Trumpeter at the Wat

A trumpet player playing on the steps of a Buddhist Wat.

It would be dangerous for me to use the word "surreal" again, but I don't know how else to describe this incident. I went to Wat Wisunarat in Luang Prabang, and a couple minutes after I arrived this old falang with a weird bamboo thing on his head (it looks more like an inverted basket than a hat) strolled in. He was carrying a backpack, but the vast majority of falang do. He sat down on the steps of the stupa, opened his backpack, and pulled out a trumpet. He stuck the mute in, and started to play. He was very good. I think he played a jazz standard, but I'm not too good on recognition. Five minutes later, he packed his trumpet back in his backpack, and wandered off.