Noodle soup for breakfast

The soup is basically a load of ribbon noodles cooked until soft and then poured over a pile of herbs (with the cooking water), then a few bits of chicken, pork or buffalo are added, but I found a place that offered to throw in a handful of fried tofu cubes and garlic slivers instead. The herb mix seems to be similar in most places - it's a pile of watercress and bean sprouts (unchopped) and a few finely chopped spring onions. Chopped green chillies are also an option.

And the river weed? Well, the most surprising thing about it was the transformation from its raw state as a hairy mass to thin crispy fried sheets coated with garlic and sesame seeds. The final dish is not unlike the nori seaweed used for some types of sushi. In fact we have a load of Korean seaweed at home in Almaty that is even more similar. I bought it coz it was cheap and I figured it might work for sushi, but it didn't on account of the sheets being too crispy and also full of holes.

I saw the first pigeons of our visit today, on a rooftop in Luang Prabang. Taking a big chance, I thought.  Since we've been here, I have seen very few birds, none (other than the two pigeons and one Gray-backed Shrike yesterday) bigger than a sparrow and most are winter visitors. I haven't seen a single mouse, rat, squirrel nor any other mammal - not even a bat. Haven't seen any frogs, lizards or snakes either. On the plus side, there are no big cockroaches, but it is eery that the countryside should be so devoid of life. The banks of the Mekong River, which look comparable to other Asian rivers I've visited, except in one major area - they are picked clean and there are no shorebirds or amphibians or any wee fish visible in the shallows. 

I'm wondering if it's true -  as I've heard a lot -  that they really have all been eaten. And if so, why? The population is not so dense (not nearly as in India, for example, where the poverty that might lead to searching the woods for food is also widespread).

I won't have much time to find the answer to that question as tonight we'll be back in Ventiane and then over to Thailand as soon as we can get a hold of the visas.