Our lunch was delicious but the hunger hit us again a few hours later so we attended the town's night market directly across the road from our hotel. The market consisted of a square surrounded by food stalls with a few tables and chairs in the central area. The back of the market had more stalls selling local minority clothing and more food. I was naturally drawn to the rotisserie stands, the meaty aromas having the same effect on me as the towns local canine population, enticing me closer and closer to the barbecued goods on offer. There were juicy ducks and crispy pork bellies, turning slowly, their fat dripping onto the coals below. By this point, I was totally intoxicated and decided that a whole duck and a fat piece of pork belly would be enough for me and Melissa. We sat down at a table next to our food stand and I went to get some vegetables to accompany our meat feast. I nipped to the back of the market and found some similar vegetables to the ones we ate earlier in the day and also some cabbage that appeared to be slightly pickled. The food was so cheap that even giving the smallest amount of money to the market vendors left me with enough vegetables to feed about eight people!! I arrived back at the table and we started to eat, the meat was fantastic!! The duck was the best we had eaten on our travels so far and after being slightly disappointed with the portion sizes and general quality of the duck we tried in Singapore and Malaysia, we now had before us more wonderfully cooked duck than we could possibly eat. The skin was crispy and fatty at the same time, the meat tender and tasty. The pork belly was definitely on the fatty side but the fat was crispy and melted inside the mouth. I had to eat most of the pork as the fat was a little too much for Melissa to handle. About half an hour into our meal, our bags of vegetables barely appeared to have a dent in them and we still had several pieces of meat left. We'd had enough but we didn't want to waste any of the delicious food. Fortunately for us our answers were sitting all around us. There must have been around ten or so dogs waiting patiently around our table for the leftover scraps of meat. They were very pleasant dogs, occasionally having a little fight between themselves over who got what, but never being aggressive towards the patrons of the market. They definitely didn't seem rabid or rabies infested, more like scruffy mongrels who had found the doggy version of Shangri-La. With our bellies full to bursting we made our way back to bed for a good nights sleep.
The next morning the air was so cold outside that we could see our breath. We arranged a guide to take us on a two day hike starting the following day and after that, decided to rent a bicycle and explore the local villages. The untouched beauty of this part of the world was wonderful to see and a mere five minute cycle from the main road of the town, we were surrounded by rice paddy fields being tended by buffalo, old ladies knitting, plump chickens and black piglets running around and intricate hand woven fabrics hanging from washing lines. We passed raw cotton and sheets of bamboo paper on the side of the road, drying in the scorching sun (it didn't stay cold for long!!) In this modern age of convenience and haste, to see this delightfully laid back way of living was a great experience. After hours of cycling around in the midday heat, we were a little hungry and thirsty and stopped for a break at a ladies house. She had set up a few tables and chairs outside and signalled for us to sit down. We ordered a noodle soup (I think that's all she made) and sat down on a table that had lots of bottles, tubs and bags of condiments. I'm definitely a condiments man and love to have a sniff and taste of the different sauces, pastes and other complimentary edibles on the table. There was lemon juice, soy sauce, vinegar, chilli sauce, chilli paste, chopped chillies in soy sauce, and a mysterious, very dark and thick fishy smelling paste that tasted sweet and salty at the same time! I think it was possibly some sort of local crab or shrimp paste but I can't be certain. We were provided with a bowl of salad leaves and a bag of chillies to add to our soup as we desired. It was one of the best selection of condiments we'd encountered so far for a simple bowl of noodle soup. The soup itself had a tasty stock that in my opinion didn't need any more flavour other than of course the obligatory chilli to fire things up a little. By this point in our travels I was definitely in the depths of a full blown chilli addiction and sometimes didn't know when to stop. I'd know a few hours later if I'd eaten too many as my stomach would start to cramp and feel generally uncomfortable but this didn't stop me going back for more the next time! I managed to limit myself to just four chillies from the bag of hundreds and a spoonful of the chilli paste and soy sauce with chopped chillies. After sampling all of the other condiments on the table I decided that they didn't need to go in the soup. We finished our meal and sat for a while, reflecting on our wonderful day, listening to a chicken clucking away happily and watching him walk casually, without a care in the world on to the dry, dusty road with not a vehicle in sight.
