Chill out in Luang Prabang in Laos

There is a resolute unaffectedness about Luang Prabang in northern Laos.

This city is growing with foreign help.

The expatriate presence has also catalysed the rise of more social enterprises, which are providing job opportunities for the community. About 70 per cent of the landlocked country, hemmed in by Thailand, Myanmar, China, Vietnam and Cambodia, relies on agriculture for work.

Businesses in Laos typically have to be co-owned by a Lao partner and the newest entry is the Laos Buffalo Dairy (www.laosbuffalodairy.com), located en route to Kuang Si Waterfalls.

Comprising a commercial dairy and production facility to make yogurt, cheese and ice cream, it is headed by former high-flying career woman Susie Martin. The Australian, who used to work for a multinational company in Singapore, admits that uprooting her family to start a dairy farm in Laos in 2014 was "a bit of a mid-life crisis".

The dairy rents buffalos from farmers to give them an alternate income source and shares knowledge on breeding practices to improve the survival rate of calves. An on-site production facility, which aims to provide cheese and yogurt to restaurants and hotels in Luang Prabang and the rest of Laos, creates jobs for locals and imparts skills as well.