Annual Lunag Prabang Festival

Our trip to Luang Prabang coincided with the annual large market and boat race.  People from all over the area attended the market.  I spotted these lovely sunshades which I thought would provide marvellous cover for those of our party who were feeling the heat.

But some people preferred to use a borrowed umbrella! 

Alongside the market, boat races were held at various places over the course of a few days, culminating in the races in Luang Prabang.  They were a really big event and were televised.

We had a table overlooking the river for a few hours.  We spotted two boats of women (well we think they were women),

The main boats were really big, with about 44 crew members.  The races were two boats at a time and judging by the screams and cheers, all boats had big fan bases.  The races continued all day.

There were a couple of advertising boats also going up and down. This one was funny as it had men dressed as women, dancing and jigging away to the delight of the crowd..

The races and market had a big impact on the town, which went from really sleepy to, well slightly less so!  Seriously, for a few hours things were really busy but as soon as the races were over everyone disappeared.

Alan and I watched this boat being taken along the main street.  They tried to get it around a corner, but it was difficult to manoeuvre due to the lamppost and the flight of steps outside the white building.  Shouts echoed around as the boat was slowly inched back and forth, narrowly missing a calamity several times until it became stuck.

Finally, after a huddled discussion, they decided to lift the boat and the wheels it rested on, up over the kerb where the boat was wedged.

They got it round the corner and then just left it in the road while they went into a temple, thus effectively blocking the road (not that there was a lot of traffic to worry about).