We woke early the next day, refreshed and a little chilly, ready to embark on our two day hike. The first days hike was uphill, through forest to the top of a mountain where we would camp overnight. The next day was downhill. There was a group of seven of us and our first stop was at a local food market where our guide and two porters bought the food to cook on our hike. We arrived at a local village and began the hike from there, the curious eyes of the local villagers following us as we entered the forest. Our porters were carrying all the heavy stuff, pots, pans, rice and bags. Our guide was carrying bags of green liquid, bags we later discovered to be the infamous 'Lao Lao', a locally produced rice wine made in many homes across Laos, anywhere between 30% and 70% proof. Every drink is of course different as the whole process of making the drink is so rudimentary. This particular Lao Lao was green because it had been fermented with mystery herbs and leaves. We stopped for food shortly after we'd began our hike and before we knew it we were all sitting around a giant banana leaf being served. Our first meal had been pre-prepared at the market and consisted of the ever popular long green bean, pork mixed with mushrooms and bamboo shoots, a dill omelette and heaps of sticky rice. The standout was the delicious dill omelette, a chunky block of egg with fresh dill and onion running through it, not dissimilar in texture and appearance to a takeaway Chinese Foo Yung, one of my classic takeaway picks!! I think what surprised us most was the taste of dill in this part of the world, another unexpected taste of Asia.
Upon reaching the summit, our legs were weary and the first thing on my mind was an ice cold beer, a thing of greatness after a long hike. Unfortunately, the wooden hut we were sleeping in didn't have a fridge (it didn't even have windows) and I had to settle for Lao Lao. I can't say I liked the drink, but hey, it definitely does the job. The porters were kind enough to fashion us little bamboo shot glasses from the raw bamboo stalk and then prepared a meal for us with the ingredients from the market. There was an abundance of fresh herbs and vegetables and a huge chunk of buffalo meat which looked pretty similar to stewing beef. A few hours later our feast was ready and we again ate from banana leaves but this time at a candlelit table as there was no electricity. The porters and guide had cooked a wonderful meal of buffalo stew, a Laos ratatouille and of course, sticky rice. It was possibly my first taste of buffalo and I'd definitely eat it again, really tasty, soft and lean. After we finished our meal, the group sat around the fire, chatting and drinking Lao Lao that was practically being forced on us by the porters. We were drunk and our guide decided it would be a good idea to go on a trek in complete darkness with nothing but our flashlights to guide us. This proved to be hilarious as we traversed a path no more than a metre wide in single file, hoping for a glance of elusive, nocturnal wildlife. Rob, a fellow Englishman, decided to get people on their toes by throwing stones into the undergrowth to mimic the sounds of moving animals which made everyone jumpy and added to the fun. After a while though, we thought it was probably wise that we returned to the camp fire so back we went and sat down again. The most amazing thing about the night for me was looking up to the sky and seeing what looked like thousands of stars, shiny pin pricks in the black of night.
We woke up in our mosquito net cocoon and heard activity in the kitchen. Another feast was being prepared, it was only 9.00am!! Before we knew it, we were all sitting at the table yet again and huge bowls of sticky rice were being placed in front of us. Still full from our feast of food the night before, we attempted to eat the stew, rice and vegetables but none of the group had any appetite and we had to politely, almost guiltily decline the food that had been prepared from scratch. We set off on our easier downhill trek and hours later we reached our destination, a small village inhabited by local minority people, many of whom were in the process of building a relatively large two storey house. We were ushered up to the second floor of the partially built building and we all sat down and rested our legs as curious children hid behind their grandparents. Our lunch was being laid out before us, again on a banana leaf, and we all sat down and got stuck in. The highlight for me was a smoky aubergine puree, very similar to the famous Middle Eastern dish, Baba Ganoush. Another stand out was a salty, spicy sauce, quite similar to the Hogsplum chilli sauce we tried a few days earlier and delicious when mixed with the sticky rice. To round things off nicely, a petrol canister of Lao Lao was brought into the equation and the locals seemed on a mission to get us drunk. We downed shot after shot of the fierce local spirit, some more than others (name no names Daniel Bowles!), and it was a great way to end a fantastic time in Luang Nam Tha.
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