LUANG PRABANG, Laos (AP) — The day begins in darkness, lit only by street lamps. As dawn breaks, a pale blue light reveals a quiet line of monks in orange robes moving through the streets of the Lao city of Luang Prabang.
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LUANG PRABANG, Laos — The day begins in darkness, lit only by street lamps. As dawn breaks, a pale blue light reveals a quiet line of monks in orange robes moving through the streets of the Lao city of Luang Prabang. The city, about 300 kilometers north of the capital, Vientiane, sits on a narrow peninsula between the Mekong and Nam Khan rivers. It was once the seat of the Lan Xang kingdom and now is a UNESCO World Heritage city. Morning in Luang Prabang brings the soft sound of bare feet touching stone during tak bat, the daily almsgiving ritual that remains central to life here. Locals walk past a decorated wall in the UNESCO World Heritage city of Luang Prabang, Laos Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. Locals walk past a decorated wall in the UNESCO World Heritage city of Luang Prabang, Laos Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. A view traditional homes and temples beneath forested mountains in Luang Prabang, Laos, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. A view traditional homes and temples beneath forested mountains in Luang Prabang, Laos, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. Metal artwork engraved with wartime scenes is seen created from remnants of unexploded ordnance found during clearance operations, displayed at the UXO Lao Visitor Center in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Metal artwork engraved with wartime scenes is seen created from remnants of unexploded ordnance found during clearance operations, displayed at the UXO Lao Visitor Center in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Visitors stand beside remnants of unexploded ordnance recovered during clearance operations at the UXO Lao Visitor Center in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Visitors stand beside remnants of unexploded ordnance recovered during clearance operations at the UXO Lao Visitor Center in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Novice Buddhist monks carry a gilded naga, a mythical serpent in Lao and Buddhist tradition, across the courtyard of a Buddhist temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, after a routine religious ceremony Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. Novice Buddhist monks carry a gilded naga, a mythical serpent in Lao and Buddhist tradition, across the courtyard of a Buddhist temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, after a routine religious ceremony Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. Buddhist monks walk in a line seeking alms from residents and tourists waiting along a street in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. Buddhist monks walk in a line seeking alms from residents and tourists waiting along a street in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. A child plays with a temple guardian statue outside a Buddhist temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. A child plays with a temple guardian statue outside a Buddhist temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. A vendor carries fresh produce with a shoulder pole through the bustling post-dawn morning market in Luang Prabang, Laos, as local residents shop for daily necessities, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. A vendor carries fresh produce with a shoulder pole through the bustling post-dawn morning market in Luang Prabang, Laos, as local residents shop for daily necessities, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. Traditional Lao outfits are displayed on mannequins as vendors and shoppers move through the night market in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Traditional Lao outfits are displayed on mannequins as vendors and shoppers move through the night market in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. A vendor arranges metal souvenirs made from recycled fragments of unexploded ordnance left from the Vietnam War at a night market in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. A vendor arranges metal souvenirs made from recycled fragments of unexploded ordnance left from the Vietnam War at a night market in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Tourists pose for photos on a footbridge in front of Kuang Si Waterfall near Luang Prabang, Laos, one of the country’s most popular natural attractions known for its multi-tiered limestone cascades and turquoise pools on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Tourists pose for photos on a footbridge in front of Kuang Si Waterfall near Luang Prabang, Laos, one of the country’s most popular natural attractions known for its multi-tiered limestone cascades and turquoise pools on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. A vendor flips coconut-milk cakes known locally as khanom krok, a traditional sweet popular with both tourists and local residents, on a cast-iron pan at a morning market in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. A vendor flips coconut-milk cakes known locally as khanom krok, a traditional sweet popular with both tourists and local residents, on a cast-iron pan at a morning market in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. Motorcyclists cross the Old French Bridge, a French colonial-era steel truss bridge that remains a key local crossing over the Nam Khan River in Luang Prabang, Laos, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. Motorcyclists cross the Old French Bridge, a French colonial-era steel truss bridge that remains a key local crossing over the Nam Khan River in Luang Prabang, Laos, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025. Tourists wade and swim in natural pools at Kuang Si Waterfall, one of the most visited eco-tourism sites near Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Tourists wade and swim in natural pools at Kuang Si Waterfall, one of the most visited eco-tourism sites near Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Visitors wearing traditional Lao dress arrive at a gilded Buddhist temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, to pay respects and explore the historic complex on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. Visitors wearing traditional Lao dress arrive at a gilded Buddhist temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, to pay respects and explore the historic complex on Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. Novice Buddhist monks pray inside a temple as evening light fades outside in Luang Prabang, Laos, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. Novice Buddhist monks pray inside a temple as evening light fades outside in Luang Prabang, Laos, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. Buddhist monks walk in a line seeking alms from residents and tourists waiting along a street before dawn in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. Buddhist monks walk in a line seeking alms from residents and tourists waiting along a street before dawn in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. A novice Buddhist monk receives sticky rice as alms early morning in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. A novice Buddhist monk receives sticky rice as alms early morning in Luang Prabang, Laos, Friday, Nov. 7, 2025. Novice Buddhist monks take a break between classes at a monastic school in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. Novice Buddhist monks take a break between classes at a monastic school in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. A novice Buddhist monk removes marigold garlands from a temple fence at a temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. A novice Buddhist monk removes marigold garlands from a temple fence at a temple in Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Students from an elementary school, including a novice Buddhist monk, play after class in Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Students from an elementary school, including a novice Buddhist monk, play after class in Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. A woman and a young girl wearing traditional formal Lao dress stand barefoot as they hold parasols on a temple terrace in Luang Prabang, Laos, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. A woman and a young girl wearing traditional formal Lao dress stand barefoot as they hold parasols on a temple terrace in Luang Prabang, Laos, Sunday, Nov. 2, 2025. A longtail boat crosses the Mekong River at sunset under heavy clouds in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. A longtail boat crosses the Mekong River at sunset under heavy clouds in Luang Prabang, Laos, Monday, Nov. 3, 2025. A novice Buddhist monk walks barefeet seeking alms early morning in Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. A novice Buddhist monk walks barefeet seeking alms early morning in Luang Prabang, Laos, Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Despite sharing borders with Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Myanmar, Laos maintains a distinct cultural atmosphere. A soft greeting of “sabaidee,” often accompanied by palms pressed together, comes with a small smile, offered naturally to strangers and neighbors alike.Between 1964 and 1973, during the U.S.-led “Secret War,” more than 2 million tons of ordnance were dropped on Laos, making it the most heavily bombed country per capita in modern history, according to the Lao government. An estimated one-third of those bombs failed to explode. Decades later, unexploded ordnance still lies beneath farmland and villages, limiting agriculture and shaping where communities can live and build.In this predominantly Theravada Buddhist society, many boys from the countryside enter monasteries as novice monks. They receive education, food and accommodation, studying Buddhist scriptures as well as modern school subjects. In the evenings, the chants of young monks drift into the streets near the Wat Xieng Thong monastery.Afternoons see travelers and locals climbing Mount Phousi, a small hill in the center of town, to watch the sun lower over the Mekong. Time moves slowly in Luang Prabang, where it is easy to surrender to the city’s rhythm and disconnect from the digital world without ever trying.Hoshiko is the Chief Photographer for The Associated Press in Tokyo, where he has covered major news, sports, and conflict stories across Asia, Latin America, and beyond since 1994.
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