in India. It was also a little sad that they were chained up so we continued on, suddenly coming to the gorgeous waterfalls.

The falls were staggered, smooth, and terraced. The sunlight filtered through the leaves above and lit the water up like emeralds in a display case. It almost seemed man-made because everything was just so picture perfect. We thoroughly enjoyed walking among and swimming in the cool, crystal clear pools.

On the way back to the boats, we stopped to feed the elephants. As in India, a young elephant stole the show!

Upon arriving at the boats, we all clambered into one and it immediately began to leak. This did not seem to bother either the captain nor our guide so we, too, took it in stride and enjoyed the 'low in the water' trip back while the Captain bailed heroically until we reached shore, safely and relatively dry.

For our return trip, we took the highway. This seemed like good news, as our butts were definitely sore from the rocky trip there. It was all good until we began to climb to the top of the mountain. Yes, a mountain - or, at least, that's what our guide called it! There was no reprieve. We went up and up and up, and even the kids got off to walk at some points as the heat beat down. Finally we reached the summit, and started downhill. There were times we were biking faster than the vehicles. Connor even passed a vehicle at one point, as it was that steep! The ride back into town made it all worthwhile, as we coasted for a full 20 minutes, all the sweat forgotten during the pure thrill of the descent.

As we returned our bikes and were ready to leave, Connor asked our guide if it had really only been a 30 km trip. To our astonishment, we discovered we'd actually done 45 km! We'd really accomplished something amazing, so we did what all great athletes do - we went out for a drink and celebrated.

After refreshments, the Night Market was starting to set up, so we did some early bargaining. Afterwards, we went for supper. The electricity had gone out and the restaurant, which was outdoors, was bathed in candlelight. We all enjoyed our meals (Laos food is delicious!) and left sleepy and sore.

Barry suggested we have massages, so we went down the street and compared prices. We settled on 60 minute full body massages for $4.00 a person. Connor, because he is phenomenally ticklish, had a big grin on his face for most of his massage. Or at least that's what his parents have chosen to believe. Of course, it didn't hurt that the girl with the, oh so skillful fingers, was very young and pretty! Tessa got hooked on the whole experience, as well, and we weren't even out of the door before she asked if we could go again the next day.

Happy with our day, we went home to sleep.