[Seth] Wet Market in Luang Prabang

Perhaps my favorite way to get a feel for a new country is to see how it shops.  In Western Europe, Canada, Japan, Australia/New Zealand and perhaps a few other places, it is quite similar to how we shop in the US -- perhaps the grocery stores aren't quite so big (although France did invent the hypermarche) but pretty much the same type of experience with slightly different shopping options (prawn cocktail crisps, vegemite or frogs legs).

In Laos, the experience and the options are very different.  We visited the Wet Market in Luang Prabang this morning after seeing the Buddhist monks collecting the morning alms (which is also quite a sight. 

Luang Prabang is a small regional city in the northern part of Laos (about 60,000 people).  In the surrounding countryside there are many small villages that showcase the wide variety of ethnic groups that call Laos home.  While there are small markets and grocery stores (really more like a bodega or convenience store in the US) in the villages, the real shopping happens at the markets.  There are two types of markets in Luang Prabang -- the day markets which include wet (produce, fish and meats) and dry (durable goods and electronics) which are primarily for locals and the night market which is really for tourists. 

Here are some pictures of the wet market:

You can get all types of local fruits and vegetables.

Dragon Fruit.

Bananas.

Chiles.  

And fish of various types.

I actually think the bowl on the right is crickets. 

There were lots of prepared food choices:

Rice, Noodles and Spices were plentiful.

Rice noodles, both thin and thick.

Banana leaves for holding things.  

And then of course there are the more unusual options like Crispy Mekong River Weed.