At 6a.m. this morning, dozens of cell phone alarms clocks could be heard around the backpackers’ area, it was time to get up and see the Buddhist monks. Every morning, hundreds of monks dressed in a traditional orange outfit roam the silent streets of Luang Prabang collecting alms from the locals (Tak Bat in Lao). All along the main road of town, people set up mats on the floor with pots of sticky rice and wait for their turn to give food to the monks. The monks walk silently in a long never ending line, gazing at the floor while accepting those small portions of rice. The people of Luang Prabang seem grateful for their chance to perform a Buddhist “Mitzvah” and bow their head down as they serve the rice. This surreal daily ritual is filled with early morning’s haze and complete silence, the only thing that can be heard is the tourists’ cameras clicking.
Britney Spears may think she has it hard but the monks of Luang Prabang are shot from every possible angle. Some tourists even go as far as walking right up to the young monks and taking their photo. From a spiritual and humbling experience, it was transformed into a circus, or at least that’s how it felt to me. Tourists position themselves in good “photo worthy” angles and are even given the option to buy some crackers so they can give to the monks (feeding time at the zoo?). After snapping a couple of photos I realized I am simply not able to be part of this paparazzi show and opted to just stand back and look at the wonderful symbiosis of the monks and the Luang Prabangis.

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