Luang Prabang ... in 2 minds but my group made it speical

Off the slow boat we decided to stay at a guesthouse "sold" to us at the landing jetty. But the french tout was very cool .. and we had dinner and drink together as a mini-group that evening. Luang Prabang at the 1st impression is very nice, a little oasis from a long boat from up North or a mountainous bus trek coming up from South. The last evening there we all went for a vegetarian buffet which is quite well known and in most guide reviews. There we met a Canadian lady who worked behind one of the stalls. Very intrigued, while eating very good and fresh food, that she worked there, spoke fluent Lao and the locals really engaged her, I wanted to know her story. But that is not the share here. One of the comments made by our french tout was something like this place was a "little fake", after a couple of days in Laung Prabang I thought he had a point and wanted to see this lady's reaction to this comment. She made a comment which I think captured exactly what this place was about. With development aid they have "romanticized the culture", especially the peninsula. This was spot-on. It is a very romantic place and is intertwined very well with the local culture for tourists especially the night market in my view. Her point was both positive and challenging. Trying to protect and ensure the local culture was not lost maybe something has been lost. Culture she continued is dynamic and changing. It can not be packaged and this was maybe what the "little fake" comment was all about. I enjoyed Luang Prabang, it was a good visit. The Kaung-Si waterfalls were a big woah!.. but what made it really worthwhile and special was the group of fellow independent travelers whom I met and dragged me around to all the places.