A garland of pure white paper cranes hangs from a monks’ residential building within Luang Prabang’s picturesque Wat Xieng Thong temple complex.
In Japan, the crane is a spiritual and holy creature, believed to live for one thousand years; Japanese legend holds that if one folds a thousand origami cranes, he shall be granted a wish.
We saw lovely cranes such as these adorning courtyards, porches, and places of spiritual significance in Cambodia and Laos.
Feeling inspired to fold some delicate birds of your own? Try your hand here.
Tricia A. Mitchell is a freelance writer and photographer. Born in Europe but raised in the United States, she has lived in Valletta, Malta; Heidelberg, Germany; and Split, Croatia. An avid globetrotter who has visited more than 65 countries, she has a penchant for off-season travel. Tricia has learned that travel’s greatest gift is not sightseeing, rather it is the interactions with people. Some of her most memorable experiences have been sharing a bottle of champagne with distant French cousins in Lorraine, learning how to milk goats in a sleepy Bulgarian village, and ringing in the Vietnamese New Year with a Hanoi family. She welcomes any opportunity to practice French and German, and she loves delving into a place’s history and artisanal food scene.
A former education administrator and training specialist, Tricia has a bachelor’s degree in elementary education and a master’s degree in international relations. She and her husband, Shawn, married in the ruins of a snowy German castle. They’ve been known to escape winter by basing themselves in coastal Croatia or Southeast Asia.
Her writing has appeared in Fodor’s Travel, Frommer’s, and International Living.
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13 thoughts on “Photo du Jour: Paper Cranes in Luang Prabang, Laos”
Nice photo and thanks for the link, might even give it a go.
Let me know how it goes, Mark! As a child I never had the attention span for origami, despite the fact that my parents purchased a wonderful kit for me… perhaps I should revisit the art! :)
Please do share some images if you give them a whirl! I was also inspired by the garland and hope to try making one once we’re settled in somewhere. :)
Happy weekend, Jane!
Travels With Tricia 
Nice photo and thanks for the link, might even give it a go.
Let me know how it goes, Mark! As a child I never had the attention span for origami, despite the fact that my parents purchased a wonderful kit for me… perhaps I should revisit the art! :)
Beautiful post for a beautiful subject, thank you :)
Yulia, thank you!
Lovely, both the image and the text. You have given me a new insight into one of my favourite films too.
Rachael, thank you & I’m curious! With which film is there a connection?
Blade Runner. ;)
One I’ll have to add to my list of movies to see then…
Great Idea
Thanks, Cooleur. If you try, let me know how it goes! :)
definitely Tricia
They look lovely, I will have to try making them too, I love origami.
Please do share some images if you give them a whirl! I was also inspired by the garland and hope to try making one once we’re settled in somewhere. :)
Happy weekend, Jane!